Clegg - “The UK public has led the world with its generosity”

25 August 2010

The UK public has led the world with its generosity in response to the Pakistan floods, Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg said today while visiting the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) office in Euston, central London.

The DEC appeal has now raised £33m and the UK Government has committed more than £60m.

The situation in Pakistan remains desperate, with the south of the country now the worst affected and in most immediate need. As flood waters recede in the north of the country, people need the tools to rebuild their lives.

Mr Clegg was joined by International Development Secretary Andrew Mitchell and Baroness Warsi, who both recently visited Pakistan to see how UK aid is helping those affected by flooding.

The government outlined today that the additional money pledged last week would be targeted mainly at the Punjab and Sindh provinces in the south of the country. The new UK support will be spent alongside the money raised by the DEC appeal and will be spent through NGOs and international agencies.

The support will focus on five key areas. As well as addressing immediate needs - shelter; food; clean water and healthcare – support will increasingly go to longer-term help which will support people to rebuild their lives, such as supplying farmers with new seed for crops.

In addition the Deputy Prime Minister confirmed the following assistance for Pakistan:

• 10 UK-made pre-fabricated 30-metre road bridges for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa district. They will leave Tilbury docks in London at the end of this month to arrive in September in Karachi.
• 2 bridges already in Pakistan will leave Karachi in the next few days to be transported to flood - affected areas.
• More RAF flights carrying humanitarian aid will fly to Pakistan later this week.  They will fly to Islamabad and to the most affected area, Multan, in the south of Pakistan.  The first flight will be carrying 3,000 urgently-needed shelter kits which will help 15,000 people.

A new ‘Pakistan Floods Monitor’ showing exactly how UKAid is helping people in Pakistan will go live today on the DFID website; www.dfid.gov.uk/pakistanfloodsmonitor2010.

The Deputy Prime Minister encouraged members of the public to continue to donate to the DEC appeal, saying that this was the most effective way that they could help.

Mr Clegg said:

"The floods in Pakistan have been an almost unimaginable human catastrophe.

"People across Britain have led the way in their generosity to bring much needed help to those affected by this terrible tragedy.

"Britain will stand by Pakistan in its hour of need."

Andrew Mitchell said:

“I saw for myself last week the destruction wreaked by the floods, with entire villages washed away by a 12 foot wall of water, and the desperate need of people on the ground.

“But the people of Britain should be in no doubt that as every hour goes by, people in Pakistan are receiving clean water, food, shelter and healthcare thanks to help from the UK. In the days and weeks to come, we will be working to ensure people get the support they need to rebuild their lives.”