Nearly 190 non-governmental organizations have urged UK Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, to keep his promise to spend 0.7 percent of the UKs Gross National Product on international aid and development amid rumors that the Conservative government is planning to announce a temporary suspension of the commitment in next week's spending review
LONDON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 21st November, 2020) Nearly 190 non-governmental organizations have urged UK Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, to keep his promise to spend 0.7 percent of the UKs Gross National Product on international aid and development amid rumors that the Conservative government is planning to announce a temporary suspension of the commitment in next week's spending review.
"A U-turn on your manifesto commitment to maintain the 0.7% target would signal we are a nation willing to balance its books on the backs of the world's most marginalised people, many of whom are dealing with the impact of Covid-19 on top of existing hardship," an open letter signed by leaders and chief executives of Save The Children, Greenpeace UK, Unicef UK, Friends Of The Earth, The National Federation of Women's Institutes, Christian Aid and other 185 NGOs said.
Church leaders have also voiced their concern about an eventual cut in the overseas aid budget.
"As Christians, we believe it is our duty to stand alongside our global neighbours, and seek justice for the most vulnerable. As we are called to love our neighbours - wherever they might be - remaining vocally committed to 0.7% GNI is a moral imperative," reverend Richard Teal, President of the Methodist Conference, and Carolyn Lawrence, Vice-President, said, as quoted in the Christian news website.
According to the UK media, the government is planning to reduce international aid from 0.7 percent of GDP to 0.5 percent to help fund the �16.5 billion ($21.9 billion) increase in the UK's defense budget announced on Thursday by Johnson in Parliament.
When he was challenged by Labour leader Keir Starmer to explain how the government would pay for this huge boost in military expenditures over the next four years and whether it would keep its commitment to maintaining the 0.7 percent target, the prime minister only said that there is "absolutely" no relation to discussions about overseas aid.
