Thread by @PickardJE

BREAKING:

- government wins aid cut vote by 333-298 after substantial Tory rebellion

- result: Rishi Sunak's £4bn annual cut to Britain's international aid will continue for at least 5 years

WaterAid chief Tim Wainwright:

“Chancellor’s cynical move to balance Britain’s books on the backs of the world's poorest people will cost 100s of 1000s of lives. To cut aid for lifesaving water and sanitation in the middle of worst pandemic for 100 years is unconscionable."

ActionAid chief Frances Longley:

“Today the government has chosen to pull up the drawbridge and leave behind millions of the poorest women and girls around the world. This is unforgivable at a time when the pandemic has already rolled back women’s rights by a generation."

the counter-argument is that the UK aid budget is still more generous than many other developed countries *even* after the cut from 0.7 to 0.5% of GNI

but charities are warning about huge fallout for hundreds of thousands of people:

CAFOD chief Christine Allen:

“The truth is this is a political decision which is at the expense of the world’s most vulnerable and marginalised communities affected by Covid and climate change.”