Move to cut UK aid will “destroy Labour’s legacy on international development” say NGO leaders in letter to PM and Treasury

138 leaders of NGOs from across the UK, including Save the Children UK, Oxfam GB, World Vision UK, ONE, Christian Aid, Action Aid UK, Islamic Relief, Amref UK and CAFOD, have written an open letter to the PM and Treasury, calling for a reversal of its decision to cut the UK aid budget, risking the closure of programs supporting marginalised communities facing poverty, conflict and climate change.

They warn that the move will “destroy Labour’s legacy on international development” and leave the “government’s ambition to be a reliable development partner on the global stage in tatters.” 

The letter states: 

“As 138 leaders of the UK INGO sector, responding to urgent humanitarian emergencies and supporting global development, we are appalled by the recent announcement that UK aid will be cut to pay for defence spending. It is alarming that the UK is now following in the US’s footsteps and has accepted the false choice of cutting the already diminished UK aid to fund defence. We implore you to reverse this decision before significant damage is done to both the UK’s development and humanitarian work and its global reputation….”

“No government should balance its books on the backs of the world’s most marginalised people. The previous UK aid cuts and the current US aid freeze have already shown their impact: children are now at risk of missing out on vaccines, girls may lose access to education, and healthcare services in refugee camps are being withdrawn. This move will also destroy Labour’s legacy on international development and will leave your manifesto commitments and the government’s ambition to be a reliable development partner on the global stage in tatters.” 

The cuts come as the US government’s 90-day suspension of humanitarian assistance and development ripples across the sector and sees HIV vaccine trials in South Africa halted and HIV medicine running out in Uganda, food and shelter programs in refugee camps have been reduced or stopped entirely.  

The letter goes on to say:

“We recognise that the safety and security of the people of Britain should always be a priority of the government. But using the UK aid budget to do this is both strategically and morally wrong. UK aid, which is only just over 1p in every £1 of public spending brings a huge return on investment. It builds peace and prevents conflict and instability, forced migration, provides access to clean water and sanitation, and prevents the spread of diseases like COVID – which would save the UK money in the long run, and help make both the UK and the world a safer, healthier and more prosperous place for us all. As we saw during the pandemic, viruses don’t respect borders. By making these cuts today you’re weakening already fragile health systems, putting us all at risk of the next global outbreak.”

The sector, and MPs across the house, are putting pressure on the PM and Treasury to make a statement to Parliament, outlining whether the impact of these cuts has been thought through and are asking whether alternative sources of funding were explored before deciding to remove support to those who need it the most.  

Romilly Greenhill, CEO of Bond, the UK network for NGOs said:  

 
“We’re appalled that the government has decided to enact cuts which will devastate the UK’s development and humanitarian work supporting communities around the world, its global reputation and the UK’s own national security interests. The government needs to urgently publish an impact assessment explaining whether the impact of these cuts has been thought through and which alternative sources of funding were explored before deciding to remove support to those who need it most. These cuts are going to have a direct and devastating impact on the most marginalised communities in the lowest-income countries. The government needs to explain how it intends to support people facing poverty, conflict, and climate change and honour its existing global commitments.” 

Martin Drewry CEO of Health Poverty Action (HPA) said:

“Just when millions are reeling from the loss of USAID, with lifesaving supplies and medication stopped overnight, the UK government chooses to do similar.  The UK should be showing leadership – stepping up, not down. Shame on the UK government.” 

Adrian Lovett, UK Executive Director at ONE, said: 

“The UK’s aid programme is a set of commitments to partners around the world. Deep and sudden cuts will create huge problems for the delivery of vital health services, humanitarian assistance and programmes to deal with the impact of conflict and climate change. 

The devastating impacts of cuts will hurt some of the world’s most vulnerable people – and it will make Britain weaker too.  The government must look at other ways to fund this.” 

Katie Husselby, Director of Action for Global Health, said: 

“The government’s decision is a catastrophic blow to the health of people in the UK and globally. We have already seen the devastation caused by previous cuts to the UK’s aid budget and the USAID ‘stop-work’ order, leading to the preventable deaths of people all around the world.  

Cuts to UK aid undermine efforts to achieve international stability, which in turn fuels further conflict. These budget decisions should not be a case of ‘either or’.  

We call on the Prime Minister to recognise that overcoming global challenges – such as global health risks or tackling the climate crisis – is critical to achieving peace and security. Any other approach will be destructive in the short and long term.”

Halima Begum, CEO, Oxfam GB said:

“We understand that defence spending has become a major concern in our fast-changing world. However, cutting the already lean aid budget is a false economy and will only increase division, and amounts to a betrayal of the world’s most vulnerable people. It is a false dichotomy to pit international cooperation to tackle poverty against national security interests in order to avoid tax increases.

“These cuts make a mockery of the Labour Government’s stated promise to stand in partnership with the Global South and the pledge it made to the British people in its manifesto. The aid budget, as Conservative and Labour Ministers have conceded in the past, is an investment. Bending to populist pressures may seem easy, but real leadership means standing firm in our commitment to global justice and demonstrating how Britain can be a global force for good.” 

ENDS.

Notes for editors 

• Romilly Greenhill CEO of Bond and NGO leaders are all available for interviews on this issue. Please contact Jess Salter at [email protected] or call 07392972411 to arrange.
• Read the letter.  
• Tuesday 25 February, the Prime Minister has announced that the UK Official Development Assistance (ODA) will be reduced by 0.2 % of GNI, to fund an increase in defence spending from 2.3 to 2.5% of GDP by 2027. This cut will bring UK ODA as a percentage of GNI to 0.3%.
• In 2021, the UK cut ODA from 0.7% to 0.5%.
• The last time that UK ODA was under 0.3% was in 1999.
• Other G7 countries ODA as a percentage of GNI in 2023 (the most up-to-date data available) was: Germany 0.82%, France 0.48%, Japan 0.44%, Canada 0.38%, Italy 0.27%, US 0.24% 

Bond is the UK network for organisations working in international development. Bond unites and supports a diverse network of over 350 civil society organisations from across the UK, and allies to help eradicate global poverty, inequality and injustice.