§ Mr. StreeterTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development (1) what account she takes of religious freedom in developing countries when deciding levels of UK development assistance; [159395]
448W(2) what plans she has to make compliance with Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights a feature of UK aid policy; [159394]
(3) what discussions she has had with aid recipient countries about compliance with Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights; [159391]
(4) if she will list the UK aid programmes that have freedom from religious persecution as their primary objective. [159390]
§ Clare ShortThe objective of my Department is the elimination of poverty. Our central focus is therefore respect for the human rights of the poor. Frequently the poorest are ethnic and religious minorities that face discrimination and social exclusion. Our strategy on human rights is set out in "Realising human rights for poor people" published in October 2000.