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Baroness Amos: My Lords, of course we are disappointed by the American response. We are major supporters of the work of the UNFPA. Our current core funding is £15 million per annum. In addition, we are pressing it to move ahead with reform proposals. We are considering an increased contribution. We will continue to be staunch allies of the fund and its objectives, because it is very important to tackle HIV/AIDS and maternal and child mortality.
Baroness Rawlings: My Lords, is the noble Baroness aware of the work of International Women's Healthcare, based in New York, in promoting women's health around the world? I pay tribute to it and declare an interest in knowing some people who work with it. Given the noble Baroness's commitment to promoting sexual and reproductive health services in developing countries, can she assure us that the Government will continue to place NGOs such as Population Concern, which are experts in the field, at the forefront of service delivery in promoting sexual health?
Baroness Amos: My Lords, the noble Baroness is aware that partnership is a key element of the Department for International Development's overall strategy. Working in partnership with NGOs, including on reproductive health, remains a priority for us.
Lord Avebury: My Lords, will the Government seek to persuade our partners in the European Union that we should make good the 34 million dollar shortfall arising from President Bush's capitulation to the Christian fundamentalists in the United States? Will
the Government confirm that the criticism that has been made in the US that China uses coercive population policies has been found to have no basis by delegations from Britain and the United States that have been to China recently? In view of that, what will be the impact of the loss of that 34 million dollars on the other programmes of the population fund, including those concerned with reducing maternal morbidity and mortality?
Baroness Amos: My Lords, the noble Lord is right. Three MPs recently visited China to observe the UNFPA's programme. They found no evidence that the UNFPA is supporting coercive activity. I think that the group from the United States found no evidence that the UNFPA was engaged in those activities, but expressed concerns about the activities of the Chinese Government. The European Commission announced on 24th July an additional contribution of 20 million euros to the UNFPA.
Baroness Gardner of Parkes: My Lords, are the Government continuing to support the development of microbicides, on which I saw a presentation at the Department for International Development? They are creams that could be applied vaginally. They could be contraceptive or not, according to the situation, but they would prevent HIV/AIDS. That is one of the greatest possible answers to the HIV problem. Is her department continuing to support that research, which seemed so hopeful?
Baroness Amos: My Lords, the answer is yes. We have committed £60 million to the Medical Research Council's microbicide development programme.
Lord Patel: My Lords, does the Minister agree that the Mexico declaration made by President Bush will adversely affect reproductive health programmes in the world's poorest countries, leading to further deprivation and increased poverty in those countries?
Baroness Amos: My Lords, it is important to recognise that reproductive health and education about reproductive health are absolutely critical in the fight against poverty. More than half of the new HIV/AIDS infections occur in young people under the age of 24. We must tackle this issue not only bilaterally but with our international partners.
Baroness Walmsley: My Lords, will the Minister join me in congratulating the BBC World Service on its very imaginative partnership with television companies in India to stem the tide of HIV/AIDS in that country? Will she and her right honourable friend in another place, Mrs Short—who I know is very supportive of this project—support similar imaginative projects in other countries, particularly in Africa?
Baroness Amos: My Lords, we are constantly looking at ways in which we can get our key messages
across, and the BBC World Service programme is but one element of that. I thank the noble Baroness for her comments about my right honourable friend.
Baroness Elles: My Lords, will the Minister kindly clarify exactly what is meant by the term "reproductive health"? In particular, does it include abortion, and if so, up to what stage of pregnancy, and on what grounds?
Baroness Amos: My Lords, the International Conference on Population and Development agreed that in no case should abortion be promoted as a method of family planning, and we agree with that. However, the conference also agreed that, where abortion is not against the law, it should be safe, and that in all cases women should have access to services for managing complications arising from unsafe abortions. We are working on various issues including reproductive health.
Regulation of Auditors
2.52 p.m.
Lord Sharman: My Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question standing in my name on the Order Paper. In so doing, I declare an interest as a paid adviser to KPMG.
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To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will make representations to the United States government to limit the extraterritorial effect of Senator Sarbane's bill regarding the regulation of auditors.
Lord Sharman: My Lords, I thank the Minister for that very helpful reply. Does he agree, however, that the proven system of regulation in operation in the banking industry—so-called host country regulation—is much preferable to the extra-territorial application of any state's legislation?
Lord Sainsbury of Turville: My Lords, without wishing to give a definitive view about the Government's approach to international regulatory matters, I should say that we do not want to see extra
regulatory burdens piled on British companies. In particular, we do not want an additional layer of regulatory burden to be placed on UK audit firms which are already subject to an extensive regulatory regime in the UK.National Asylum Support Service
2.53 p.m.
Lord Greaves asked Her Majesty's Government:
- What steps they are taking to strengthen the work of the National Asylum Support Service in the regions.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Home Office (Lord Filkin): My Lords, the National Asylum Support Service is currently undertaking a project designed to increase substantially its presence in the regions by the end of this financial year. It is intended that services that can best be provided by regionally based teams, such as investigations and outreach, should be included in the project.
Lord Greaves: My Lords, I thank the Minister for that Answer, and I encourage him in his work in this direction. There is still a huge need for much better liaison between NASS and local authorities in receiving areas; for much better individual support for asylum seekers, which is what I assume the Minister means by "outreach"; and for much better control of some of the accommodation providers. I should add that, recently, there was yet another television programme exposing the activities of Landmark in Merseyside. Does the Minister agree that those are three main aims in strengthening the service, and that a genuine decentralisation of the service—not just two or three more people in each region—is required?
Lord Filkin: My Lords, it may help if I amplify slightly what I said in my original Answer. There is an intention which is being actively explored to devolve four functions—investigations, outreach, intelligence and housing and contract management. It is our hope that, by the end of this financial year, we shall have substantially achieved that. As will be inferred, we substantially agree that, for example, housing and contract management benefits from close local liaison. That is one of the reasons for devolving control and management to the 12 regions.
Baroness Greengross: My Lords, does the Minister agree that many asylum seekers have great skills and abilities which need to be used particularly when they are waiting—sometimes for a long time—to know the results of their application to stay in this country? I declare an interest as the chair of the Experience Corps, a government supported initiative to enable people to use their skills on a voluntary basis. I am aware, for example, of an initiative in Derby where English-speaking asylum seekers give help, advocacy services and support to many people who have had
great difficulty. It is a way of keeping them involved and healthy. They are also giving help to other people, which is enormously important.
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