A further ten million Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccines have been sent by the UK to COVAX, with 10 million more due to be delivered in the coming weeks to some of the world’s most vulnerable people. These additional donations mean 30.6 million surplus doses of Oxford-AstraZeneca will have been given to those in need in 2021.

Oxford-AstraZeneca is the world’s most widely used vaccine, accounting for more than half of all COVAX deliveries. Thanks to AstraZeneca’s commitment to the UK Government to distribute the vaccine on a non-profit basis, 1.5 billion doses have been used in more than 170 countries.

In 2022, the UK will donate at least 20 million more Oxford-AZ doses. This will mean we have given half of the UK’s total order of the vaccine to countries in need.

The UK will also donate all the 20 million Janssen doses ordered by the Government to COVAX. Domestic need for the current booster programme will be met through mRNA vaccines and Oxford-Astra Zeneca, meaning the UK can donate its full Janssen order to developing countries. Janssen aim to prioritise deliveries to countries based on need so COVAX will receive the much-needed vaccines as soon as they come off the production line in 2022.

Today’s announcement means that the UK has now set out how 70% of the 100 million vaccines we have pledged to share with those in need have been or will be delivered. Providing this detail of planned donations as early as possible will help COVAX allocate and plan delivery of doses more effectively, ensuring vaccines get to those that need them most.

Today at a meeting of G20 leaders in Rome the Prime Minister will hail the importance of vaccines in allowing the world to recover from the coronavirus pandemic. He will call on G20 leaders to do everything in their power to increase supplies to those that need them, either through direct donation or encouraging pharmaceutical companies to adopt the Oxford-AstraZeneca model which is putting people over profit.

Addressing the G20 Summit, the Prime Minister is expected to say:

Like a waking giant, the world economy is stirring back to life. But the pace of recovery will depend on how quickly we can overcome Covid.

Our first priority as the G20 must be to press ahead with the rapid, equitable and global distribution of vaccines.

At the G7 Summit in Carbis Bay, leaders agreed to work to vaccinate the world by the end of 2022. The UK will donate 100 million surplus vaccine doses by the middle of next year to help achieve that goal.

Surplus donations alone will not allow us to defeat the pandemic. That is why the UK is backing the Oxford-AstraZeneca production model while providing developing countries with the financial support they need to obtain vaccines – giving £548 million early on to COVAX.

The UK continues to proactively manage our vaccine supply and does not hold a stockpile of covid vaccines. All procured, regulated doses are either used rapidly by our domestic programme or shared internationally with countries in need.

New large-scale floating offshore wind ports and factories are to be built in the UK thanks to government investment, Prime Minister Boris Johnson has announced today (30 October 2021).

Developers and manufacturers looking to invest in this emerging industry will be able to bid for a share of up to £160 million in new funding, to kickstart projects across the UK. 

The newly allocated funding will support the target in the Prime Minister’s Ten Point Plan to deliver 1GW of energy through floating offshore wind by 2030 – nearly 9 times more than the current volumes worldwide – as a stepping stone to substantial further growth in the UK of this technology.

Floating wind allows wind farms to be built further out to sea in deeper waters, boosting energy capacity even further where winds are strongest and ensuring the UK remains at the forefront of the next generation of clean energy.

It is expected that the £160 million, boosted by private sector investment, will develop port infrastructure capable of mass-producing floating offshore wind turbines and installing them out at sea, creating thousands of new jobs in the UK’s industrial heartlands, whilst reducing the need to import from overseas.

Making the most of the deep waters off the Scottish coast offers huge opportunities for Scotland’s coastal communities, building on its lead as a technology hub for offshore wind, including two of the world’s first floating offshore wind farms off the coast of Aberdeen. The Celtic Sea is also a major development opportunity for the offshore wind sector, with a combination of deep waters and strong winds, and which is set to create significant opportunities for development in Wales, creating a new economic cluster that builds on its strong industrial heritage.

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said:

Offshore wind is a UK success story in forging our Green Industrial Revolution. Tapping into this emerging sector will boost our clean electricity generation even further, creating jobs and green innovation across the whole of the UK.

This comes as the Prime Minister attends the critical G20 summit in Italy ahead of COP26 next week, as he urges major economies to phase out coal and accelerate the transition to clean technology and energy around the world.

The UK’s success story in the offshore wind industry has seen costs fall by 65%. Replicating this around the world will be crucial to helping halve global emissions by 2030, helping to keep within reach the limit to temperatures rises to 1.5C.

Business & Energy Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng said:

This investment will help to attract further private sector backing to boost our industrial heartlands. It will create and support thousands of good quality jobs ensuring they remain at the forefront of the next generation of clean energy as we build back greener.

Floating offshore wind is key to unlocking the spectacular wind energy resource we enjoy in the UK, particularly in the deep waters around the coasts of Scotland and Wales. This new investment will put us in a leading position to capture the full economic benefit of this fast growing industry.

The newly allocating funding follows the success of the UK Government’s £160m scheme to upgrade ports and infrastructure for the conventional offshore wind industry, which has secured around £1.5bn of investment, including new offshore wind ports in Teesside and the Humber. 

Earlier this year, the Government also kicked off the biggest-ever round of the flagship Contracts for Difference scheme – accelerating low carbon electricity generation, including £200m support for offshore wind projects and £24 million for floating offshore wind. 

