Written questions by Gill.

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.

What proportion of funding from the UK Infrastructure Bank went to female-led (a) projects and (b) businesses in the last 10 years.

The National Wealth Fund does not record the gender of the leadership teams of the projects and businesses, in which it invests. The National Wealth Fund makes investment decisions in line with its investment principles, which can be found on its website....

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 priv...

What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help improve women's health.

I would like to thank my Hon. Friend for her continued interest in women’s health.Women’s health is a priority for this government, and we are considering how to take forward the Women’s Health Strategy.Work continues to improve health outcomes for women,...

How many workers aged above 16 years old are paid within 50p of the (a) National Minimum Wage and (b) National Living Wage in (i) Birmingham and (ii) the West Midlands.

The Low Pay Commission publishes a report that provides a coverage of the National Minimum Wage (NMW) and National Living Wage (NLW) each year, shortly before the rates are updated in April. The report provides a Local Authority and Regional breakdown of ...

What estimate he has made of the number of workers that will benefit from the increase to the (a) National Minimum Wage and (b) National Living Wage in Birmingham.

In total, over 3 million workers are expected to receive a pay rise due to increases to the National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage in April 2025. We will also publish an Impact Assessment alongside the legislation that implements the increase to t...

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 mu...

What estimate he has made of the number of (a) hospitalisations and (b) deaths from people using nitazenes in Birmingham; and what steps he is taking to reduce these numbers.

The number of hospital admissions in Birmingham due to the use of nitazenes is not collected.On 3 October 2024, the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID) published the research report, Deaths linked to potent synthetic opioids, providing in...

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...

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...

How many illegal license plates have been seized by the police in each of the last five years.

The Government is working closely with the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) and the National Police Chiefs Council (NPCC) to improve the identification and enforcement of number plate crime.We do not hold information centrally on illegal licence...

What steps she is taking to tackle illegal license plates.

The Government is working closely with the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) and the National Police Chiefs Council (NPCC) to improve the identification and enforcement of number plate crime.We do not hold information centrally on illegal licence...

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 i...

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 ac...

Whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of allowing spousal visa applications to be submitted prior to the wedding date.

Fiancés, fiancées or proposed civil partners can apply for a six-month Entry Clearance to enable a marriage or civil partnership to take place in the UK. Once the ceremony has taken place, the spouse or civil partner will be eligible to apply for permissi...

What steps her Department is taking to support victims of sexual assault.

This Government is deeply committed to supporting victims of sexual assault. To do so, we must improve the justice system’s response to these crimes. We must relentlessly target the most prolific and harmful perpetrators; better support victims and surviv...

Whether him Department has made a recent assessment of the potential merits of using voluntary organisations to support victims of sexual assault.

Voluntary organisations are important providers of specialist services to adults and children who have experienced sexual assault or abuse. They are major providers of specialist advocacy, sexual trauma counselling, pre-trial therapy, and support services...

What recent assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of penalties for dangerous driving.

The Department for Transport has not recently assessed the adequacy of penalties for dangerous driving. The Government is committed to delivering a new Road Safety Strategy, the first in over a decade. We will set out next steps on this in due course.

What recent assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of the performance of for-profit providers of sexual assault referral centres.

All Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC) services are commissioned through an open and transparent procurement process. The quality of the service provision is a key consideration in any contract awardAll SARC services are subject to Care Quality Commiss...