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13 Mar 2007 : Column 185W—continued
The Harris Museum and Art Gallery is also one of five partner institutions in the North-West Hub of the Renaissance Programme for regional museums. In total, this North-West Renaissance Hub has received the following funding:
| Grant in aid to the north west renaissance hub through the MLA | |
| £000 | |
| (1) Prior to the renaissance programme. | |
Public Buildings: Lighting
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what guidance she has issued on the exterior lighting of public buildings of cultural significance. [127161]
Mr. Lammy: The Department has not issued guidance on the exterior lighting of public buildings of cultural significance. However, English Heritage is developing standards and guidelines on lighting historic buildings for its own properties and for general guidance, which is due to be published later this year.
Theatre: Lancashire
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much Government funding theatres in Lancashire received in each of the last five years. [127116]
Mr. Lammy: Government funding for the arts is distributed, within broad guidelines, through Arts Council England. The following figures supplied by Arts Council England provide a breakdown of the information requested.
| Arts Council England grant in aid funding to theatre, Lancashire | |||||
| £ | |||||
| 2001-02 | 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | |
| Arts Council England lottery funding to theatre and drama activities, Lancashire | |||||
| £ | |||||
| 2001-02 | 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | |
International Development
Developing Countries: HIV Infection
Mr. Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what progress has been made in making the range of drugs relevant to HIV/AIDS available to people in the poorest countries; and if he will make a statement. [126395]
Mr. Thomas: The international effort to achieve universal access has helped boost the numbers on anti-retroviral drugs (ARV) treatment. In sub-Saharan Africa, the numbers on treatment rose 10-fold from 2003 to 2006 from 100,000 to over 1 million. This is equivalent to 23 per cent. of those needing treatment. Similarly, the number of sites where people can receive treatment has increased significantly, including in Malawi and Zambia where there has been increases of 20 and 30-fold respectively. As of 1 December 2006, Global Fund-supported programmes have put 770,000 people on ARV treatment for HIV. This represents more than one-quarter of the 3 million people on ARV worldwide and is 28 per cent. greater than the Global Fund targets for 2006.
The UK has already pledged to spend £1.5 billion on AIDS programmes between 2005 and 2008: this reflects our commitment to Universal Access. Despite this progress, much still needs to be done. In addition to funding AIDS programmes, we are supporting UNITAID, the new international drug purchasing facility, to fund second-line ARV, paediatric ARVs and TB and malaria drugs predominantly to low income countries. It is hoped that this mechanism will contribute to the necessary reductions in the prices of second-line drugs such as lopinavir/ritonavir and tenofovir (Viread and Kaletra). The UK Government are also helping strengthen the World Health Organisation (WHO) medicines pre-qualification process through UNITAID, in order to speed up the availability of new second-line ARV products. WHO's pre-qualification process is a critical block for low income countries using new ARVs, with a long backlog of medicines seeking pre-approval. The additional funding will accelerate the process.
Disaster Relief: Education
Ms Keeble: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps he is taking to ensure that education provision is included within the first phase in all humanitarian responses. [124895]
Hilary Benn: The first task of responding to a disaster should be meeting the priority needs of affected communities; i.e. emergency shelter, food, and water and sanitation facilities.
Following a disaster, the UN humanitarian co-ordinator oversees needs assessments carried out by the lead UN agency for each humanitarian sector. These are used to draw up global “flash appeals” to raise funding from donors.
Under the reform of the international humanitarian system, nine sectors which are deemed to be under-serviced in humanitarian response have become “clusters”, co-ordinated by a UN cluster lead who is allocated funds from a global cluster appeal in order to fulfil their leadership role. While education is not currently formally a cluster, in December 2006, the Inter Agency Standing Committee (consisting of the key UN and non-UN humanitarian partners) agreed that the cluster approach would be applied to the education sector, under UNICEF's lead. Education will also be included in the 2007 global cluster appeal.
In countries, this means that following a disaster, UNICEF will present a request for funding for the education sector, based on humanitarian need, to the humanitarian co-ordinator to include in the flash appeal. Where education is deemed to be a priority need, the humanitarian co-ordinator will highlight this and it will be up to donors to provide adequate funding.
Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria
Mr. Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much the UK has contributed to the Global Fund to help poor countries fight AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria. [126394]
Mr. Thomas: The UK has committed £359 million to the Global Fund over seven years (2002-08) including £100 million for 2006 and the same for 2007, subject to performance. The UK is now the fifth largest donor for the period 2006-07 (after the US, France, Japan and Italy) and the third largest in the EU. The UK's current share of Global Fund contributions is around 8 per cent.
