New business cases, contracts, agreements and funding are on hold.
A Labour Minister has confirmed the government has told aid programme teams to hold off on any new agreements until final decisions are taken on overseas development spending.
In a letter to the International Development Committee the Government provided more detail on its plans to cut UK aid to 0.3% of gross national income (GNI) by 2027.
Baroness Chapman, the Government’s newly appointed International Development Minister, told the committee: “Vital lessons have been learned from previous ODA reductions. I am clear on the importance of honouring commitments and agreements where possible.”
In the letter, the Government says the UK will “continue to play a key humanitarian role” in Ukraine, Gaza and Sudan. It also confirms that it remains committed to returning development spending to 0.7% of GNI “when the fiscal conditions allow”.
However, the Minister acknowledged that the cut will require “many hard choices”, and says that the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) is reassessing its aid spending plans for the next financial year to ensure they deliver maximum value for money.
She adds that detailed decisions on the UK’s aid spending will be part of the upcoming Spending Review.
Aid programme teams within the department have been instructed not to agree to any new business cases, contracts, agreements or funding until initial ODA allocations for 2025/26 are set later in March, with final allocations to be agreed in the summer.
Sarah Champion MP, chair of the International Development Committee, said: “I urge the new Minister to do all she can to try and mitigate the inevitable harm that will follow from this reduction in aid and maximise the value of what remains.
“But these efforts will be in vain if large chunks of aid money continue to be diverted to the Home Office to house refugees and asylum seekers in the UK.
“If the Government is serious about value for money, it must cap the amount other departments can pilfer from the aid budget and make sure every penny is spent reducing poverty.”
