THE UK Government’s decision to cut aid spending has been branded “deeply disappointing” by Scotland’s External Affairs Secretary.
Angus Robertson made the comment after Keir Starmer announced the UK Government is cutting the amount of cash it gives poorer nations overseas in order to boost the country’s defence budget.
The Prime Minister promised a major increase in defence spending, taking it from its current 2.3% share of the UK economy to 2.5% by 2027.
The move, announced in response to “tyrant” Russia leader Vladimir Putin and amid uncertainty over the US’s commitment to European security, will mean an additional £13.4 billion for defence every year from 2027, Starmer said.
To fund the increase, development assistance aid will be slashed from its current level of 0.5% of gross national income to 0.3% in 2027.
Robertson welcomed the “UK Government’s commitment to increased defence spending at a time of such acute need across Europe”.
But he told MSPs: “I am deeply disappointed at this cut in the overseas aid by the UK Government, which is the lowest percentage of UK finance spent on aid in a quarter of a century.”
He had been asked about the cut by Green MSP Maggie Chapman (below), who said it is an “outrage” the UK Government has opted to “slash its aid budget by £6bn”.
She said more than 300 million people around the world are “in dire humanitarian need right now”, and she stressed the need for governments to “step up and tackle global poverty”.
Robertson told her: “This is a time when globally we all need to be stepping up to support the poorest and the most vulnerable communities in the world, and the Scottish Government is committed to supporting our partner countries through international development and climate justice funding, while also responding to global humanitarian crises as a responsible, compassionate and good global citizen.”
He said the Scottish Government, through its Humanitarian Emergency Fund, will continue to “respond quickly and decisively to overwhelming humanitarian crises across the world by providing much-needed financial support”.
On Tuesday, the Prime Minister said the UK Government is increasing its defence spending “because a generational challenge requires a generational response”.
However Starmer accepted this “will demand some extremely difficult and painful choices”.
