Save the Children, Unicef and Doctors without Borders speak out. 

Frontline charities and NGOs have spoken out about the expected impact of the UK's reduction in aid spending. 

Save the Children, Unicef and Doctors without Borders shared their perspectives with Prospect Magazine. 

The groups warned children have died as a result of US aid cuts earlier this year, with the UK now following suit. 

Sir Keir Starmer’s government downgraded the already-depleted ODA budget from 0.5% to 0.3% of gross national income (GNI), despite an election pledge to return this funding to 0.7% of GNI.

Lisa Wise, director of global policy at Save the Children UK, told the magazine the UK was “taking a sledgehammer” to its aid budget, and deaths were “the cold hard reality of what happens when global solidarity dries up.”

She added: “The UK’s cuts were announced with barely a hint of a plan. But the emerging numbers are stark. By 2027 the UK’s overseas aid spending will reach the lowest levels on record, as a share of gross national income. The UK is on course to cut vital lifelines from more than 62 million people. That is likely to include slashing nutrition support by up to 90 per cent and helping millions fewer with food and cash when war or natural disasters tear their lives apart.

“Our teams across the world are already making impossible decisions every day. Countless more are coming.”

Philip Goodwin, CEO of the UK Committee for Unicef, echoed these concerns. 

He told Prospect: “We know that difficult decisions are being made, but the world’s most vulnerable children cannot be the ones to disproportionately suffer. Unicef UK is calling for the government to commit to spending at least 25 per cent of aid on children—which would ensure they are at least protected from some of the impacts of these cuts in funding. 

“The UK’s commitment to spending 0.7 per cent of national income on international aid demonstrated the UK’s leadership and compassion. The cut to 0.3 per cent will make it impossible for the government to achieve its aspirations of tackling extreme poverty, growing global prosperity, addressing the climate crisis and building long-term global security. Both behind the scenes and publicly, Unicef UK continues to urge the prime minister to reconsider his decision, and—at the very least—protect the world’s children from its impact. 

“Children’s lives and futures are at stake, precisely when they need support the most. It’s vital that they get it.”

Neal Russell, Paediatric doctor and Doctors Without Borders adviser, also told Prospect: “Today feels different with the threat of widespread closure of humanitarian programmes.”