Charities appalled by UK cut to aid budget to fund defence spending

Humanitarian charities say they are “stunned” and “appalled” by Britain's decision to cut its international aid budget to boost defence spending, warning it would damage UK influence and have a devastating impact on those they support.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Tuesday he would increase Britain's annual defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027, with a target to hit 3% at a later date, a move he said was needed to provide Ukraine and Europe with support in “a dangerous new era” where national security must always “come first”.

To fund the move, Britain will cut its aid budget from 0.5% of gross national income to 0.3%.

David Miliband, a former foreign secretary from the governing Labour Party and head of the International Rescue Committee charity, said the move was “a blow to Britain's proud reputation as a global humanitarian and development leader”.

Britain is the fifth largest international aid donor, giving more than $19bn (R350bn) in 2023, according to data from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). The US tops the ranking, followed by Germany, EU institutions and Japan.

This week Starmer will meet US President Donald Trump, whose adviser Elon Musk has boasted about gutting Washington's own foreign aid agency by “feeding USAID into the wood chipper”.

“To appease Trump, he will cut aid to its lowest level in a generation,” said Nick Dearden, director of campaign group Global Justice Now.

“It is a day of shame for Britain.”

UN children's agency Unicef said the British aid cut would “undoubtedly risk lives”. Oxfam accused Starmer of “bending to populist pressures”.

When asked by reporters about humanitarian concerns over aid reduction driving global instability and furthering insecurity, Starmer told news conference it was not a decision he wanted to make, but the government would continue to support areas such as Gaza, Sudan and Ukraine.

Britain used to devote 0.7% of its gross national income to overseas development before it was cut by the previous Conservative government to 0.5% in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Starmer's government had pledged to restore the aid budget to 0.7% before it sharply changed course.

“This is a short-sighted and appalling move,” said Romilly Greenhill, CEO of London-based Bond, a network for humanitarian organisations.

“Slashing the already diminished UK aid budget to fund an uplift in defence is a reckless decision.”

ActionAid described it as a political choice that could have devastating consequences for people affected by humanitarian crises, such as in Gaza, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Ukraine.

Writing for The Guardian newspaper, foreign minister David Lammy said the government would protect the “most vital programmes in the world's worst conflict zones of Ukraine, Gaza and Sudan”.

“But there can be no hiding from the fact that many programmes doing vital work will have to be put on hold,” Lammy said, adding “tough choices about programmes will proceed at pace over the weeks and months ahead”.

Starmer's announcement on aid was met with little immediate political criticism in the House of Commons. Sarah Champion, Labour lawmaker and chair of the International Development Select Committee, was a rare voice opposing the move, saying aid spending could prevent wars.

She said: “Aid versus defence isn't a realistic narrative for keeping the world safe.” 

Reuters