The government is facing a rebellion with Conservative rebels saying they could force foreign aid budget cuts to be reversed next week in parliament.
Rebel Conservative MPs say they have enough support to defeat the government and see aid spending increase in 2022.
The unexpected vote in the Commons is set to come in the same week as the government hosts world leaders at the G7 summit.
A government spokesman said coronavirus had “forced us to take tough but necessary decisions” on spending.
Shadow foreign secretary Lisa Nandy said the government should “do the right thing and reverse this cut”.
The government reduced the target to just 0.5% this year, a cut of almost £4bn, claiming it was needed to repair the public finances damaged by the pandemic.
The United Nations Secretary General, Antonio Guterres, has described the aid cuts as a “death sentence”.
Conservative MPs supporting the amendment said: “We urge the government to think again, or we shall be asking Parliament to reaffirm the law as it stands so as to oblige the government to meet its legal commitment, keep its very clear pledge to British voters and uphold Britain’s promise to the rest of the world.”
Responding to the move, a government spokesman said: “In 2021, we will spend more than £10bn to improve global health, fight poverty and tackle climate change.
“While the seismic impact of the pandemic has forced us to take tough but necessary decisions, the government is committed to returning to spending 0.7% of GNI (Gross National Income) on aid when the fiscal situation allows.”
Editor-in-Chief | Carl D. Pearson has been involved in British politics and media from an early age, with the key knowledge of what it takes to run a news organisation for the 21st century. Mr Pearson, as Editor-in-chief, is responsible for supervising the daily tasks of publishing media and content to UNN’s website and various platforms.
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