Speeches by Law.

“Ministers, when do you expect there to be an update to the UK women, peace and security national action plan?”

“If there is that consistency, why is it that we are looking to refresh the strategy now, ahead of the current strategy period end in 2027?”

“I have a further question on accountability. The UK has faced criticism for not taking stronger stances across multilateral platforms like the ICJ. How would you respond to some of those criticisms, particularly in the context of women, peace and security?”

“Would you consider providing a draft copy of that work to the Committee for comment in confidence, if possible?”

“The UK has been criticised for not leading specifically on accountability mechanisms—for example, for Afghan women, not recognising the concept of gender apartheid within international courts. Why is this? Why has the UK not done more to support women and girls in Afghanistan, for example?”

“Perhaps you can fully rebut some of these points on the record. What has been lost in these challenging times in terms of what we have been able to do to support women and girls in Afghanistan?”

“Yes.”

“I have perhaps a different spin on this question for Minister Elmore. Do you feel that the UK prioritises its diplomatic relationships over holding countries to account on this agenda?”

“Are you feeling that where you are driving through the middle some of that is cosmetic, in your view, or does it affect the nature of the agenda and the people you can reach in doing this work?”

“This question is to you both. As the leader and penholder in various multilateral platforms such as the UN Security Council, what role does the UK play in holding to account other countries that fall short on their WPS agendas?”

“How easy is that? Because we have seen, for example in Nigeria, some of the work on these programmes—there are probably parallels—but some conflict situations and cultural differences around this are pretty idiosyncratic.”

“Cosmetic.”

“Given the recent further estimates putting the total cost of the war in Ukraine to the European economy at north of $1 billion a year, while the total allied commitment to Ukraine remains at about $100 billion a year, does the Secretary of State agree that we cannot but afford to go further in our support for our Ukrai…”

“Okay. It is just strange, at a time when the fiscal rules have changed and all this capital has been released, that that has not filtered through. What are the reasons for that?”

“I apologise; I probably sound like a broken record on this point every time we have you but, given the inherit bias towards capital spend across Departments—you can argue the toss whether that filters through to FCDO, because of the nature of the ODA cuts—why is that bias towards capital investment not feeding through …”

“So essentially exceptional capital.”

“I forget the abbreviation, but is that required for it to be the type of capital used?”

“Is there any strong indication on the direction of returns for the forward-looking period?”

“Cornish communities and small and medium-sized enterprises in the supply chains of Cornwall’s most promising industries alike will have been delighted by the Chancellor’s announcement of the Kernow industrial growth fund in the recent Budget. Does the Chief Secretary to the Treasury agree that those funds should be inv…”

“Very briefly, have you noticed the difference in incentives since the change in the FCDO’s status as saver and spender of last resort?”