Nobel Peace Prize winner and Ruth Davidson plea for foreign aid budget reversal

A Nobel Peace Prize winner and the former leader of the Scottish Tories have pleaded with Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak not to cut the aid budget.
Ruth Davidson at First Minister's QuestionsRuth Davidson at First Minister's Questions
Ruth Davidson at First Minister's Questions

The Chancellor is widely expected to trim the UK's commitment to spend 0.7 per cent of national income on overseas aid in Wednesday's Spending Review.

Nobel laureate Kailash Satyarthi told the Prime Minister the rumoured reduction would be "immoral and dangerous".

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Former Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson said the expected reduction to 0.5 per cent is a "counterproductive choice - morally, economically and politically".

Mr Satyarthi, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2014 for his work on children's rights, wrote to Mr Johnson setting out his concerns about a cut in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic.

He said: "This year the world has faced a common enemy like never before, yet the response so far has been to look after the richest and leave the poorest to fend for themselves.

"History will judge this harshly and it will be unforgivable if leaders now cut one of the few sources of support for the most marginalised.

"Such a cut would exemplify the gross inequality that is starting to define our times. It is difficult to imagine anything more inhumane."

Writing in The Times, Ms Davidson said the cut could be seen as "mixed messaging" to the world.

She wrote: "Barely a week after a big defence announcement, arguing that 'Global Britain' had been in retreat for too long and pledging to better shoulder our global defence responsibilities, that same 'Global Britain' turns around and says we'll walk away from our humanitarian and development ones."

The MSP joins former prime ministers David Cameron and Tony Blair in warning against the move, while Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby has also made a significant intervention.

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The 0.7 per cent target is written into law and Mr Johnson's 2019 election manifesto promised to keep it.

The Prime Minister's official spokesman would not confirm the expected cut, but said Mr Johnson had stressed "the people of this country should be proud of the support we give around the world".

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