The UK foreign aid budget could be cut temporarily after the the country's public finances took a battering dealing with the coronavirus pandemic.
It has been reported that plans had been drawn up to step back from the pledge to spend at least 0.7 per cent of national income on foreign aid to 0.5 per cent.
A Treasury official did not deny the report and the decision could be confirmed in the chancellor’s comprehensive spending review next week.
The UK has already revealed it is reducing the global aid budget by £2.9 billion this year due to the economic hit of the coronavirus crisis, but that the 0.7 per cent commitment towards international development would still be met.
The spending on Official Development Assistance was set to be £15.8 billion this year but that commitment was made before the Covid-19 crisis emerged.
Foreign secretary Dominic Raab, when taking charge at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office in September, said the Government was “absolutely” committed to the 0.7 per cent target.
The gross national income of the UK in 2019 was £2.17 trillion, meaning a drop from 0.7 per cent to 0.5 per cent would account for more than £4 billion.
The target was first agreed by the United Nations in 1970, and the UK Government has met the target since 2013. It was enshrined into law in 2015.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson wants the cut to last no longer than a tear, it is understood.
