Tag Archives: Andrew Mitchell

October action launched! Call on the new DFID team to support saving millions of lives through the Global Fund

Posted on 26 September 2012 by RESULTS UK| Leave a comment

Our October action is here!

On September 4th this year, David Cameron re-shuffled his cabinet. He promoted, demoted an sacked ministers from every department, from health to housing. The Department for International Development was no exception. The Secretary of State, Andrew Mitchell MP was replaced by  Justine Greening MP, and the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State, Stephen O’Brien was replaced by LynneFeatherstone MP.

With new people at the top, we need to take the opportunity to deliver our messages about our key issues straight to the heart of DFID. This month we will be making the call for a renewed call for UK funding for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria. As the new ministers get up to speed on all the work of the department, we need to ensure that the millions of lives the Global Fund can save is right at the top of the pile.

ACTION: Write to Justine Greening MP, calling on her to announce an increase in UK finance for the Global Fund.

Materials included this month:

GROUP MEETINGS FOR TELEPHONE CONFERENCE: 2nd October 2012, 8pm

Guest speaker on conference call: Mike Podmore, Policy Manager, International HIV/AIDS Alliance

This month there are groups meeting to join the conference call in: Central London, South London, West London, Poole, the Stort Valley, Birmingham, Oxford, Macclesfield, Central Sheffield, South Sheffield, Leicester, Glasgow, Norwich, Leamington Spa, Belfast, Bristol, Newcastle and Linlithgow.  If you would like information on the location of your local group, please get in touch with us in the office at: felix.jakens@results.org.uk

If yo would like to join the conference call there are 3 numbers you can call – 0844 8360 360, 0207 788 3000 or 0800 369 8888. You must then enter the participant code, which is 18723. If you would like advice about which number to call please contact us in the office.

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Posted in Department for International Development, Events, Global Health, Grassroots Network, International Institutions, Monthly Actions, News, TB

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Recording of September focus call now available online

Posted on 20 September 2012 by RESULTS UK| Leave a comment

We are pleased to announce that a recording of our September Focus Call is now available for download. Click here to download the call September 2012 Focus call on DFID

The call is a ‘back to basics’ explanation of the UK Department for International Development and explains the way the agency is structured, its history, ministers and areas of work. Specific attention is paid to the recent ministerial reshuffle, which has seen new the replacement of the Secretary of State and the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State.

The call is led by Dan Jones, Campaigns Manager at RESULTS UK with four years experience of work in the civil service. The call is an excellent resource for anyone wanting to learn about how the UK government spends its overseas aid.

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Posted in Department for International Development, Focus Call, Grassroots Network, News

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The UK Cabinet Reshuffle and What It Means for International Development

Posted on 10 September 2012 by RESULTS UK| Leave a comment

As those who follow UK news and politics will have heard, last week saw a significant shake-up of the Coalition government’s cabinet. Many old faces swapped positions, whilst new faces also joined the ranks of the ministerial elite.

Prime Minister David Cameron speaks at London Summit on Family Planning, July 2012

At the Department for International Development [also known as DFID], change was in full swing as the serving Secretary of State, Andrew Mitchell MP, was replaced as Secretary of State for International Development by Justine Greening MP, possibly best known to the UK public for her previous role as Secretary of State for Transport. In this installment, the RESULTS Blog looks at the two new faces currently moving in to their offices at DFID.

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Posted in Department for International Development, News

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Labour MP to table Private Members’ Bill on 0.7%

Posted on 19 June 2012 by RESULTS UK| Leave a comment

Mark Hendrick MPLast week we reported a further delay in the Government’s plans to bring forward legislation committing 0.7% of GNI to aid, which could now be deferred until March 2015. Andrew Mitchell MP, Secretary of State for International Development, stated that the Government remain committed to the legislation and will bring forward the legislation when parliamentary time allows. On Sunday The Observer reported that Labour MP Mark Hendrick, who was drawn in the annual Private Members’ Bill lottery and therefore has an opportunity to table a bill in this parliamentary session, has written to the Secretary of State to offer to use his slot to bring forward a bill on 0.7%.

