Ex minister ‘fundamentally disagreed’ with aid cut

Former minister Anneliese Dodds has said her “fundamental” disagreement with Sir Keir Starmer over international aid cuts prompted her to resign.

She spoke to BBC Radio Oxford in her first interview since quitting as International Development Minister in February.

The Labour MP for Oxford East said that cuts to the international aid budget, in order to fund defence, would have a “big impact” at a time when other countries were also cutting back on this spending.

Responding to her resignation, the Prime Minister said the government will do everything it can “to rebuild a capability on development”.

Ahead of his trip to meet the US president last month, Sir Keir announced aid funding would be reduced from 0.5% of gross national income to 0.3% in 2027 in order to fund an increase in defence spending.

It was a move welcomed by the US administration but labelled a “betrayal” by development charities.

In its election manifesto, Labour pledged to restore development spending to 0.7% of gross national income “as soon as fiscal circumstances allow” – a goal the government says it is still committed to.

Dodds told Sophie Law on BBC Radio Oxford that other ways of funding defence spending should have been considered.

She said: “I fundamentally disagreed with the decision to fund the necessary increase we have to see in defence spending all from the international development budget.

“I think that it should have been a situation where we were looking at other sources of funding and really grappling with some of the big questions that are facing the country now.”

The MP said that resigning as a minister meant she could focus on local issues such as getting a new stadium for Oxford United and pushing for new housing in the area.

“I need to find a different way to try and influence things,” she said.

“Certainly I believe I can do that from the backbenches.”