David Miliband, a former Labour foreign secretary who now runs US aid charity the International Rescue Committee, has criticised Starmer for cutting the UK aid budget…
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About 28% of total expenditure of the aid budget funds domestic support for asylum seekers and refugees within the UK (an increase from about 3% in 2016). Huge contributing factors are clogging up of assessing claims and increased hotel costs?
So if Labour can get the Home Office to process claims expediently, then this proportion of spend from the total aid budget can fund our defence needs and continued help internationally?
Nobody likes the idea much David, but the money needs to come from somewhere as a current priority. My hope is that another source for defence funding will be found long term.
So do I!
Cutting aid is an idiotic thing to do for obvious reasons!
But David Miliband, failed candidate in a long ago Labour leadership election, and perpetual darling of the centre right Labour chaps and media, is the constant irrelevant person to get the wide eyed coverage.
Ffs we are doooomed!
It’s a blow, agreed, but it’s sharing the immediate pain in the short term. Defence spending will still need to increase further and that will require tax increases. (@johnrentoul)
This the same David Miliband who gave himself a £60,000 pay rise at his very first meeting of International Rescue even though he was already on about £400,000 and has since raised it to over a million quid. Lot of conkers that - lot of conkers
I am undetwhelmed by Labour so far, and the preferred option to raise the revenue was obviously to increase taxation on the rich. However, the hard truth is that without some populism by this Labour government, we'll be looking at a Tory/Reform coalition government in 4 years' time.
Does he honestly think that Starmer had anywhere else to look for the money that wouldn't be slaughtered by the Media & many British voters. See WFA, IHT, NI, etc. Maybe Milliband should be asked where he'd find it in the short term? In a parallel timeline, he's a Labour PM after all.
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An industry which directly stands to gain from this increase in spending. People killing each other is big business for a wealthy few...
Cutting aid is an idiotic thing to do for obvious reasons!
But David Miliband, failed candidate in a long ago Labour leadership election, and perpetual darling of the centre right Labour chaps and media, is the constant irrelevant person to get the wide eyed coverage.
Ffs we are doooomed!