Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to his Oral Statement of 25 November 2020, Official Report, column 830, what plans he has to set out in detail the measurements that will be used to define the fiscal situation under which Official Development Assistance spending can return to .the 0.7 of GNI level.

In the context of unprecedented economic and fiscal circumstances, the Government decided at the 2020 Spending Review that sticking rigidly to spending 0.7% of gross national income as Official Development Assistance (ODA) was not an appropriate prioritisation of resources.

To ensure coherence and maximum value for money from the UK’s ODA spending, the Foreign Secretary led a cross-government process after the 2020 Spending Review to review in detail how ODA is allocated against the Government’s priorities. This has ensured that UK ODA is focused on our strategic priorities, spent where it will have the maximum impact, has greater coherence and delivers most value for money.

The Government intends to return to the 0.7% target when the fiscal situation allows. We cannot at this moment predict with certainty when the current fiscal circumstances will have sufficiently improved.