UK accused of hypocrisy at landmark UN foreign aid conference
Critics question UK’s foreign aid commitment at UN conference
- The UK is being accused of hypocrisy for its low-level participation and significant aid budget cuts at the fourth Financing for Development Conference (FfD4) in Seville.
- Critics say that the UK sending only a government minister, Baroness Chapman, while 50 world leaders attended, signals a lack of commitment to global development finance.
- The UK's foreign aid budget has been cut from 0.5 per cent to 0.3 per cent of Gross National Income, expected to reduce aid by £6.2 billion by 2025, drawing widespread condemnation.
- Development organisations argue these cuts undermine the UK's credibility and ability to address critical issues like debt, climate change, and humanitarian crises in developing nations.
- Despite the criticism, the conference's final agreement, the "Compromiso de Sevilla", includes positive language on international tax cooperation and an intergovernmental process on debt.