Women, peace and security

International Development Committee Closed Inquiry
Opened: 7 Mar 2025 Closed: 10 Jun 2026 Parliament page
The International Development Committee is launching a new inquiry into how the UK Government is involving the needs and voices of women in its development efforts. The cross-party committee of MPs will explore the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda, adopted by the United Nations, considering how this agenda is … Read more
12 Recommendations
11 Conclusions
1 Report
3 Oral sessions
3 Events
Activity timeline 5 events
10 Jun
2026
Report published
23 Mar
2026
Report published
16 Dec
2025
Oral evidence
18 Nov
2025
Oral evidence
14 Oct
2025
Oral evidence
Oral evidence sessions 3 sessions
16 Dec 2025
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Women, Peace and Security
Alistair Carns DSO OBE MC MP · Ministry of Defence Chris Elmore MP · Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office Emily Maltman · Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office Stuart Mills · Ministry of Defence
18 Nov 2025
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Women, Peace and Security
Eva Tabbasam · Gender Action for Peace and Security (GAPS) Professor Toni Haastrup · The University of Manchester Reem Alsalem · United Nations
14 Oct 2025
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Women, Peace and Security
Fawzia Koofi · Afghan Parliament Fiona Kilpatrick-Cooper · The HALO Trust Hanin Ahmed · Emergency Response Rooms, Sudan Stephanie Siddall · Women for Women International The Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
Title HC No. Published Items Response
10th Report - Peace under pressure: Protecting Women, Peace and … HC 782 23 Mar 2026 23 Responded
Recommendations & Conclusions
8 results
Clear
4 Recommendation Accepted in Part
10th Report - Peace under pressure…
The future of Women, Peace and Security hangs in the balance and must be addressed...
The future of Women, Peace and Security hangs in the balance and must be addressed in its entirety rather than solely through country specific work. The UK should convene a dedicated session on Women, Peace and Security the next time … Read more
Government Response
The government partially agrees, emphasizing its commitment to embedding women's participation across all UN Security Council discussions and inviting women to brief in geographic-focused Council meetings, but does not explicitly commit to convening a dedicated WPS session when it next holds the presidency.
Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
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10 Conclusion Accepted in Part
10th Report - Peace under pressure…
There is a lack of transparency surrounding the UK’s Women, Peace and Security spending, including...
There is a lack of transparency surrounding the UK’s Women, Peace and Security spending, including how much Official Development Assistance is directed towards Women’s Rights Organisations, making it difficult for civil society organisations and other actors to track and assess … Read more
Government Response
The government partially agrees, explaining it refrains from naming individual partners for security reasons, but commits to providing over £3.5 million from a centrally managed programme for women peacebuilders and rights organisations for two financial years (FY26/27), thus providing some transparency on ODA.
Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
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11 Recommendation Accepted in Part
10th Report - Peace under pressure…
As part of its National Action Plan refresh, the Government should set out how Women,...
As part of its National Action Plan refresh, the Government should set out how Women, Peace and Security objectives will be fully resourced and prioritised in the context of Official Development Assistance cuts, and how associated funding will be strategically … Read more
Government Response
The government partially agrees, committing to provide over £3.5 million from a centrally managed programme to support women peacebuilders and rights organisations, with a similar amount in FY26/27. However, it does not commit to ringfencing multi-year funding for the broader WPS programming or to publishing and sharing comprehensive resourcing plans.
Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
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13 Conclusion Accepted in Part
10th Report - Peace under pressure…
The Government has not learned lessons from the first round of aid cuts and continues...
The Government has not learned lessons from the first round of aid cuts and continues to enact policy changes that are devastating to the realities and futures of women, girls and marginalised groups. New sentence here: We welcome the Government’s … Read more
Government Response
The government partially agrees, countering concerns about inadequate funding by detailing over £3.5 million in support for women's rights organisations and committing to similar funding for FY26/27. It defends its gender mainstreaming approach, explaining how it strengthens WPS implementation within the MOD.
Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
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15 Recommendation Accepted in Part
10th Report - Peace under pressure…
To guarantee the sustainability of Women, Peace and Security, a stable, ringfenced budget focused on...
To guarantee the sustainability of Women, Peace and Security, a stable, ringfenced budget focused on flexible multi–year funding would protect against global socio–political changes and pressures. It would also allow 35 Women’s Rights Organisations and other partners to strategically plan … Read more
Government Response
The government partially agrees, committing to provide over £3.5 million from a centrally managed programme for women peacebuilders and rights organisations for two financial years (FY26/27). However, it promotes mainstreaming WPS across the MOD as an institutional strengthening measure, directly countering the committee's concern about mainstreaming.
Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
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16 Recommendation Accepted in Part
10th Report - Peace under pressure…
In response to this report, the Department should provide details to the Committee on existing...
In response to this report, the Department should provide details to the Committee on existing mechanisms for coordinating meaningfully between Government Departments, or how it intends to establish systematic coordination. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office should report findings back … Read more
Government Response
The government partially agrees, detailing the existing robust governance structure for cross-government coordination and committing to review this structure as part of the 2026 NAP Refresh. However, it does not commit to reporting findings back to the Committee within six months.
Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
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19 Recommendation Accepted in Part
10th Report - Peace under pressure…
The Government must establish a biennial engagement mechanism with parliamentarians, civil society, and academic experts...
The Government must establish a biennial engagement mechanism with parliamentarians, civil society, and academic experts to review and refine National Action Plan indicators and reporting. Existing data on women’s participation, lived experience, and programme impact must be 36 incorporated into … Read more
Government Response
The government 'Partially Agrees', committing to ensuring a robust governance structure for the refreshed WPS NAP and stating it will consider introducing annual reporting to Parliament, with specifics on updated governance, including reporting, to be published as part of the 2026 WPS NAP Refresh.
Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
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23 Recommendation Accepted in Part
10th Report - Peace under pressure…
The Government must reinstate annual reporting to Parliament on Women, Peace and Security implementation following...
The Government must reinstate annual reporting to Parliament on Women, Peace and Security implementation following the 2026 National Action Plan refresh and commit to reporting which integrates progress on Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict, as set out in the Women, … Read more
Government Response
The government partially agrees, committing to consider annual reporting to Parliament for the 2026 NAP refresh but noting the NAP currently commits to biennial reports. It accepts including reporting on sexual violence in conflict within the WPS NAP strategic objectives and will publish governance structure specifics as part of the refresh.
Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
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Government Response AI assessment · 23 of 12 classified
Accepted 3
Accepted in Part 8
Acknowledged 6
Deferred 4
Rejected 2
Total 12 recs + 11 conclusions