The bill will be tabled tomorrow, and forward publicity describes it as: a ‘Bill to make provision about the meeting by the United Kingdom of the target for official development assistance (ODA) to constitute 0.7 per cent of gross national income; to make provision for independent verification that ODA is spent efficiently and effectively; and for connected purposes.’ Watch this space for more news.

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Posted in Department for International Development, Development Finance

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World TB Day and creating the political will to tackle the disease

Posted on 31 March 2012 by RESULTS UK| Leave a comment

As we look back on the activity around World Tuberculosis Day from campaigners, advocates, and researchers there is one element that slipped quietly under the radar.  A joint statement co-signed by UK Political Party leaders on International Development restating their commitment to addressing this devastating disease of poverty.

This statement and the list of signatories on a recent Early Day Motion in the Houses of Parliament marking WTBD  – a form of petition for MP’s – again highlights that tackling TB is very much a cross party issue in the UK and one that all sides of the political spectrum recognise as important.  However, it also highlights how we, as TB advocates, needs to be smarter and shrewder in our messaging.

It is often said that a lack of political will is why tuberculosis continues to indiscriminately kill millions across the world every year, which is true.  Globally we have the resources to eradicate the disease, but it continues to thrive.  So how do we create the political will? Uncomplicated Messaging is the key.

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Posted in Department for International Development, Global Health, TB

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Australia’s Kevin Rudd speaks out for education at UNGA

Posted on 7 October 2011 by RESULTS UK| Leave a comment

The UN General Assembly, photo by Aria9Two weeks ago the UN General Assembly (UNGA) began in New York. UNGA is the main deliberative, policymaking and representative body of the UN, and is held from September to December every year, with the High-level meetings that involve Heads of State and senior government representatives clustered in mid-September. Many issues are debated at UNGA, with a big focus this year on food security and the famine in Somalia.

This year’s UNGA was an especially important moment for the fight to ensure everyone in the world has access to education because we’re in the final stages of preparation for the Global Partnership for Education replenishment, which is being held in Copenhagen, Denmark on the 8th November. The process of persuading donors including the UK Government to commit additional resources to the partnership takes a long time, but there was a special buzz about lobbying between donors at UNGA, with those who are most supportive pushing those who are lagging.

A particular stand-out contribution came from Kevin Rudd, Australia’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, who made an impassioned speech on behalf of education: Continue reading →

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Posted in Education for All, News

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DfID announces new funding for girls’ education

Posted on 30 September 2011 by RESULTS UK| 2 Comments
Nick Clegg addresses the Liberal Democrat Conference in 2011, Photo by Alex Folkes/Fishnik Photography

Nick Clegg addresses the Liberal Democrat Conference, Photo by Alex Folkes/Fishnik Photography

Last week the UK Government announced a new project to help up to a million girls in the world’s poorest countries to go to school. The announcement was made by the Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg, at the Liberal Democrat Conference. £355m has been set aside for the project in the Department for International Development’s (DfID) aid budget between now and 2015, in addition to money already allocated for education.

This is great news because educating women and young girls is so important in developing countries. Education for girls can radically improve their prospects for employment, increasing potential income by as much as 10 to 20 per cent for every extra year of primary school. This improves not only their own lives, but those of their families and their communities. Moreover, education dramatically improves the health of young women and their children, preventing maternal deaths and infant mortality, as well as raising the age of marriage and lowering fertility rates. Girls who have been through school are three times less likely to contract HIV. By focusing on getting access to school for girls, DfID can help towards greater equality for women in developing countries, at the same time as working towards education for all and the wider contribution this makes to economic, social and political development. Continue reading →

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Posted in Department for International Development, Education for All

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Reinvigorating support for education: the Global Partnership for Education

Posted on 22 September 2011 by RESULTS UK| Leave a comment

Global Partnership for Education logoYesterday the United Nations General Assembly saw the official launch of the ‘Global Partnership for Education‘, the new name of the organisation that has been known as the ‘Education for All Fast Track Initiative’ since its founding in 2002. RESULTS welcomes the renaming of the organisation, which makes it much clearer what the organisation is and how it works and we hope will lead to a broader awareness of its excellent contribution to ensuring all children in low-income countries are able to access education.

