UK Overseas Aid Spent on Asylum Costs at Home Surges to £4.3bn
LONDON — In a startling revelation, new figures show that over a quarter of all UK overseas aid was allocated to asylum costs at home last year.
The Foreign Office statistics reveal that a staggering £4.3bn of its foreign aid budget was utilized to support refugees and asylum seekers within the UK, marking a significant 16% increase from the previous year’s expenditure of £3.7bn.
Critics argue that the government’s decision to allow the Home Office to dip into UK foreign aid budgets has led to a weakening of crisis prevention schemes, with Labour’s shadow international development minister Lisa Nandy expressing disbelief at the situation.
Nandy criticized the government for using the overseas aid budget as a bailout for their struggling asylum system, labeling it as “sticking plaster politics at its worst” and emphasizing the poor value for money for British taxpayers.
Most of the £4.3bn was spent by the Home Office, with approximately £2.9bn directed towards housing asylum seekers in the UK.
Despite an overall rise in the UK’s aid budget to £15.4bn in 2023, concerns were raised as less money was allocated to overseas bilateral aid commitments compared to asylum costs within the UK.
The International Commission for Aid Impact (ICAI) expressed ongoing concerns regarding value for money and the disproportionate allocation of funds towards hosting asylum seekers in the UK.
Gideon Rabinowitz, Director of Policy and Advocacy at Bond, emphasized the detrimental impact of diverting a large portion of the UK aid budget to domestic asylum costs, potentially hindering the country’s ability to respond effectively to global crises and support sustainable development in lower-income nations.
With the Home Office at the center of this controversy, questions loom over the government’s allocation of funds and the impact on international aid efforts.
The Home Office has been reached out to for comment, as the debate on UK aid spending continues. — BBC
