To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether his Department plans to maintain the current level of funding for the Global Challenges Research Fund.

The challenging financial situation we face due to the Covid-19 pandemic has resulted in a temporary reduction in the UK’s aid spending target from 0.7% of GNI to 0.5%. This means making difficult decisions when it comes to prioritising how we spend aid money to deliver the most impactful outcomes.

On Tuesday 26^th January, my Rt hon Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Affairs, having concluded the ODA allocations of the Spending Review, issued a statement outlining each Department’s total ODA settlement. At present, I am working with officials to determine how best to allocate BEIS’s allocation on a fund-by-fund basis, in line with the Strategic Framework for UK ODA.