Former international development secretary Andrew Mitchell has tabled an amendment to reverse the reduction of the government’s target of 0.7% of gross national income (GNI) to 0.5% - which equates to more than £4bn.
Former health secretary Jeremy Hunt and former Brexit secretary David Davis are among the senior Conservatives backing the move to restore aid spending to the previous target from next January.
Arguments for the cuts
The Covid contraction
Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab has said the decision to cut the aid budget, first announced in November, was “extremely difficult” but necessary, owing to the unforeseeable cost of dealing with the Covid-19 pandemic.