Following significant reforms to its structure and operations, the Global Partnership for Education is now the leading multilateral organisation working towards education for all. The new name is another step towards ensuring the world has the leader that it needs on financing for education, and in November the organisation is taking on the next challenge by holding a replenishment event to raise funds to finance its operations until 2014. In July we asked our supporters to write to Secretary of State for International Development Andrew Mitchell MP to ask him to provide strong UK backing for the replenishment. If you haven’t taken the action and would like to you can find out more here.

More information about the re-launch of the Global Partnership for Education can be found on their website and in an excellent blog from the ONE campaign.

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Posted in Education for All, News

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Natalie Cameron: Independence is the end of the beginning for South Sudan

Posted on 20 July 2011 by RESULTS UK| 2 Comments

Over the next few days we will be running a ‘mini-series’ of articles which will look at the formation of the new state of South Sudan and the developmental challenges it faces. This writing will be done by our new guest writers. Today’s piece on the broad challenges faced by this fledgling nation comes from Natalie Cameron. Natalie is a politics undergraduate at the University of Nottingham.

Independence is the end of the beginning for South Sudan

On Saturday 9th July, a new nation came into existence. South Sudan gained independence from Sudan in response to a referendum held in the south in January, in which an overwhelming 99% of residents voted in favour of separation. This development follows a long history of civil war between north and south, and was received with  jubilation in South Sudan. However, as International Development Secretary Andrew Mitchell points out, ‘South Sudan starts life as one of the world’s poorest nations, with more than half the population living in poverty.’ Amongst the celebrations of such a notable achievement, it must be remembered that there will be many challenges which South Sudan must confront in its infancy.

The events of 9th July signified the birth of two countries rather than one, and this signifies South Sudan’s first challenge. What previously would have been an occurrence of civil war between north and south will now count as an international disagreement, and this will have important global implications. North Sudan and South Sudan will settle border disputes and share out oil revenue in the next few weeks; an occurrence which will be of significance to countries across the world, and this is merely the first hurdle which the newly separate states will have to address in the long process of independence.

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Posted in News, Women

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UNESCO launches global partnership for girls’ and women’s education

Posted on 28 May 2011 by RESULTS UK| 1 Comment
Education in Bangladesh, photo by 'uncultured'

Photo by 'uncultured'

Today at a major event at UNESCO headquarters in Paris, a group of global leaders launched a new UNESCO Global Partnership for Girls’ and Women’s Education, called “Better Life, Better Future”. The initiative was launched by UNESCO head Irina Bokova, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon and US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. In her address to the event Irina Bokova called the initiative ‘a global conscience for gender equality’. The flyer about the initiative points out that not only is education for all a right, which far too many girls and women are currently denied, in addition ‘newly literate women have a highly positive impact on all development indicators, from health to wealth. Women’s literacy benefits not only women themselves, but also their children and the wider community.’

RESULTS has been calling for more attention to the issue of girls and women missing out on education – our May grassroots action addressed precisely this issue and asked for the UK Government to push for more international action to ensure that all children complete their education – at present large numbers of girls drop out before finishing primary school, or fail to make the transition to secondary education – and that education systems are functioning in a way that enables all students regardless of their gender to achieve their potential. During her opening speech to the event today, Irina Bokova thanked the governments of Italy and Japan, as well of course as Secretary Clinton, but the UK was not mentioned despite Secretary of State for International Development Andrew Mitchell MP’s pledge to put women and girls ‘at the front and centre’ of UK development aid. Continue reading →

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Posted in Education for All, News

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