UK passes bill to honour pledge of 0.7% foreign aid target

The UK has passed a bill that enshrines in law its commitment to spend 0.7% of its gross national income (GNI) on aid every year, making it the first G7 country to meet the UN’s 45-year-old aid spending target.

The international development bill passed its third reading in the House of Lords on Monday and will now receive royal assent. Britain met the 0.7% target for the first time last year when it spent £11.4bn – or 0.72% of its GNI – on overseas aid.

The 0.7% commitment was established by the UN in 1970. In 2013, only five other countries – Sweden, Norway, Luxembourg, Denmark and the United Arab Emirates – had met or exceeded the 0.7% aid spending target. The Netherlands had consistently met the target, but fell short in 2013.

The UK’s international development secretary, Justine Greening, said: “Britain is the first major economy to meet the UN’s target on aid spending and I am proud that parliament has now passed this bill, which cements Britain’s global leadership in creating a world that is healthier, more stable and increasingly prosperous.

“Tackling poverty overseas is about addressing the root causes of global challenges such as disease, migration, terrorism and climate change, all of which are the right things to do and firmly in Britain’s own national interest.”

As well as committing to spending 7p out of every £10 of taxpayers’ money on aid, the law calls for continuous independent evaluation and monitoring of aid spending. The bill has been cleared for royal assent and is expected to come into force on 1 June.

The passage of the bill was met with jubilation by NGOs, who said it would bring stability to poorer countries, while encouraging other donor governments to meet the UN target.

Ben Jackson, CEO of the Bond network of NGOs, said: “By enshrining this in law, we are ensuring that British aid will continue until it is no longer needed. It also sends a strong signal to developing countries that we will continue to keep our aid promise to them, and to other rich countries that they too must meet their aid targets.”

Concern Worldwide’s executive director, Rose Caldwell, said: “We can be proud that we are the only G7 country to meet the 45-year-old UN commitment to spend 0.7% of GNI on development aid.”Diane Sheard, UK director of the ONE campaign, said: “The promise of a law to protect the UK’s lifesaving aid budget was in all major parties’ 2010 election manifestos. We are delighted that, in the twilight of this parliament, this promise has finally been delivered.

“Now the debate must focus on the quality and impact of aid. Whoever forms the next government must ensure that most of the UK’s lifesaving aid goes to those who have the least so that we can end the injustice of one billion people living in extreme poverty.”

Kevin Watkins, executive director of the Overseas Development Institute said: “Enshrining the UK’s aid commitment in law is significant, but there is more to development than aid, and the UK Government also needs to play a leading role in combatting tax evasion and climate change.”

Despite a promise to enshrine the 0.7% aid commitment into law – it appeared in the manifestos of all three main political parties in 2010 – it took a private member’s bill, introduced by Liberal Democrat MP Michael Moore in September 2014, to secure the debate.

Mary Creagh MP, Labour’s shadow international development secretary, said: “I am proud that more Labour MPs voted for this bill than all the other parties combined. This bill ensures that whoever is in government, our promises to the world’s poor will be honoured.”