Chancellor cuts International Aid budget

trisher

Just shows on Rishi's magic money tree the apple doesn't fall far from the tree (sorry)

When on an aeroplane the safety instructions always inform that you should put your safety mask on first, then help others.

If this budget cut helps the UK at this most difficult time it will enable the UK to help others in the future.

There was absolutely no need for the cut in the Aid budget. The country is not on its economic knees; that is the old myth being reiterated to justify a new round of austerity.

If the UK so desperately needs to cut its spending why are we splashing out huge sums on the military? Who is lining up to attack us in the near future? Or, who do we have in mind to attack?

This supposedly massive 'debt' is partly money that we owe to ourselves, as a good £800 billion of it is Quantitative Easing (money creation), which we owe to no-one.

The cost of servicing our interest payments on government bonds has gone down by some £10billion and is being eroded by inflation. anyway.

The remainder of the 'debt' is, in fact, people and institutions (such as Pension Funds) investments in government bonds (AKA savings). The 'investors' rarely demand their principal back, so all this 'debt' costs us is the annual interest payments.

There is no precedent in our history for the big deficit the UK is running at the moment; deficits pre 1972 had to be repaid because they were owed to other countries (e.g.USA in WW2 ) or people but even then, interest on government bonds were a source of income for many people so the principle was never repaid.

The difference now is that, subject to the constraint of excess inflation, we are able to issue our own money, cost free, and use it to stimulate the 'real', everyday economy and to fulfil our global obligations.

The tories know this. Where do you think they're getting all the money that they're flinging at their friends and donors by way of dodgy contracts? It certainly isn't from our taxes...

If this budget cut helps the UK at this most difficult time it will enable the UK to help others in the future.

It really, really won't. The cut will never be restored by the tories.

But Granny Gravy13 we need other countries to thrive and to trade with us, they will be in a much worse state and may turn away from us.

I agree with Jane10 we should look more carefully at where the money is going now. We should continue to help poorer countries.

Totaly agree Quizqueen.
Charity begins at home.

"Charity begins at home" is one of those phrases that people misuse to justify what they are thinking. The whole quote is that "Charity begins at home but should not end there". It means that children should be taught at home how to be charitable, so that they can do good in the wider world. Not a lot of that going on at the moment.

Definitely cut it down, in fact even more. Why are we giving money to China. It does not reach the right people and as others have said charity begins at home.

I agree with those who say that foreign aid is vitally important, both for the countries who receive our aid, and for us; we need to maintain a global responsibility. However, I was watching a tv programme very recently about the influx of immigrants from African and Arabic countries. One young man, who was from Nigeria, said that they all knew that the UK was sending millions of £ in aid but that that money was being used by their government to buy more weaponry and armed forces to kill and attack the Christian population. And that's why he was fleeing for his life. So maybe a better informed decision could be taken once it's established that aid will be used to benefit the people who need it. And at that point, I think we should give generously.

The usual suspects who agree with cutting aid need to be reminded that aid comes with strings, it often involves trade deals.

Also, rather like the BBC, it has 'soft power' in that its influence benefits the UK.

Promoting Shaun the Sheep in China, why not? In the long run it will make a lot of money for its makers and keep many people in the UK in employment.

Right-wingers, don't be so short-sighted.

quizqueen

I don't think we should give any international aid at all other than keeping an emergency fund for natural disasters like earthquakes. Charity creates dependency and getting in debt to give money away is pure stupidity.

I agree with you.

People keep parroting that charity begins at home but International aid isn't really charity, it is an investment.
This has been mentioned earlier in the thread, but doesn't seem to resonate at all.

We don't. as a country, give International aid purely out of the goodness of our hearts, it is to our own advantage, directly with trade agreements and indirectly with our standing in the world and how other nations see us. Do they find us trustworthy, do they wan to do business with us etc.

I think the AID given to India is a fraction of what the good old UK stole from them when they were colonised,some say the estimate of 45 TRILLION is a fraction of the real amount.
But thats the Westminster way the same Imperialist mindset.Oh andAlegrias you forgot to add the trident costs into that....for a system thats out of date and should be scrapped . Its a giant accident waiting to happen.
Every time the nuclear convoy passes my window I feel sick .
Thats also the WM way,they want to APPEAR to be on a world stage and nukes is the way they think proves it .Shame they wont take it and park it on the Thames !

25Avalon
We did NOT spend £500,000 on distributing “Shawn the Sheep” to the Chinese!
That would be ridiculous and clearly would be nothing to do with the Aid Budget anyway!
?
Here’s the real story of this ^research and development funding^:

news.liverpool.ac.uk/2020/03/04/500k-to-develop-immersive-shaun-the-sheep-experience/

Ilovecheese

I expect it will be a popular move with his party, but his party also don't like immigration from poorer countries. Unless we help poorer countries to become richer, or help them to reduce the impact of climate change (which also costs money) then the immigration will continue. It also makes our country look very mean and inward looking when we are trying to project an image of an outward looking "global" Britain.
So no, I don't agree, because it is not a sensible move, just a shortsighted one.

You have said just what I was thinking, Ilovecheese, and as I can't put it any better, I'm quoting your post.

Very shortsighted, and when I heard about it I was yet again ashamed of the mean-spirited government we have.

but he kept saying we had to because of Covid- no mention wahtsoever of Brexit- which will be by far the major factor, by their own assessment.

Riverwalk we are not promoting "Shawn the Sheep" in China (please see above).

Jane10 and others... the money to China is not simply gifted from the aid budget. It's used in cases where we see we will reap mutual benefit - we use this bit of our money to support our own interests. A large chunk of the "aid" here is really to create opportunities for UK business!
Unfortunately if you simply look at the figures (as I think the red-tops tend to do) then it does look pretty ridiculous.

I think it's a good idea to look at how any aid is used but basically a percentage is just that, a percentage.
So if our money goes down, so does our aid money- proportionately. I see no need to reduce the actual percentage.

What does it say about us as a country? Really really sad.

That's right JenniferEccles. I once had a list of the amount of foreign Aid that this country and it's mind boggling, especially when said counties are either doing better than us or the money isn't reaching the " right " people.
I think it should be cut for the next couple of years to be honest.
Afterall, who helps us ?

One wonders which charity at home Sunak has in mind. It certainly isn’t those on universal credit, which he intends to cut in April.

Afterall, who helps us ?

EllanVannin why would we need help - we are one of the world's wealthiest economies?

Just listening to a conversation between an EU former policy chief and an American interviewer.

Interestingly and with a a good deal of evidence the EU spokeswoman stated that as individual countries in Europe they wouldn’t be well placed to recover from the virus economic impact, but as an economic union they are well placed with their strength to recover better than individual countries.

Well done Britain. What b.....y idiots.

Parsley3

I don’t think people here who have lost jobs and rely on food banks would consider themselves to be rich beyond compare. It’s a meaningless phrase. Continue to support countries by overseas aid but ask for evidence of how it has been effective.
I agree with the chancellor on this one.

I agree Parsley ...the UK spends huge amounts on it and cannot continue this way for years I should think. Cut the budget and make sure it’s used for the right reasons in the right countries.India has a space programme! China? They are doing very nicely.
All western countries will have to reconsider aid budgets over the next year or two.

....and yes, I realise that a lot of money is given for political favours and diplomatic purposes as well as charitable giving,
But since all western countries are in such a bind economically speaking, then it still makes sense to cut it.