Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

What his policy is on maintaining the statutory target to spend 0.7 per cent of Gross National Income on Official Development Assistance.

We are committed to spending 0.7% of GNI on aid and development; this is a manifesto commitment and is enshrined in law. Both the Prime Minister and the Foreign Secretary have been firm that development will be at the heart of the new FCDO, working hand in hand with diplomacy. Development assistance provided by the UK aims to tackle the great challenges of our time, transform lives of the world’s poorest, and make the world a healthier, safer and more prosperous place for everyone. This allows us to shape the world around us for the better and help keep us safe. As an example of what UK ODA has achieved, since 2015 more than 33 million people have been reached by our humanitarian programmes, including at least 13 million women and girls. The FCDO brings together expertise from DFID and the FCO to ensure we place our world-class development programmes at the heart of our foreign policy. Supporting the poorest countries to become self-sufficient is firmly in line with British values and our own national interest.