High-profile figures, Sudanese activists and charity leaders urge the Prime Minister to save lives in Sudan as it faces one of the worst humanitarian crises in history
Actors Joanne Froggatt and Will Poulter among those calling for urgent Government action on Sudan
London, Monday 2nd June - Actors Joanne Froggatt and Will Poulter have joined influential public figures—including footballer and UNHCR high profile supporter Lucy Bronze, director Sir Steve McQueen, singer-songwriter Cat Burns, TV cook Delia Smith, boxer Ramla Ali, and musician Peter Gabriel—in demanding the Prime Minister take urgent action to address the rapidly worsening humanitarian crisis in Sudan.
In an open letter delivered to 10 Downing Street today, the group of over 50 high-profile figures from film, TV, music and sport, as well as charity CEO’s and Sudanese activists, urge the UK Government to maintain its funding commitment for Sudan, following their decision to slash the overseas aid budget.
Sudan has been declared the world’s worst humanitarian crisis1, with over 25 million people in the country facing starvation² – the equivalent of almost half the population of England.
The public intervention, led by children’s charity Plan International UK, is backed by a coalition of aid organisations, including the CEOs of CAFOD, Save the Children UK, Action Against Hunger, Christian Aid, and leading Sudanese campaigners. It comes six weeks after the UK hosted crisis talks on Sudan, in which time the country has experienced an escalation of conflict and worsening humanitarian conditions.
The letter is accompanied by a petition signed by over 8,500 members of the British public, urging ministers to increase aid and use the UK’s diplomatic influence to push for an end to the conflict.
The open letter reads:
“Time is quickly running out. Violence, starvation and disease are killing more and more children every day. The UK Government must do all it can to help save lives before it is too late.”
Actor Will Poulter, said:
“The stories about the scale of starvation coming out of Sudan are utterly heart-breaking. Families simply don’t have enough food, and millions of children are going to bed with empty stomachs every night. In parts of the country where food supplies are lowest, thousands of children are already dying due to extreme hunger.
“The situation is quickly escalating into one of the worst famines ever recorded. With such an extreme shortage of food, immediate action is needed now to save lives and prevent further suffering. We can’t let children and their families in Sudan starve to death.”
Footballer and UNHCR high-profile supporter Lucy Bronze said:
“Since the conflict in Sudan started over two years ago, children and their families have been through the worst horrors imaginable, but the world doesn’t seem to be paying any attention.
“Millions of children are caught up in this devastating crisis and girls are especially vulnerable. It’s harrowing to hear about girls as young as one experiencing rape and sexual violence. And girls are more likely to eat last and least when food runs out. No child should experience what the children in Sudan are going through right now. For their sake we all need to speak out and call for urgent action on Sudan now.”
Actor Joanne Froggatt said:
“Millions of children have been forced into dangerous, overcrowded camps both within and beyond Sudan. These are not safe places for such young lives. Children’s lives are now characterised by danger and death as hunger and disease spread while the violence rages on.
“They are suffering in silence. We need to draw attention to this crisis and demand rapid action from the UK Government. By talking about Sudan we can save children’s lives.”
Singer-songwriter Cat Burns said:
“What’s happening in Sudan is devastating. Children are being torn from their homes, going hungry, and living through horrors no one should ever face. We can’t turn away or stay quiet. The world needs to act before even more lives are lost.”
Mohamed Kamal, Country Director for Plan International Sudan said:
“The sheer scale of the suffering being endured by people in Sudan is almost impossible to comprehend. Two years of brutal fighting, severe restrictions on the delivery of life-saving aid and a near-total collapse of the food supply across the country has caused a humanitarian catastrophe on a scale the world hasn’t witnessed in generations.
“With every day that passes, more and more children face the unacceptable risk of death from extreme hunger, war and disease. Turning our backs on them would be utterly inhumane.”
Sudan has seen two years of brutal fighting, resulting in mass displacement, famine, and a near-total collapse of healthcare and food supply systems.
Aid groups now warn that inaction could lead to tens of thousands more deaths in the months ahead.
Email your MP urging them to act now to save lives in Sudan.
The letter and full list of signatories is available here
And the references too:
² https://news.un.org/en/story/2025/02/1160161
Male and female populations - GOV.UK Ethnicity facts and figures
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