Keir Starmer once said aid makes us safer - he would do well to remember that

Today, the UK is facing a different global reality, and its position on international aid has evolved.

As the world grows more uncertain, the Government has shown a willingness to wrestle with the difficult questions about how Official Development Assistance (ODA) is delivered. It has not thrown in the towel and has indicated that it will embrace the principle that UK development assistance is more than ODA.

But let’s be clear; despite promises to the contrary, the Government has slashed the UK’s aid budget to 0.3 per cent of GDP, about a 40 per cent cut, since coming into office.

It is clear to me that this is to the detriment of UK soft power. It will have massive repercussions for the poorest people on the planet, as well as for the stability of countries that directly impact the safety and prosperity of UK citizens.

As ministers get to grips with the greatly diminished aid pot, what has been announced so far shows promise. But there are still significant gaps in the details shared, making it difficult – if not impossible – to understand what tangible benefits the Government expects its new approach to yield. What does success look like? How will it be delivered? Without this being clearly set out, how can the public be assured of value for money?

We have the skeleton of the Government’s new approach to development spending, but we now need flesh on the bones. Having considered a large amount of evidence, today the International Development Committee has set out what this could look like.

Our report on the future of UK aid and development assistance calls on the Government to ensure that the mutual and preventative benefits of aid are communicated effectively to the UK public and to partners.

A new approach to communications should set out how the values of British generosity, as represented by our aid spending, have helped lift millions of people out of poverty. But it should also tell a story about how aid is working for us on multiple levels here in the UK, and how it can act as a preventative measure. Crucially, Ministers should make clear that spending money now will prevent the need for greater expenditure and risks to the UK in the future.

We want to see Government clarifying how civil society in our partner countries will be given the opportunity to shape UK assistance, and how our Government will make the most of experienced international non-governmental organisations as well as passionate diaspora communities in the UK.

The Government should also ensure expertise flows both ways – that the UK can benefit from the knowledge and expertise of its development partners.

Five years after Starmer stood up in the House of Commons to criticise Tory aid cuts and tell MPs why “international aid is in Britain’s national interest”, it is time to embed this thinking in a new approach to aid.

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Sarah Champion is Chair of the International Development Committee.

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