The government is set to breach its cap on foreign aid spending because so much of the budget is being used to pay for asylum seekers in the UK.
Spending is currently set at 0.5% of national income – around £11bn.
Chancellor Jeremy Hunt is expected to admit there will be an overspend of £1bn or so in each of the next three years pushing aid spending to an estimated 0.55%.
The Treasury said there were “significant pressures” on aid budgets.
The department, responsible for the country’s finances, has been forced to accept the increase because the Home Office has spent so much of the foreign aid budget housing and feeding refugees and asylum seekers from Ukraine, Afghanistan and others coming in boats across the Channel.
The Treasury emphasised that the government was prioritising essential overseas aid funding and remained committed to spending 0.7% of national income on ODA once the fiscal situation allowed.
In a statement, it said: “Across government, there are significant pressures on the ODA budget due to the costs of accepting refugees from Afghanistan and Ukraine as well as wider migration challenges. We remain one of the largest global aid donors, spending more than £11bn in aid in 2021, and UK aid has recently gone towards those in need in the Horn of Africa and Pakistan.
“All spending decisions will be considered in the round by the Chancellor at the Autumn Statement.”
Lead Correspondent | David Clews is the Lead Correspondent for UNN, with over 20 years of political/campaigning experience and a wealth of social media and communication skills David gets to the heart of what is really important to the real people of the UK.
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