PM spinning that he'll use the review to make a 'personal commitment' to restoring the 0.7% aid target doesn't cut it. The wording of the #IntegratedReview says it'll return 'when fiscal situation allows' - not a firm commitment, another promise to be broken
Even if he were to be believed, that's still a year at 0.5%. Hundreds of thousands of lives lost. Aid to Yemen and Syria cut by nearly 2/3.
It's not a necessary cut, and in any case it comes as they announce increasing spending on *more* nuclear weapons. #IntegratedReview
Development barely gets mentioned at all. Not a single chapter or even chapter section on it, just a tiny little box. Only new commitment (is it new?) is to help get 40m girls into school, which is welcome, but that seems to be it #IntegratedReview
Good to see continued funding for WHO but where is the mention of universal health care? We should be building back better from the pandemic by supporting #UHC globally @UHC_Day@yates_rob#IntegratedReview
On civilian protection it is also weak. No mention of upholding the UN Responsibility to Protect. Civilian protection should be at the heart of our approach to responding to conflict, yet barely gets mention. 1 reference to atrocity prevention, that's it. @GCR2P#IntegratedReview
If the 'integrated approach' or new conflict centre they mention do put civilian protection at the centre, that would be good.
A focus on political approaches to conflict resolution is welcome but what happens when that fails as in Syria, Rwanda etc? #IntegratedReview@gcr2p
No mention of the UN Arms Trade Treaty, which the UK helped establish. No change in our relationship with Saudi Arabia, arms sales to continue. The same re the dictatorship in Egypt #IntegratedReview
Today marks 10 years since brave protestors took to the streets in Syria demanding democracy and dignity.
Since then over half a million have been killed by Assad and Putin, many more have fled as refugees, and thousands have been tortured.
What happened to 'Never Again'?
Jo Cox MP, Syrian activists and others called for a proper strategy to protect civilians, including a No Bombing Zone, which couldve saved many thousands of lives. Instead such calls got put in the 'too difficult' column, red lines were set and crossed, and the conflict got worse
Labour's policies on Syria during many of these years have been at best, weak, and at worst, downright harmful (e.g. lcid.org.uk/2017/12/14/lab…).
At LCID we are sorry that Labour has failed Syrians too often in recent years, and sorry we were unable to change that.