Labour members are urging Keir Starmer or his successor to make international development a priority, warning the party’s reputation has been damaged by his decision to slash the aid budget by 40 per cent.
In an exclusive poll, 61 per cent of those surveyed said that they believed the government reducing aid from 0.5 per cent of gross national income (GNI) to 0.3 per cent of GNI in 2027 to help pay for an increase in defence spending was “too much”.
The cuts, following Donald Trump’s decision to slash billions of dollars from the US aid budget while essentially shuttering the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), have left countries across Africa and around the world – with vital work around HIV prevention and treatment, infectious disease control, maternal health and education all having been hit hard.
The poll of more than 1,000 Labours members by Survation also found that 78 per cent of those asked believe the cuts, which will slash bilateral support to African nations particularly deeply, have damaged Labour’s reputation. When asked, 37 per cent said it had done “a lot” of damage, with 41 per cent saying it had at least done a “little”.
Sir Keir has faced pressure from within the Labour Party to stand aside as leader in the wake of substantial losses in the local elections in England, as well as national elections for the Welsh and Scottish parliaments earlier this month. Labour minister Wes Streeting resigned as health secretary and has that he would stand in any Labour leadership contest that is held to replace Sir Keir. But the party is now waiting with bated breath to see if another rival for the top job, Andy Burnham, wins next month’s Makerfield by-election.
Some MPs believe that if Mr Burnham, the mayor of Greater Manchester, returns to parliament by beating the Reform Party and clinching the seat, he will almost certainly become the UK’s next prime minister – despite Sir Keir insisting he will not “walk away” from Downing Street.
If there is a new Labour leader, more than half of the members surveyed said that it was important to prioritise international development, with 11 per cent saying it was “very” important and 42 per cent saying it was “somewhat” important. That is compared to 27 per cent who said it should not be a priority. When it comes to how that choice would impact who they would vote to become leader, 40 per cent of members said prioritising international development and aid would make them more likely to vote for a candidate, with just 11 per cent saying it would make them less likely.
Damian Lyons Lowe, Chief Executive of Survation, said: “These results suggest international development is not a peripheral issue for Labour members when they think about the party’s future direction.
“If there is a new Labour leader, a majority say it would be important for them to make international development a priority, with only around a quarter saying it would be unimportant – a clear 26-point gap,” he added
“The cut to the international development budget also appears to have landed badly with the membership. Nearly eight in ten Labour members say it has damaged Labour’s reputation on international development,” he said. “Any future leader trying to rebuild trust with members would be wise to take note of that.”
This article has been produced as part of The Independent’s Rethinking Global Aid project
