Responding to Aid Cuts

On 6 February I asked the Government when they would be returning to the level set in law, 0.7% of GDP. I was told that the position of the Government was that it would return as soon as fiscal circumstances would allow. Less than three weeks later the budget was slashed further to 0.3%.

Having been contacted by hundreds of people across North East Fife about this, I wrote to the Government to raise their concerns. I fully accept the need to increase defence spending at the current time, but I worry that cutting aid now will simply lead to more security concerns later.

I then received a response from the Minister for International Development in which the Government defends its decision to cut the Official Development Assistance budget to 0.3% of GDP. You can read the letter below:

Despite the Minister’s response, I remain deeply concerned that the Government has not considered alternative means of meeting its defence spending commitments nor answered the vital questions of how we protect our position on the global stage, if Britain withdraws leaving a vacuum open for Russia and China to fill.