Latin America: Overseas Aid
Mr. Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps his Department is taking to improve lives in Latin America. [126712]
Mr. Thomas:
DFID’s goal is to reduce poverty and inequality in Latin America in line with the international community’s commitment to help achieve the millennium development goals (MDGs) by 2015. DFID’s main financial contributions to Latin America are through direct contributions to the multilateral institutions: the Inter-American Development Bank,
the World Bank, the European Commission and United Nations. DFID also has a bilateral programme for Latin America (£11 million in 2006-07). The purpose of this programme is to enhance the overall impact of the international system in the region. DFID’s assistance to Latin America from 2004-07 is set out in the document entitled “Regional Assistance Plan”, copies of which are available in the Libraries of the House.
DFID is working with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and the World Bank, helping them to tackle social exclusion and to provide access to markets and international trade. Efforts are being made to provide accountable and responsive public sector management and effective political systems. DFID also works to improve donor coordination in support of government-led poverty reduction strategies and also to improve regional, analysis and lesson sharing to achieve trade policies that better reflect the impact of trade on poverty and inequality. In the health sector it focuses on improved quality and effectiveness of HIV/AIDS prevention, treatment and care drawing from regional organisations working with the Global Fund for AIDS, TB and Malaria.
DFID is also providing a further £7 million a year to British NGOs working in Latin America under Partnership Programme Agreements with DFID, and funding projects through the Civil Society Challenge Fund.
DFID’s programme in Latin America provides flexible and responsive funding and seeks to pilot innovative new approaches. It works with others, for example the UN and international NGOs, to facilitate cooperation between civil society organisations and the World Bank and IDB. It collaborates closely with the complementary programmes of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), and the British Council.
Through the UK Government’s Global Conflict Prevention Pool, DFID, alongside the FCO and the Ministry of Defence (MOD), supports security sector reform and small arms and light weapons reduction. The overall aim is to reduce armed violence, establish effective and appropriate rule of law in the region, and provide the security needed to enable development.
Nepal
Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what (a) humanitarian, (b) economic and (c) military assistance the UK is providing to Nepal. [126271]
Mr. Thomas: The information is as follows.
DFID monitors the humanitarian situation in Nepal jointly with the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) and other international bodies. In 2006-07 DFID provided £400,000 to UNOCHA to facilitate its leadership in this monitoring role, plus to support its coordination of the international response to emerging and ongoing humanitarian crises.
In November 2006 DFID funded a detailed food security assessment by the Government of Nepal and
UN agencies. In response to this assessment, DFID has contributed £250,000 to WFP’s current emergency operation in the Karnali region of western Nepal.
DFID’s overall contribution to humanitarian coordination and assistance in Nepal during this financial year has been £700,000.
DFID is spending £36 million on development aid to Nepal in 2006-07. This is funding several major programmes that support economic growth, either directly or indirectly. Local livelihoods and economic activity in rural areas are being supported through DFID’s Community Support Programme, the Livelihood and Forestry Programme, the Rural Access Programme and Agriculture support programme. In addition, we contribute to the cost of national government programmes in health and education, which increases spending and human development, which in turn will increase economic growth and create a better environment for investment. Finally, DFID’s support to Maoist cantonments, the re-establishment of law and order, upcoming national elections and political inclusion initiatives are helping to build the legitimacy of the state and stabilise the country, which is vital for investment and growth.
The UK supports the transition of the Nepal Army to a regular professional army under civilian control. We are working with the Government of Nepal to develop appropriate structures, including a strengthened Ministry of Defence, to help achieve this. We do not supply lethal equipment to the Nepal Army and have no plans to do so. We are assisting with training and equipment to strengthen the Nepal Army’s ability to undertake mine clearance.
As part of the peace process, the UK is also supporting the establishment of temporary camps for Maoist combatants, and is funding the United Nations Mission in Nepal to conduct the registration and verification of Maoist arms and combatants.
Mr. Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps he is taking to prevent the spread of AIDS in Nepal. [126686]
Mr. Thomas: DFID Nepal has been at the forefront of Nepal's response to HIV/AIDS. In October 2005, DFID commenced a five-year, £15-million programme in support of the national HIV/AIDS programme. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) manages DFID's support in conjunction with their management of grants from the Global Fund for AIDS, TB and Malaria. DFID is currently the second major donor to the national HIV/AIDS programme, contributing 24 per cent. of the programme's resources from mid-2006 to mid-2008. DFID support is aligned to the National HIV/AIDS Strategy and its corresponding Plan.
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