The United Kingdom is providing further assistance to Pakistan in the fight to stop the spread of the coronavirus and mitigate its impacts, by providing aid for the most vulnerable, and boosting wider public health communications.

This latest £4.39m package of support includes:

Being the first donor to contribute to Pakistan’s Humanitarian Pooled Fund (PHPF)

UK aid support for PHPF will help provide comprehensive support to fight the coronavirus and help those impacted indirectly by the crisis. This includes supporting emergency response systems and providing assistance towards food security, sanitation and hygiene, mental health and psychological support.

Supporting Aawaz II, which aims to empower and protect women and children

This joint programme from UNICEF, UNFPA and UN Women will provide support to nearly 10,000 women and children who face violence in their own home through, the Aawaz helplines staffed by men and women trained in the provision of psychosocial support and referral services. The Aawaz programme will also reach nearly 2 million people with messages fighting against stigma and discrimination as a result of coronavirus;

Supporting the Khairkhwah information campaign

The Khairkhwah campaign – which means Well Wisher – on TV and radio will reach up to 80 million people with messages on how to taking appropriate safety measures to reduce the spread of coronavirus in communities, as well as tackling coronavirus misinformation. This campaign will reach those living in rural and semi-urban areas who may otherwise struggle to get the latest information.

Lord Ahmad, UK Minister of State for South Asia and the Commonwealth said:

By supporting the poorest and most vulnerable people, especially those facing discrimination and by spreading information on how to protect against coronavirus, we can save lives. The UK is proud to support Pakistan, and through our investment in international vaccine research and the Global Vaccine Alliance, we will help end this pandemic sooner and prevent future waves of infection.

The UK stands with you in these difficult times.

The British High Commissioner Dr Christian Turner CMG said:

Pakistan has shown international leadership in its response, balancing the need to keep healthy, with growing the economy and protecting the poorest. Friends must stand together at difficult times.

Although we are socially distancing, we are not apart.

Head of Office for the UK’s Department for International Development in Pakistan, Annabel Gerry, said:

It is increasingly important that we work together to help those who are the most vulnerable. This is why I am proud that UK aid will be there for the women and children who face increased threats of violence and stigma in their own home and need access to these support services.

The UK is playing a leading role in the global effort to tackle coronavirus, including on vaccine development, strengthening health systems and support for the global economy. On 4 June the UK will host the Global Vaccine Summit, to raise money to ensure Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, can vaccinate 300 million more children against infectious diseases including in Pakistan. By working together as international partners to defeat this pandemic, we are all safer.

Note to editors:

• High Commissioner’s video message to mark the announcement;
• The UK is repurposing its Department for International Development (DFID) aid programme to focus on coronavirus. This includes providing immediate health and humanitarian assistance to detect the virus, boost local health systems, and protect communities.
• The PHPF funding of £2.5m is linked to strategic objectives outlined in the Pakistan Preparedness and Response Plan and Humanitarian Response Plan (HRP) for Pakistan.
• In partnership with the UN Joint Programs team £888,337 is being provided to fund psychosocial support services for women and girls who face violence in the home, as well as raising awareness for precautionary measures against coronavirus and its symptoms.
• The Khairkhwah campaign has been delivered by Icarus for radio and M&C Saatchi for TV.
• UK aid helps to tackle the global challenges of our time and is building a safer, healthier, more prosperous world.
• The UK has so far pledged £764 million of UK aid to end the coronavirus pandemic as quickly as possible. By preventing the virus from spreading in vulnerable countries, we will save millions of lives around the world and reduce the risk of future waves of infection.
• The UK is leading international efforts to develop a coronavirus vaccine. We have provided £250 million of UK aid to the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) to rapidly develop a coronavirus vaccine, the biggest donation of any country.
• The UK has pledged £200 million to help global organisations and charities tackle coronavirus in vulnerable countries. This includes £130 million for UN appeals, including £65 million for the World Health Organization (WHO); £50 million for International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement appeals; and £20 million for international NGOs, including UK charities, to tackle the virus.
• The UK has allocated £150 million to the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) Catastrophe Containment Relief Trust (CCRT) to help developing countries meet their debt repayments so that they can focus their available resources on tackling coronavirus.

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The UK and Poland have signed a treaty that secures the right of British and Polish citizens to stand and vote in local elections in each other’s countries following the UK’s exit from the EU. This ensures that British people living in Poland and Polish citizens living in the UK have the right to choose who represents them in local government in the country where they reside.

The treaty was signed by the UK’s Ambassador to Poland, Jonathan Knott and the Polish Secretary of State for Legal and Treaty Affairs, Piotr Wawrzyk, today (Friday 29 May) in Warsaw.

Foreign Office Minister for the European Neighbourhood, Wendy Morton, said:

We have protected the rights of nearly a million British and Polish citizens who live and work in each other’s countries. This treaty underlines our countries’ shared commitment to democracy and is a testament to the close ties between the UK and Poland, and our people. These ties have never been more important, as our countries work in partnership to overcome the global challenges posed by the coronavirus pandemic.

British Ambassador to Poland, Jonathan Knott said:

We have been determined that the difficult working environments we are all operating in due to the coronavirus pandemic should be no barrier to ensuring the rights of UK nationals living in Poland to elect their local representatives for many years to come, rights that will also be protected for Polish nationals living in the UK. I’m delighted we have reached this agreement – a sign of the depth of our bilateral relationship and the respect our countries have for each other.

