Written questions by Gill.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he plans to develop an Africa strategy.

The Foreign Secretary launched a five-month consultation to inform the UK's new approach to the African continent during his visit to Nigeria and South Africa in November 2024. This follows the manifesto commitment to develop a fundamentally transformed partnership that engages with African countries as equals, promotes our economic growth and supports migration priorities. In recent weeks, the Foreign Secretary and the Minister for Africa met with African Ambassadors, High Commissioners, civil society, and African experts to discuss opportunities for building a long-term mutually beneficial UK relationship with African countries.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to improve development cooperation within the Commonwealth.

The UK is collaborating on development across the Commonwealth to build societal, democratic, environmental, and economic resilience. Since 2016, the UK, with partners, has supported the Commonwealth Climate Finance Access Hub to help mobilise over $310 million (£249 million) of finance for small island members - as well as tackle barriers to accessing essential climate finance. Last year, the UK and other members launched the Commonwealth Plan of Action on Investment aimed at building economic resilience in small and vulnerable members. A few Commonwealth countries, including the UK, fund Commonwealth Scholarships which support developing countries to realise Sustainable Development Goals.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the pause in USAID spending on (a) jointly-funded UK-US programmes and (b) multilateral (i) organisations and (ii) initiatives.

The UK notes the US decision to pause new obligations of foreign aid funding for 3 months, pending a review and this is a matter for the US. Progress toward the Sustainable Development Goals requires collective action, and the UK will continue to work with all international partners, including the US, toward that vision. The UK's commitment to supporting both humanitarian aid and development across the world remains steadfast.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to improve development cooperation with the European Union.

We are committed to working closely with partners, including the EU, to deliver our new approach to development. The Foreign Secretary and then High Representative for Foreign Affairs agreed at the October EU Foreign Affairs Council to strengthen their co-operation on international issues. I discussed this ambition again with the EU Commissioner for International Partnerships on 5 February. As a practical example of UK-EU collaboration, the EU confirmed through a 'Pillar Assessment' last autumn that the UK is eligible to manage EU funds on the EU's behalf.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department is taking steps to help ensure the long-term stability of (a) NGOs and (b) aid agencies that (i) provide humanitarian support and (ii) have other operations in Afghanistan.

The UK is a strong supporter of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and aid agencies in Afghanistan. We are planning £161 million in aid to Afghanistan this financial year (2024-25), much of which supports NGOs to deliver lifesaving humanitarian aid for women, girls and other marginalised people. UK officials regularly lobby the Taliban on the vital role of NGOs and risk of further restrictions on their activities. The UK underlined the importance of the humanitarian response in a G7+ senior officials' joint statement on 20 December, and in a statement by UN Security Council members on 27 December.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will collect data on family remittances from the UK.

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office does not collect or report this data on the flow of family remittances out of the UK. The best source is the World Bank Group's remittance data which captures flows through formal banking systems and is published annually.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made recent representations to the authorities in Afghanistan on the treatment of women and girls in that country.

We repeatedly condemn the Taliban's draconian restrictions on women and girls' rights, both bilaterally and internationally. The UK Mission to Afghanistan in Doha continues to press Taliban acting ministers and Afghan officials on their grotesque human rights abuses. UK officials most recently visited Kabul in January 2025 to raise human rights issues with senior members of the Taliban, including their policies which limit women and girls' freedoms.While in New York in January I publicly demonstrated my support for Afghan women and girls at the UN, ahead of the International Day of Education on 24 January.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will take steps to reduce transfer fees on family remittances.

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) co-convene, with Save the Children, a UK-based Remittances Working Group which works with key partners including remittance service providers, diaspora communities, NGOs, and other UK government departments to seek solutions that can drive down costs associated with sending and receiving remittances. The FCDO also supports a remittances project trialling new ways to reduce remittance transfer fees for individuals, working with East African diaspora members in the UK who are sending money back to Kenya.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to deliver humanitarian aid to Sudan.

The UK continues to provide humanitarian assistance to support people in Sudan and those who have fled the country. The UK has recently doubled its Official Development Assistance (ODA) this year in response to the conflict in Sudan to £226.5 million - the vast majority of which is spent on vital humanitarian aid including support for the regional refugee crisis. This funding includes support to key UN agencies such as the World Food Programme (WFP) and UNICEF which are providing life-saving food assistance in Sudan. We are also one of the largest donors to the UN-led Sudan Humanitarian Fund (SHF) which delivers life-saving multi-sectoral support to communities across Sudan and is now piloting support to the Emergency Response Rooms (ERRs). The UK also continues to support the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), including their work on emergency preparedness and response, protection of civilians, and providing life-saving healthcare across Sudan.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what proportion of bilateral programme funding had a gender equality policy marker in the last two years for which information is available; and what proportion of that funding had gender equality as a (a) principal and (b) significant objective.

