Rishi Sunak announces UK foreign aid budget will be SLASHED

Rishi Sunak today announced he is slashing the UK’s foreign aid budget as he put the Government on a collision course with furious Tory MPs and charity bosses.   The Chancellor said the current legal commitment to spend 0.7 per cent of gross domestic product on overseas aid was ‘difficult to justify’ during the coronavirus crisis … Read more

Ministers ‘plot foreign aid law change’ as Scots Tory Ruth Davidson brands it ‘poor economics’ 

Ministers could change the law to cut Britain’s foreign aid budget as part of sweeping economic reforms. The current rate of 0.7 per cent of GDP was enshrined in law by the Coalition government in 2015, but the current administration wants to cut it to 0.5 per cent. Chancellor Rishi Sunak is set to outline … Read more

Foreign aid cuts: David Cameron and Tony Blair warn Boris Johnson

David Cameron said Boris Johnson‘s rumoured plan to cut Britain’s foreign aid spending by £5billion would be a ‘moral, strategic and political’ error – while Tony Blair has slammed the proposals as ‘a profound strategic mistake’. Intervention from the two former Prime Ministers follows reports that Boris Johnson is planning on slashing the £15billion international development budget to … Read more

Boris Johnson refuses to rule out foreign aid cut to help ease ‘huge strain’ on public finances

Boris Johnson today signalled his intention to slash Britain’s foreign aid budget to help the nation’s domestic finances – as he agreed to pump billions more into the Armed Forces. The Prime Minister declined to reject reports  of plans to slash the UK’s commitment to spend 0.7 per cent of national income on overseas aid … Read more

Boris Johnson ‘plans to cut foreign aid by £5billion to help meet Britain’s £210bn Covid bill’

Boris Johnson ‘plans to cut foreign aid by £5billion to help meet Britain’s £210bn Covid bill’ Britain could reduce the amount it sends to foreign countries in aid due to Covid Rishi Sunak is said to be pushing for the for £5bn to be cut from foreign aid bill  Foreign aid has been criticised after … Read more

Theresa May’s drive to spend £200m tackling modern slavery comes under fire

Theresa May’s drive to spend £200m tackling modern slavery comes under fire  A review by the official aid watchdog warned there was little evidence of the long-term impact of global projects funded with British taxpayers’ money  Concerns were also raised about the UK’s use of the term ‘modern slavery’  The aid watchdog said  many projects … Read more

UK gives £67.9m in foreign aid to China in the last year

Britain increased its handouts to China last year as the Government overshot its foreign aid target by almost £100million. Schemes funded by UK taxpayers included a photography project to understand the country’s past, syphilis tests for gay men and improving cancer screening in rural areas. Despite a promise a decade ago to stop sending cash … Read more

Rishi Sunak ‘wants to divert billions from foreign aid budget to pay for drones and cyberweapons’

Rishi Sunak ‘wants to divert billions from foreign aid budget to pay for spies, drones and cyberweapons’ UK has a legal obligation to spend 0.7 percent of GDP (£15.8bn this year) on aid  But a review of foreign, defence and security policy could see priorities shift Sunak has told Cabinet any boost for defence will … Read more