On 19 June 2019, the House of Lords is scheduled to debate a motion moved by Lord Loomba (Crossbench) that asks “Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to empower widows in developing countries and to mark International Widows Day 2019.”. This briefing provides background information on International Widows’ Day and the issues facing widowed women around the world.
International Widows’ Day (217KB PDF)
International Widows’ Day takes place on 23 June each year. A resolution to mark this day was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 2010. The aim of International Widows’ Day is to address the issues faced by widowed women. These include the increased risk of poverty and violence and a lack of access to health care. The UN has stated:
The abuse of widows and their children constitutes one of the most serious violations of human rights and obstacles to development today. Millions of the world’s widows endure extreme poverty, ostracism, violence, homelessness, ill health and discrimination in law and custom.
The UN has also noted these issues are more widespread when there is an increase in the number of widows following armed conflict.
International Widows’ Day (217KB PDF)
The UK is a signatory to the convention establishing an international claims commission for Ukraine. The commission would assess claims for compensation for damage and losses caused by Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The House of Lords International Agreements Committee has broadly welcomed the convention, but also raised concerns about the scope and efficacy of the commission.
Recent tensions in Bosnia and Herzegovina have raised concerns about stability and security in the country, particularly due to reports of external influence and recent secessionist rhetoric in Republika Srpska. This briefing outlines recent developments, international responses and the UK government’s position on Bosnia and Herzegovina ahead of a House of Lords debate on the subject.
Concerns have been raised about levels of welfare spending in the UK and increasing numbers of young people not in education, employment or training. This briefing sets out statistics, government policy and commentary on welfare and youth employment. This includes the government’s youth guarantee, its ‘Get Britain working’ policies and the interim report by Alan Milburn on young people and work.
