Friday, February 28, 2025
Cutting overseas aid is wrong decision
The Guardian reports that cabinet ministers including Ed Miliband have raised concerns over Keir Starmer’s decision to slash overseas aid to pay for increased defence spending, while dozens of Labour MPs from all wings of the party have also expressed alarm at the plan.
The paper says that after aid agencies warned that the decision to cut the UK’s aid commitment from 0.5% of GDP annually to 0.3% would have a devastating impact in many areas, several MPs condemned the idea as shortsighted and unjustified:
While there is no suggestion of a revolt against Starmer’s plan, the Guardian understands that Miliband, the energy secretary, was among the ministers who expressed worry at the impact of the aid cut during a cabinet meeting on Tuesday.
The prime minister discussed the move before he made the surprise announcement to the Commons. Speaking to broadcasters on Wednesday, Angela Rayner, the deputy prime minister, said that while it was “devastating” to cut aid, the cabinet was “united that the number one responsibility of any government is to keep its citizens safe”.
Starmer’s proposal to raise defence spending from 2.3% of GDP to 2.5% by 2027, three years earlier than planned, with the ambition to reach 3%, comes in the context of a continued threat from Russia and the decision by Donald Trump’s government to edge back from the US’s decades-long pledges to protect European Nato members.
In this context, it has been difficult for ministers or even Labour MPs to express their views publicly. However, MPs from several wings of the party told the Guardian they were deeply worried at the plans.
“It’s incredibly disappointing,” one said. “Reducing our foreign aid budget reduces our soft power and support for developing countries, which will impact us; it will make migration more likely.”
Another said: “The increase in defence spending is absolutely right but they could have done it another way. The aid programme, if directed, can play a crucial role in future conflict prevention and is also crucial for climate migration in some of the world’s most climate-stressed places which, if not supported, will mean millions will have to leave their homes as they are uninhabitable.”
Putting aside the moral issues for a minute, foreign aid is soft power, it helps to build alliances and trade partners. Pulling back from that leaves the door open for China and other powers to step in and extend their influence. This is a cut the government could soon regret.
