What his latest assessment is of the humanitarian situation in Zimbabwe; and if he will make a statement.

There has been a modest improvement in the humanitarian situation. The cholera epidemic is under control and there are signs of an improved harvest this year. However, basic health and other welfare services have broken down after years of neglect. Consequently, Zimbabwe faces ongoing humanitarian challenges.

I thank the Minister for that answer. Obviously, all Members will be aware of the lack of political and judicial reform in Zimbabwe, but will the Minister confirm that he has received a communication from the Elders, urging the UK to offer Humanitarian Plus funds to Zimbabwe? Humanitarian Plus differs from long-term financial assistance, which will be linked to reform, and would allow immediate rehabilitation of the water and sanitation infrastructure in Zimbabwe.

My hon. Friend is absolutely right to draw attention to the important contribution that the Elders are making to securing progress in Zimbabwe. We recently announced £15 million to strengthen health system support, improve sanitation and further strengthen food security, but we make it very clear that, on the pace of reform, there are certain non-negotiables. We make that clear in our conversations with the new Prime Minister and the Finance Minister, whom my right hon. Friends the International Development Secretary and the Foreign Secretary met recently. The United Kingdom provides humanitarian and Humanitarian Plus support, but we still await further improvement in terms of the necessary reforms.

Unfortunately, Zimbabwe has been put on the back burner again, because other issues are dominating Parliament and international affairs. Does the Minister not agree that one of the most helpful actions that the Government could take would be for the Secretary of State for International Development to visit Zimbabwe and meet the Prime Minister, Morgan Tsvangirai, to give that very courageous man the credibility and support that he deserves? He seeks to lead his country out of poverty and deprivation.

Of course, it is not for me to arrange my right hon. Friend's travel itinerary. However, my serious response is that he recently met the Finance Minister, in whom we have a lot of confidence, and he has also met the Prime Minister in the past. My noble Friend Lord Malloch-Brown, the Minister for Africa, was at the inauguration of the new President of South Africa and recently met Morgan Tsvangirai and the new Foreign Minister of Zimbabwe. There is constant engagement and dialogue with the Government of Zimbabwe. We are clear about the support that we stand ready to provide and we have announced the resources that I mentioned in my earlier response. However, there can be no slacking in the message about the importance of political and economic as well as human rights reform. We remain concerned that, for example, political prisoners have recently been returned to prison. In those circumstances, we need to send strong messages about the pace of reform.

Will my hon. Friend join me in congratulating my constituent, Richard Pantlin, who recently cycled round Zimbabwe, raising funds for an orphanage there? Does he share my constituent's conclusion that we need to find ways of increasing humanitarian aid and support for the people of Zimbabwe, without strengthening ZANU-PF?

My right hon. Friend is right to draw attention to the contribution of individuals, which demonstrates that no way is Zimbabwe on the back burner in respect of how the British people feel about our relationship with that country or in Department for International Development staff's excellent work on the front line. My right hon. Friend is right to say that, as a result of our support, 7 million people were fed in March who would not otherwise have been fed; the cholera outbreak has been brought under control; and we are moving towards more support for Humanitarian Plus. Equally, we expect the Zimbabwean Government to fulfil the obligations they have entered into with the international community on a clear and transparent reform agenda.

Given the non-negotiables—quite right, too—may I endorse the words of my hon. Friend Sir Nicholas Winterton and ask the Under-Secretary to continue to help in the humanitarian way the Government are rightly doing? What grounds for optimism does he have in the light of Morgan Tsvangirai's extraordinary courage and achievements?

The optimism results from the changes that the Prime Minister, the Finance Minister and other reformers in the Zimbabwean Government make. Their optimism gives us hope. However, we also know that forces still exist in the Government who do not embrace the reform agenda, and we need them to do that. That is why it is important to send a message of solidarity and support, and make resources available to back the Prime Minister and the reform programme, while also making it clear that there will be no normalisation of relationships with that country until the entire Government are focused on meeting the needs of the ordinary people of Zimbabwe and rebuilding the economy and the health and education systems.

In the midst of the turmoil in Zimbabwe, what assurance can my hon. Friend give the House about opportunities for children to get education? That will be the way in which the country can rebuild and give people real hope for the future.

My right hon. Friend raises an important issue. We know that many schools in Zimbabwe have not opened this year. Teachers are rightly demanding salaries in hard currency and poor Zimbabweans cannot go to schools that charge in US dollars. That emphasises the importance of the Government's rebuilding the education system, starting with paying teachers properly so that they turn up to teach the children of Zimbabwe. The good news is that, through UNICEF, we have ensured, with United Kingdom support, that more than 100,000 orphans and vulnerable children remain in school. That would not have happened without UK investment.

I welcome the Minister's indication that the cholera outbreak is under control, but what is his assessment of the situation in Zimbabwe in respect of HIV/AIDS, a problem that was callously and deliberately neglected by the Mugabe Administration?

Part of the extra support made available by us, both in the past and most recently, to strengthen health systems is about ensuring that the Zimbabwean health system has the capacity to tackle HIV/AIDS properly. We also want the new President in South Africa to remain committed to the new approach to HIV/AIDS there, which does not just affect attitudes in that country, but affects attitudes to how HIV/AIDS is tackled across the African continent. Our support for strengthening the health system means that we hope for a rapid improvement in the fight against HIV/AIDS.