Secretary of State for Legal and Treaty Affairs at the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Piotr Wawrzyk, said:

Today’s ceremony of the signing of the Polish-British agreement on the electoral rights in the local elections in Poland and the United Kingdom bears a special, symbolic character. It is a proof that ties between Poland and the United Kingdom remain strong and resistant, also in the adverse circumstances of the global pandemic. Our relations have never been closer than they are today. Poland and Britain co-operate closely in many important areas, we are linked by many formats of bilateral co-operation, the most important of which being the annual Intergovernmental Consultations. The agreement signed today proves that both countries want to maintain the closest relations possible, also following the United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the European Union.

This document, however, has – first and foremost – a human and civic dimension. It strengthens the ties between our countries by building a sense of the Polish-British community on the local level, both here in Poland, and in Britain. The effect of our joint efforts is confirmation of the full electoral rights at the local level for Poles living in the United Kingdom, as well as for the British people who chose Poland as their home.

I am convinced that the agreement will serve to further strengthen our strategic relations, which will continue to grow also after the end of the transitional period.

Poland’s Ambassador to the UK, Arkady Rzegocki said:

On behalf of Poles living and working in the United Kingdom, I would like to express great satisfaction at the fact that they will be able to continue to take an active part in the political life of their local communities. The ability for Poles to choose their representatives in local authorities, but also to apply for the positions of councillors and mayors, is of great significance not only for increasing the visibility of our compatriots in the United Kingdom – who have lived here for generations and have contributed significantly to the British cultural, economic and social life – but it also gives practical tools to implement their important demands.

This is another proof of how the Polish government is determined that the rights of Poles are not weakened after the UK exits the EU.

Poland is the fourth country to sign a voting rights treaty with the UK, following treaties signed with Spain, Portugal and Luxembourg last year.

• Community projects nationwide set to receive share of £5 million government investment to expand mental health support
• Cash boost will help existing services respond to global pandemic and protect nation’s wellbeing
• Funding to be delivered by mental health charity Mind

Community projects supporting people with their mental health during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic are set to benefit from their share of £5 million of additional funding, Mental Health Minister Nadine Dorries has announced today.

Voluntary organisations from across the country – such as local Mind organisations, Ambitious about Autism, Support After Rape and Sexual Violence, LGBT Foundation and Campaign Against Living Miserably – will receive a financial boost to expand their existing support services.

This fund is administered by Mind as part of the Mental Health Consortia, made up of Mind, the Association of Mental Health Providers, Centre for Mental Health, Mental Health Foundation, the National Survivor User Network and Rethink Mental Illness.

Mental Health Minister Nadine Dorries said:

“This epidemic has had huge consequences for us all, but for some it has been especially difficult, leading to loneliness, anxiety and other mental health challenges.

“I believe we must pull together as a nation during these trying times and I am absolutely determined that no one should have to cope with mental illness alone.

“While our NHS remains open for business and has adapted its care to continue to provide vital mental health care throughout the crisis, this investment will only strengthen what’s on offer and ensure emotional support sits at the heart of the community.”

The local charities benefiting include a wide range of support services including:

• a Leicester-based women’s centre supporting vulnerable women from black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) communities who may be elderly, at risk of domestic violence or living in poverty
• a national charity offering online peer sessions to young autistic people to protect their emotional wellbeing throughout the outbreak
• a Coventry-based support service offering therapy to the families of children affected by cancer across Warwickshire
• a LGBT Talking Therapies Programme in the Greater Manchester area, which is providing counselling services to people from their own homes during the lockdown period and beyond

This marks the first round of funding to be allocated to the sector, with a second wave of projects to receive funding shortly.

This funding package follows the £4.2 million investment announced by the Health and Social Care Secretary Matt Hancock for mental health charities – such as Samaritans, YoungMinds and Bipolar UK – during Mental Health Awareness Week, so they can continue to support people experiencing mental health challenges.

Chief Executive of Mind Paul Farmer said:

“It’s important that Mind, working closely with our colleagues in the Mental Health Consortia, have been able to quickly promote, assess and award much-needed funds to charities providing frontline mental health support in the midst of the coronavirus crisis. We were inundated with applications for the fund, showing just how much the support is needed.

“The coronavirus pandemic is impacting all of us, but is especially hard on those of us living with a mental health problem. The recipients of this much-needed fund are doing incredible work to support those who need them most, both on a national scale and in the community, and the money granted will help them continue to work in innovative ways.

“There’s still far more to be done, and we look forward to continuing to work together to help combat the mental health emergency we find ourselves in as we fund more organisations across England.”

• Bath Mind

• Changing Faces

• Islington Mind

• Campaign Against Living Miserably (CALM)

• Tower Hamlets Friends and Neighbours

• YoungMinds

• Take Off

• Shama Women’s Centre

• Mind in Tower Hamlets and Newham

• Support After Rape and Sexual Violence (SARSVL)

• The What? Centre

• Daisy Chain Project Teesside

• Suffolk Rape Crisis

• Rugby League Cares

• Bluebell Care Trust

• Ambitious about Autism

• Illuminate Charity

• Oakleaf Enterprise

• Cambridge Acorn Project

• London Friend

• North Kent Mind

• African Health Policy Network (AHPN)

• MindOut LGBTQ Mental Health Service

• Eating Matters

• Speakup Self Advocacy Limited

• Maidstone and Mid Kent Mind

• Solace Surviving Exile and Persecution

• Dementia Forward

• LGBT Foundation

• The Hugs Foundation

• St Helen’s Mind

• Shine A Light Support Service

• The Counselling Centre

• One Place East

• The CLD Trust

• Share Community Ltd