London, July 13 (EFE). – The UK government received this Tuesday the approval of Parliament, by a conservative majority, to reduce the annual amount of foreign aid, so that state finances recover from the impact of the pandemic.
MPs, by 333 votes to 298, supported a motion by the Chief Executive Officer, Boris Johnson, proposing to reduce that annual contribution until the state reduces its budget deficit and accumulated debt, so that there is no scheduled date.
Although many “Conservatives” voted, along with the opposition, against the proposal, which violates the electoral promise of the ruling Conservative Party, in the end it was advanced by 35 votes, more than initially expected.
Defending the cut, which has been heavily criticized by multilateral organizations and humanitarian entities, Johnson stressed that the pandemic had plunged the UK into its “biggest recession” and that the government should prioritize help in the national economy, which “has consequences in areas of Another general. Spending.”
The Conservative Party leader insisted that he continues to support the “principle” of allocating the equivalent of 0.7% of GNP to international cooperation and assured that this amount would be returned “when two conditions are met”.
He said that the first thing is that the country, which in 2020 recorded a budget deficit equivalent to 14.3% of GDP, stops borrowing to cover its daily expenses, and the second is that it is steadily reduced in an overall cumulative manner. Debt, which currently exceeds 2 trillion euros (about 100% of GDP).
Johnson pledged to assess the situation annually based on economic forecasts from the Office of Budget Responsibility (OBR), which oversees public finances.
He pointed out that in 2020, the government invested more than 300 thousand million pounds (about 351 thousand million euros) to mitigate the effects of the epidemic on the economy, and in turn, decided to reduce the allocations for humanitarian aid along with other financial measures.
The CEO stresses that despite this reduction, the UK will still donate £10 billion (€11.7 billion) this year “to improve global health, fight the pandemic and combat climate change”.
Tras la votación, el líder del Partido Laborista, Keir Starmer, declaró que “recortar la ayuda a los países más pobres durante una pandemia es cruel y no va en el interés nacional” y acusó a Johnson de “Unidañar Reino reputación del en everybody”.
Several charities, including the Church of England, Christian Aid or Oxfam, as well as many politicians have warned that the cut could become permanent in practice. EFE
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