Defence Secretary John Healey found himself on the receiving end of a fierce backlash from Labour MPs during a tense private meeting last night, where he attempted to justify the Government’s controversial decision to cut foreign aid funding.
The meeting, held in Parliament, saw MPs, particularly those with a background in international development, voice their anger over Sir Keir Starmer’s plans to increase defence spending by diverting funds from the foreign aid budget. The row comes as Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, currently visiting US President Donald Trump in the White House, announced a planned rise in the UK’s defence budget to combat the growing threat from Russia. The goal is to increase military spending from its current level of 2.3% of the UK’s GDP to 2.5% by 2027.
However, to fund this increase, the Government plans to slash the UK’s development aid contribution from 0.5% of gross national income to 0.3% over the next two years. This decision has sparked outrage among Labour MPs, with a group of a dozen, many with expertise in development, leading the charge against the cuts.
Despite the fierce criticism, Healey attempted to reassure his colleagues that the Government would not abruptly halt ongoing foreign aid programmes, attempting to soften the blow of the cuts. He emphasised that the withdrawal of funding would be slow and gradual.
Meanwhile, Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner maintained that the Cabinet was “united” on the plan to fund the increased defence spending by reducing foreign aid, despite ongoing claims of divisions within the party over the issue.