Official data, sourced from the Statistics for International Development, and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Development Assistance Committee (DAC) Creditor Reporting System, is available for 2022 and 2023. This data indicates that in 2022, 58% of Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) bilateral Official Development Assistance (ODA) programmes had a focus on gender equality (using OECD DAC markers Significant and Principal), with (1) 45% marked as Significant and (2) 13% marked as Principal. In 2023, 66% of FCDO bilateral ODA programmes had a focus on gender equality, with (1) 53% marked Significant and (2) 13% marked as Principal. The FCDO remains committed to ensure at least 80% of FCDO's bilateral aid programmes have a focus on gender equality by 2030. Due to an internal systems issue that excluded markers for a number of programmes, data submitted to the OECD Development Assistance Committee by the FCDO published in December 2024 was incorrect. This issue has now been resolved; data has now been corrected and an update published by the OECD.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to promote (a) internet freedom and (b) access to information to advocate freedom of religion internationally.

The UK is committed to media freedom, and advocating freedom of religion or belief (FoRB). The UK is a member of the Freedom Online Coalition (FOC), a partnership of 41 governments, co-ordinating diplomatic efforts and engaging with civil society and private sectors to support Internet freedom. We co-chaired the FOC's Task Force on Internet Shutdowns for the past two years. We also co-hosted the International Day for Universal Access to Information with UNESCO, in 2023. Internet freedom and access to information are important enablers of democracy and human rights, including the right to FoRB. We continue to promote FoRB internationally, by coordinating with partners at fora such as the UN, and bilaterally through our diplomatic network.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent steps his Department has taken to help promote freedom of religious belief for (a) Christians and (b) other religious minorities in Nigeria.

The UK continues to champion Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) for all in Nigeria, and beyond. No one should live in fear because of what they do, or do not believe in. We work to uphold the right to FoRB through our position at the UN, G7 and other multilateral fora and bilaterally in Nigeria. The UK Government remains committed to supporting Nigeria to address ongoing security challenges, including violent extremism and intercommunal violence, which continue to impinge on the rights of Nigerians to FoRB. In June, we delivered a speech at the UNSC to promote FoRB and highlight our work to tackle intercommunal violence in Nigeria. At the latest UK-Nigeria Security and Defence Partnership dialogue in February 2024, we reaffirmed our commitment to working with Nigeria to respond to the shared threat of terrorism.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to coordinate with the interim government of Bangladesh to protect Hindu and other religious minority communities.

The UK has a long-standing commitment to the protection of human rights. We are committed to Freedom of Religion or Belief for all. In July, the UK government expressed concern about the situation in Bangladesh and called for all sides to end the violence. We support the fact-finding mission by the United Nations to identify human rights violations in Bangladesh. We welcome the Chief Advisor's recent comments on the need to support minority communities in Bangladesh, particularly in the lead up to Durga Puja. The Interim Government in Bangladesh has the UK's full support as it works to restore peace and order.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his counterparts in Yemen on the restriction of religious or belief for Bahai's in that country.

We actively track the treatment of the Baha'i community in Yemen, including through meeting their representatives in the UK and lobbying the relevant authorities. Following the Houthis' arbitrary abduction of 17 members during a peaceful gathering in Sana'a in May 2023, we were pleased to welcome the release of the final four hostages in August 2024.However, we strongly condemn the continued persecution of Baha'i members and other ethnic and religious minorities in Yemen.The Government champions freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) for all. No one should live in fear because of what they do or do not believe in. We will work to uphold the right to FoRB through our position at the UN, G7 and other multilateral fora and in our important bilateral work.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with his Bangladeshi counterpart on (a) education, (b) registration and (c) other assistance for Rohingya refugees arriving in that country.

The UK regularly discusses the Rohingya refugee response with the Interim Government of Bangladesh. This includes the importance of providing education and skills training to those in the camps, and ensuring new Rohingya arrivals are registered and can access humanitarian assistance. The UK is a leading donor to the humanitarian response in Bangladesh and has provided £391 million to support the Rohingya refugees and host communities since 2017. During the UN General Assembly, Lord Collins, Minister responsible for the UN, and Human Rights, co-hosted a high-level event on the Rohingya crisis, urging greater efforts to improve conditions in the camps and enhance refugee skills.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to promote compliance with the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women in Afghanistan.

We have repeatedly condemned Taliban restrictions on women and girls' rights, including through UN Security Council and Human Rights Council resolutions.  As the Foreign Secretary said on 24 August, the exclusion of women from all aspects of public life is another tragic setback for Afghanistan. We are discussing with international partners ways to hold them accountable. More broadly, officials regularly press the Taliban to reverse their inhuman restrictions, both bilaterally and with international partners.