Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to paragraph 2.13 of the Spring Statement 2025, published in March 2025, what his planned timetable is to introduce plans to modernise aid; and how he will engage with (a) parliamentarians and (b) civil society on those plans.

We are in the process of modernising how the UK approaches international development. Modern partnerships are about using all the levers at the UK's disposal - drawing upon UK diplomacy, trade and investment, and defence, as well as partnering with UK institutions, be that in the science and tech sector, the City of London, our universities, and beyond. As the Government makes decisions about the move to 0.3% of gross national income through the Spending Review, we will set out further plans on this.

The Minister for Development met with Bond [the UK network for organisations working in international development] earlier this month to discuss a number of issues, and is committed to engaging regularly with civil society organisations. The Ministerial team regularly engages with local civil society organisations on overseas visits. Parliamentarians will be included as part of any approach to further consultation. The Minister will be setting more of this out when she appears at the International Development Committee on 13 May.