The first group of LGBT Afghans to be helped by the UK Government to leave Afghanistan since the end of the evacuation arrived in Britain on Friday to start their new lives.

The group of 29 arrived in the UK yesterday, following interventions by the Foreign Secretary and support from UK and Canadian organisations Stonewall and Rainbow Railroad.

Under Taliban rule, LGBT people are among the most vulnerable in Afghanistan, with many facing increased levels of persecution, discrimination, and assault.

The UK is playing a world-leading role in supporting the departure of persecuted Afghans from the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community.

Yesterday’s arrival is hoped to be the first of many of LGBT Afghans who are able to start new lives in the UK.

Since the end of Operation Pitting in late August, the UK has helped more than 1,300 people, including British and Afghan nationals, to leave Afghanistan.

Foreign Secretary, and Minister for Women and Equalities, Liz Truss said:

Britain is a fierce champion of freedom and the right of all people to be themselves and love who they want free from persecution. We played a key role getting these people out and will continue to do all we can to help at-risk Afghans leave the country.

Kimahli Powell, Executive Director of Rainbow Railroad, said:

Since the fall of Kabul, Rainbow Railroad has been leading efforts to find safety for LGBTQI+ Afghans facing grave danger. In partnership with others, we have directly relocated dozens of persons to safer countries where they can live lives free of state-directed persecution. Rainbow Railroad is thankful for the strong advocacy of Stonewall UK and for the UK Government, which helped facilitate the arrival of these LGBTQI+ persons. This is just the beginning of our efforts to help hundreds of LGBTQI+ individuals we are supporting in Afghanistan relocate to safety. We look forward to continuing to work with the UK government and other governments ready to follow their lead to help Afghans at risk.

Nancy Kelley, Chief Executive of Stonewall, said:

Throughout this crisis, Stonewall and our supporters have called for international support for LGBTQ+ Afghans, and for their recognition as a priority group for resettlement in the UK. Over the last few months, we have worked around the clock alongside the UK Government, and Rainbow Railroad, to support LGBTQ+ Afghans to safety. Today, we are proud that our campaigning and collaboration has resulted in the first group of LGBTQ+ Afghans arriving here in the UK to resettle and rebuild their lives, and for LGBTQ+ people to be recognised as a priority group for resettlement. However, our work is not yet done. We will continue advocating for international support for LGBTQ+ Afghans, including those that remain in Afghanistan, and we will also continue to work with the UK Government to ensure that the LGBTQ+ Afghans who arrive in the UK are given the support they need to thrive.

Among the group are students and activists who have repeatedly stood up for equality for the LGBT community in Afghanistan.

The group will be supported by Stonewall, Micro Rainbow and other LGBT charities to set up their new lives in the UK.

Further vulnerable LGBT Afghans are expected to arrive in the UK in the coming months. The Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme (ACRS) will provide protection for people at risk and identified as in need.

The scheme will prioritise those who have assisted the UK efforts in Afghanistan and stood up for values such as democracy, women’s rights, freedom of speech, and rule of law, as well as vulnerable people, including women, girls and members of minority groups at risk.

The UK is committed to working with our international partners to protect and promote the human rights of LGBT people.

In June 2022, the UK will host its first ever global conference to tackle inequality and address the safety of LGBT people around the world.

Thank you Mr President. First let me thank you and the Permanent Representatives of France and Niger for leading our visit last weekend. I would also like to thank SRSG Wane, the two country teams and the Secretariat for their support. We are grateful to the government of Mali and Niger for their welcome.

  Last weekend we saw first hand the scale of the challenges facing Mali and the region.  We met heroic UN staff in both countries.  We heard the commitment of civil society leaders – men and women – to national dialogue and peacebuilding, and the commitment of Mali’s neighbours to working together for the stability of the Sahel. But we received some worrying messages from Mali’s transitional authorities about their commitment to the transition, and on regional cooperation.  

  The UK shares concerns at the lack of progress made by the transitional authorities in preparing for elections. The UK supports the mediation efforts of ECOWAS and endorses their call for the transitional authorities to publish an election timetable without delay.  

  We all recognise the need for reforms aimed at governance, security, and justice concerns. But the authorities should focus on those required for timely political transition. Broader reforms are the job of a democratically elected government.     The UK deeply concerned about increasing violence against civilians, restrictions on humanitarian access and continued allegations of human rights violations and abuses, including against children. There must be an end to impunity for such acts.      

The UK remains committed to doing what we can to help address these challenges. As part of MINUSMA, UK troops are demonstrating how strengthened civilian-military coordination and more proactive peacekeeping can provide better protection for communities in hard to reach areas. The UK’s Long Range Reconnaissance Group has supported UN human rights teams to investigate abuses, enabled UN and Malian civilian officials to visit local communities, and piloted models for better intelligence gathering ahead of operations.  

  MINUSMA alone cannot fix Mali’s problems, however, absent the right political environment. In the coming weeks, we should keep developments in Mali under close review, in the hope that the transitional authorities deliver a timely return to constitutional rule promised to ECOWAS and this Council. Should the authorities fail to do so there must be consequences.  As many said in the Council event yesterday, we should follow the relevant regional bodies – in this case ECOWAS.  

  Mr President, in closing I would like to raise our concerns regarding the holds placed on the Mali Panel of Experts and a number of other panels. In the current context it is vital that the Mali sanctions committee and the Panel of Experts are able to operate without hindrance, to report on developments on the ground and inform Council decision making.

Thank you.