Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government how much bilateral aid China has received from the UK in the form of development assistance since 2015; when this was last reviewed; and when it will next be reviewed.

The UK ended traditional bilateral aid programmes to China in 2011. China's size, rising economic power and influence make it an important partner in tackling global challenges. We now offer expertise and skills to help tackle global issues like climate change, which is firmly in the national interest. Bilateral Official Development Assistance (ODA) spend for 2009-2019 as categorised by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) can be found here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/920048/Table-A4b.od. This includes ODA spend on activity such as British scientists and researchers working with Chinese counterparts, Chinese Chevening scholars, the British Council's ODA eligible activity in China and, for 2015 and 2019, the ODA eligible portion of costs related to UK diplomatic staff in China (in 2016-2018 these costs were presented regionally).

ODA programmes, including those relevant to China, were reviewed in July 2020 as part of the ODA reprioritisation exercise due to the reduction in Gross National Income (GNI) during the early stages of the Covid-19 crisis. Following the Chancellor of the Exchequer's announcement in the Spending Review that ODA will be reduced to 0.5% of GNI until the fiscal situation allows a return to 0.7%, the Foreign Secretary will run a short cross-government process to review, appraise and finalise ODA allocations across all departments.