Proposed motion to: Protect Labour’s legacy of an effective and compassionate UK International Development program.
Labour International notes that:
- Ensuring that the UK is a leader in the global sustainable development agenda is a longstanding and proud achievement of the Labour Party. [1]
- Overseas development assistance (ODA) should not be ‘tied’ to any political or economic interests of the UK, as recognized by the OECD, amongst others. [2]
- The absorption of the Department for International Development (DfID) into a combined Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), combined with the Conservative Party’s “mutual prosperity” rhetoric will take money away from development-focused support and could very well lead to a sharp decline in the positive impact UK Aid has in the world. [3]
- This CLP is in a unique position in the Labour Party to both perceive and advocate against cuts to UK Aid, given its global footprint and considerable, in-house development expertise. [4]
- This CLP has previously passed a motion condemning the merger of DfID and the FCO in August 2020 (see background information for details).
Labour International resolves to:
- Create a Labour International campaign to protect Labour’s legacy of an effective and compassionate UK government International Development (UK Aid) program.
This motion is for the attention of the Labour International Executive Committee, especially the Policy and Campaigns Officer, and may be shared with the Office of the Shadow Minister for International Development for information.
This motion was passed unanimously at the LIon 1 Nov 2020
Notes:
[1] A Labour government was responsible for both creating the first, dedicated ministry for international development in the UK (in 1964) and for creating DfID https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-53062858 and scaling up and untying aid: Barder, O. (2005). “Reforming Development Assistance: Lessons from the UK Experience. Center for Global Development Working Paper
[2] https://www.oecd.org/dac/financing-sustainable-development/development-finance-standards/untyingaidisitworking.htm
[3] https://icai.independent.gov.uk/report/mutual-prosperity/
N.B Articles, posts & comments by LIDN don’t necessarily reflect the views of the LI CLP.