Rebel Conservative members of Parliament in the United Kingdom have raised the stakes for the government, bringing an amendment to Parliament designed to force a vote on the stark cuts to the aid budget.
The surprise amendment is so far backed by former Prime Minister Theresa May and 29 other MPs from different wings of the Conservative Party. Around 45 rebel MPs are needed for the amendment to pass.
The amendment was attached to legislation for launching a new science agency, but must still be selected by House of Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle in order to go before MPs.
Alice Lilly, senior researcher at the Institute for Government, told Devex she expected the amendment to be chosen by Hoyle because of the number of senior MPs backing it — they include powerful parliamentary committee chairs, former Cabinet ministers, and other high profile politicians. But whether Hoyle decides the amendment is in the scope of the original bill is a potential challenge to its selection, added Lilly.
“This is what happens when you have an awful lot of experienced MPs who have had an awful lot of time to think about this,” said Lilly.
“With our economy returning to growth, there is no justification for balancing the books on the backs of the world’s poor.”
— Andrew Mitchell, member of U.K. ParliamentThe Advanced Research and Invention Agency bill’s report stage and its amendment selection will take place on Monday, June 7 — the start of the week the U.K. hosts the G-7 summit in Cornwall. Parliament is currently in recess, meaning government Whips will be forced to scramble for votes while MPs are away from Westminster.
The amendment is designed to force the government to restore the aid spending target of 0.7% of national income, after the government announced in November 2020 that it would only be spending 0.5%.
The 0.7% target is enshrined in law under the 2015 International Development Act, which also stipulates that in a year where the target won’t be met, the ARIA — a science institution to be modeled on the United States Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency — would have to make up the funding gap.
Since November, the government has embarked on a secretive and brutal process implementing the cuts, which Devex has monitored in a tracker. The scale and severity of the cuts have caused significant political outrage, prompting the current rebellion.
“More and more of my colleagues in the House of Commons are supporting this move to stand by our manifesto promise,” said former international development secretary Andrew Mitchell in a statement. Mitchell organized the rebellion and tabled the amendment alongside Anthony Mangnall, a newcomer to Parliament elected in 2019.
“With our economy returning to growth, there is no justification for balancing the books on the backs of the world’s poor,” Mitchell added.
More on U.K. aid cuts:
► UK aid watchdog ICAI's funding cut by 15%, MPs say
► Key UK aid budget announcement criticized as 'evasive'
► 2020 UK aid cuts ‘more drastic than needed,’ according to watchdog
Leaving room for the government to make concessions before Monday, Mitchell’s statement continued: “With G-7 leaders coming to Britain next week, there is an opportunity for us to reclaim our rightful place on the global stage. Britain’s national interest is not being served by the devastating impact these cuts are already having on the ground and the unnecessary loss of hundreds of thousands of innocent lives. We urge the government to think again.”
Prime Minister Boris Johnson holds an 80-seat majority in the House of Commons. If the amendment passes, it would be the first parliamentary defeat for the government — providing a much-needed symbolic victory for development campaigners.
But some experts had mixed feelings about the vote. Mark Miller of the Overseas Development Institute was wary of “trying to force [the] government's hand on this” and worried about the possible “longer-term erosion of public support” amid negative media blowback.
“A government that does not want the [0.7%] target will work hard to game it, undermining its integrity. We will likely see recording of ... vaccine donations, recycling of SDRs [Special Drawing Rights] to hit 0.7% [aid spending target]. There's also a risk that a compromise amendment is tabled and a permanently reduced target for ODA gets locked into law,” Miller added.
A defeat on the amendment would be yet another hammer blow to U.K development and would leave the sector with few options but to accept the government’s plans for the aid budget and policy.
Update June 3, 2021: This article was updated to clarify a quote attribution.
About the author
William Worley@willrworley
Will Worley is the Climate Correspondent for Devex, covering the intersection of development and climate change. He previously worked as UK Correspondent, reporting on the FCDO and British aid policy during a time of seismic reforms. Will’s extensive reporting on the UK aid cuts saw him shortlisted for ‘Specialist Journalist of the Year’ in 2021 by the British Journalism Awards. He can be reached at william.worley@devex.com.
