Charities have criticised international development secretary Penny Mordaunt over her pledges on international development which include to “not invest when others should be putting their hands in their pockets”.
Mordaunt, who was appointed secretary of state for international development in November 2017 following Priti Patel’s resignation, made five pledges to the British people on international development in an article in the Telegraph.
She wrote: “As far as I’m concerned, taxpayers’ money ‘spent well’ won’t cut it. To address their concerns we must show that their money cannot be better spent.”
Her pledges include a “bold new Brexit-ready proposition to boost trade and investment with developing countries and promote sustainable economic development and job creation”.
She said that the decisions of what countries invest in will influence aid spend. She said: “I want the governments of developing countries to take responsibility for investing in healthcare or education. If it chooses not to, that will inform our decisions.”
Mentioning the International Citizen Service as an example, she also states that: “We will create more such opportunities with every part of Whitehall, to deliver for the world’s poor while supporting our domestic agenda.”
Mordaunt said that they will cut funding to organisations that “do not deliver on targets we set”, and that some that do not are “on notice”.
‘The poor and vulnerable shouldn’t pay for their government’s failures’
Oxfam, World Vision and the One Campaign have responded to Mordaunt’s pledges.
Oxfam’s head of advocacy, Katy Chakrabortty, said that the Mordaunt would have to "tread a fine line to ensure that poor people do not lose the help they desperately need".
“Britain’s dedication to helping the world’s poorest people is seen time and time again, from our support to Rohingya people who have fled to Bangladesh to escape violence, to those facing severe hunger in countries like South Sudan. The development secretary is right to be proud of these commitments.
"Penny Mordaunt is right that governments around the world have a responsibility to invest in their own healthcare and education, and aid certainly shouldn't be used to give the private sector a free ride. But she will need to tread a fine line to ensure that poor people do not lose the help they desperately need.
"Beating poverty for good is truly in Britain's national interest. Regardless of Brexit, that should remain aid's primary purpose."
Gavin Crowden, World Vision UK’s head of policy, advocacy and campaigns, said: “The UK government needs to be careful of relying solely on the ‘trade your way out of poverty’ mind-set. It’s clearly an important part of the development puzzle – but it’s not the only piece.
“Britain should be proud of its commitment to foreign aid, and the International development secretary is right to champion transparency and to advocate for governments to fulfil their duty to their citizens. However, aid must always reach the most poor and vulnerable wherever they are – and they should not be made to pay for their government’s failures.”
Romilly Greenhill, UK director of the ONE Campaign, said “Penny Mordaunt is right to say that countries should invest in health and education and indeed that’s what many of them are doing.
“But the evidence suggests that even if they increase tax collection and prioritise the social sectors, there is still a large funding gap that needs to be filled by aid from the UK and others.”
Kate Osamor, Labour’s shadow international development secretary, was reported in the Independent to have said: “When the British public get behind aid, they do so because it's the right thing to do - not because it's expedient.
“Frankly, the Tories' idea that we should stop using aid to reduce poverty and use it only for short-sighted national interest is an insult to the generosity and intelligence of the millions of British people who donate their time and money each year to make the world fairer.”
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