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Aid spending in the UK

Inquiry

Report published

The Government must put the UK’s aid budget beyond the reach of the Home Office and ringfence it to spend in the world’s poorest and most vulnerable countries, the International Development Committee is urging today.

In a searingly concise report of 14 paragraphs, the Committee sets out the evidence to demonstrate that the world’s poorest countries are being short-changed as a result of other Government departments raiding the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office’s (FCDO's) aid budget. Meanwhile the aid budget has been cut to 0.55 per cent of Gross National Income and aid programmes which support the world’s poorest people overseas have been disproportionately cut.

The UK Government’s approach to spending ODA in the UK is incompatible with the spirit of the OECD’s Development Assistance Committee rules, says today’s report. Most countries take a conservative approach, recognising that the ODA budget is for spending that “promotes and specifically targets the economic development and welfare of developing countries.”

This makes the Government’s choice to spend a significant and increasing proportion of the ODA budget in the UK a “political choice”. It is a self-defeating decision which is likely only to increase the number of refugees arriving in the UK.

Read the Report: Aid spending in the UK

This inquiry is no longer accepting evidence

The deadline for submissions was Thursday 15 December 2022.

Reports, special reports and government responses

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Sixth Report - Aid Spending in the UK
Inquiry Aid spending in the UK
Committees International Development Committee
HC 898
Report

Oral evidence transcripts

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8 February 2023
Inquiry Aid spending in the UK
Witnesses Mr Andrew Mitchell (Minister of State (Development and Africa) at Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office), Robert Jenrick (Minister for Immigration at Home Office), and John Glen (Chief Secretary to the Treasury at HM Treasury)
Committees International Development Committee
Oral Evidence
13 December 2022
Inquiry Aid spending in the UK
Witnesses Ian Mitchell (Senior Policy Fellow at Center for Global Development), Professor Michael Collyer (Professor at University of Sussex), and Professor Stefan Dercon (Professor of Economic Policy at Blavatnik School of Government)
Committees International Development Committee
Oral Evidence
13 December 2022
Inquiry Aid spending in the UK
Witnesses Enver Solomon (Chief Executive at Refugee Council), and Daphne Jayasinghe (Chief Policy Adviser at International Rescue Committee)
Committees International Development Committee
Oral Evidence
ASU0016 - Aid spending in the UK
Witnesses Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
Committees International Development Committee
Written Evidence
ASU0015 - Aid spending in the UK
Witnesses Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, His Majesty's Treasury, The Home Office and The Department for Levelling Up, Using and Communities
Committees International Development Committee
Written Evidence
ASU0001 - Aid spending in the UK
Witnesses Amnesty International UK
Committees International Development Committee
Written Evidence

Other publications

No other publications published.

Contact us

  • Email: indcom@parliament.uk
  • Phone: indcom@parliament.uk, 020 7219 1223/1226 (Inquiry, evidence and General enquiries) / curriee@parliament.uk, 020 7219 8211 (Media enquiries only)
  • Address: International Development Committee, House of Commons, London, SW1A 0AA