Pauline Latham is the MP for Mid Derbyshire
Stepping back from politics, as I have chosen to do at the next general election, gives one a sense of perspective.
In my case, I’ve gained a distance from the day-to-day to reflect on the positive legacies of what the Conservatives have achieved in government since 2010. These cannot and should not go unacknowledged, despite the continued challenges we face both at home and on the world stage.
On a personal level, I’m immensely proud of my role in the banning of child marriage in England and Wales which, with support from the Government, was enacted through my Private Member’s Bill. This became law in February and it fills me with pride to leave such an important legislative change on the statute books to protect some of the most vulnerable.
I’m also indebted to my constituents in Mid-Derbyshire, for whom I defended Derby County FC during its administration, worked with local businesses such as Rolls-Royce, and campaigned to make Derby the headquarters of Great British Railways.
On the world stage, I’ve been fortunate to serve on the International Development Select Committee alongside diligent and inspiring colleagues to promote girls’ education, eradicate disease, and increase clean water supply around the globe.
We played a significant role in formulating the Sustainable Development Goals between 2013 and 2015, which have since helped to guide the sector and inspire us to go further and faster.
These positive changes have come about in no small part through British leadership and they risk disintegrating without it.
With today being World Malaria Day, we can take this disease as a case study.
Malaria is a disease I know well from my many visits to Africa, where the vast bulk of cases are. My trips included a summit in the Kigali Summit on Malaria and STDs in 2022 where I saw first-hand the work of organisations like the Global Fund.
This year sees the continued rollout of one vaccine and likely rollout of a second, both of which are largely due to the efforts of British scientists backed by the British government.
But without continued ministerial support, this progress will slip. The impact of COVID-19 in particular has led the World Health Organization to state just last year that progress “has stalled” on malaria according to the World Malaria Report last year.
This is why the Conservative Party must continue its commitment to ending malaria and being a leader in international development in its next election manifesto.
Whilst the outcome of this election may be uncertain, re-committing to spending 0.7 per cent of gross national income on official development assistance is guaranteed to reaffirm this country’s status as global leader and secure our party’s legacy as a pioneer in international aid.
And we need not look far for inspiration: The Conservative Party Manifesto in 2019 both committed to “proudly maintain” 0.7 per cent of GNI on development and to “end the preventable deaths of mothers, new-born babies, and children by 2030, and lead the way in eradicating Ebola and malaria.”
I hope that my Conservative colleagues can rekindle this ambition and see the many global challenges we now face as providing all the more reason for doing so, rather than an excuse not to.
The post Pauline Latham: The Conservatives must maintain their proud legacy on international development appeared first on Conservative Home.
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Author: Pauline Latham MP
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