Boris Johnson scraps foreign aid department to end Britain’s role as a ‘giant cashpoint in the sky’

BORIS Johnson has scrapped the foreign aid department to end the UK role of being a "cashpoint in the sky".

The Prime Minister confirmed the move today, which will see the Department for International Development merge with the Foreign Office.

The aid department will be officially scrapped by September, and the Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab will run it.

But Britain will still spend 0.7 per cent of GDP on international aid.

This means Britain will continue to spend it's £14billion aid budget.

Mr Johnson told MPs the plans would save money.

He said: "The UK possesses the third biggest aid budget and diplomatic network in the world.

“We owe it to our people to make best use of these assets.

"For too long frankly UK overseas aid has been treated as some giant cashpoint in the sky that arrives without any reference to UK interests or to the values the UK wishes to express or the priorities diplomatic political or commercial of the Government of the UK.

“The British taxpayer has a right to expect that we will achieve the maximum value for every pound that we spend."

It comes as:

• Boris Johnson was forced into a u-turn on free school meals today and announced he would fund them for kids throughout the summer holidays
• The true coronavirus death toll surpassed 53,000 - 11,000 more than the official figure

Mr Johnson told the Commons the new arrangements would help "maximise British interests".

He said: "I have decided to merge DfID with the Foreign and Commonwealth office to create a new department - the Foreign Commonwealth and development office.

"This will unite aid with diplomacy and bring them together in our international effort.

"It makes no sense to ask whether this amounts to aid or foreign policy -  they are one and the same endeavour and are designed to attain the same goals which are right in themselves and serve the same goals."

The PM also vowed the revamp will be used to make sure British companies get a “fair crack of the whip” when competing for aid contracts.

It follows a review into UK aid spending by crossbench peer Lord Bew.

The Bew review assessed the UK's £14 billion aid budget as part of a review of how the UK interacts with the world.

Boris said that the merger is an opportunity for the UK to have "even greater impact and influence on the world stage" as Britain prepares to hold the G7 presidency and host COP26 next year.

The Department for International Development will now join with the FCO, with both sharing ministers since the February reshuffle.

Anne-Marie Trevelyan will remain International Development Secretary for the next few months - but it's not clear whether she will have a job after that.

There are no plans for a second Secretary of State or a Deputy Foreign Secretary.

Tory MP Shailesh Vara labelled it a "good decision".

He added: "Ministers in both departments already have joint responsibility and it makes sense to have unified strategic planning".

And Michael Fabricant MP tweeted: "I'm glad Boris has shown the agility and flexibility to Merge the Foreign Office and International Development Department into a Super-Department which integrates international policy & reflects our role as a Global Britain."

James Roberts, political director of the TaxPayers' Alliance, said:

"This shift is good news for taxpayers, but it's crucial that the end result is less of their money being wasted.

“Taxpayers must get the maximum possible value for every pound spent. For too long, cash has been thrown away by DfID on ineffective and unjustified projects - money must now go to those most in need, at home and abroad."

But the decision was immediately attacked by former PM David Cameron, who said it was a "mistake".

He tweeted: "The end of DIFD will mean less expertise, less voice for development at the top table and ultimately less respect for the UK overseas."

Tony Blair and Gordon Brown also blasted the merger.

Labour's Sir Keir Starmer hit out at the decision, labelling DfID as one of the "best performing and important departments."

He added: "Labour created DfID, and I am proud of that.

"Abolishing DfID abolishes Britain’s place in the world.

"The PM should stop these distractions and get on with tackling the health and economic crisis we currently face."

The SNP's Ian Blackford said the PM was using the merger as an "excuse to wind down aid" for those who needed it most.

International NGO Health Poverty Action hit out at the merger.

Director Martin Drewry said: "Absorbing DfID into the Foreign Office adds insult to injury for the world’s poorest people.

"It will increase inequality further by using aid, and therefore the lives of people around the world, as a bargaining chip for serving corporate and political interests.”

The merger is understood to be backed by both permanent secretaries in the departments, and all staff meeting is understood to have been called in the Foreign Office for Wednesday.

Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee Tom Tugendhat welcomed the merger “if it maintains technical expertise that DfID demonstrates around the world".

He said “I’ve long been calling for proper integration of the UK’s foreign policy to achieve the strategic outcomes, not just for ourselves but also our friends and partners".

Britain's foreign aid budget has faced constant scrutiny, with the PM under pressure last year after it emerged China and India received £151million in UK cash - a rise of 12 per cent.

The British taxpayer donated £70,315 to a Chinese project to encourage shoppers not to buy products made with pangolins, an endangered species whose scales are used in traditional medicines, while its meat is a high-end delicacy.

Meanwhile £20,062 of aid was spent on looking at how solar panels could power India’s railways.

Andrew Mitchell, a former international development secretary, said giving taxpayers’ cash to China had brought the spending into “disrepute”.

He said: “Spending hardearned taxpayers’ money in China, a country powering out of poverty and attaining superpower status brings Britain’s brilliant development work into disrepute."

But the former DfID boss branded the merger a “quite extraordinary mistake” that will “destroy a key aspect of Global Britain”.

Figures show that the UK provided £1 in every £8 of foreign aid handed out by 29 major countries in £2018.