'False choice': MPs demand reversal of education aid cuts
Cutting the aid budget has created “a false choice between development, defence and diplomacy, which are now out of balance with one another, causing instability to grow," said Rachael Maskell MP during the debate.
MPs from across the UK House of Commons came together in unified concern this week, warning the government that drastic cuts to UK Official Development Assistance (ODA) are jeopardising global stability and undermining education efforts worldwide
A debate in the UK parliament on the future of ODA on November 4 focused heavily on the dramatic defunding of education, which members argued is undermining progress across health, economic growth, and global security.
The alarm was immediately set by Edward Morello MP, who secured the debate and highlighted the staggering figures. "Education spending has declined by 83% since 2016, and primary education now accounts for only £71 million of the entire ODA budget," Morello stated. "These are not just statistics. They are classrooms that will never reopen and children who will never have a fair future."
Cuts mean that thousands will lose access to education
The consequences of the cuts were laid bare by Liberal Democrat Spokesperson Monica Harding MP, who cited an immediate, tangible loss. "Let me be clear about what that all means on the ground: In the DRC, a flagship girls’ education programme that we supported will close early next year, and 170,000 children, mostly girls, will lose access to education."
Co-Chair for the APPG on Global Education, Bambos Charalambous MP, stressed that this is more than a social issue—it is an economic imperative. "Without investment in education, low and middle-income countries cannot unlock jobs, trade and innovation, and economies cannot grow. The foundation of our priorities must be education," he argued, praising the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) for its successful prior investments in groups like the Global Partnership for Education (GPE) and Education Cannot Wait (ECW).
A false choice between development, defence and diplomacy
MPs also rejected the idea of balancing development spending with defence spending. Rachael Maskell MP insisted that the decision to cut aid was a strategic blunder, stating: "The loss of education will deny too many, especially girls, a future. This is a false choice between development, defence and diplomacy, which are now out of balance with one another, causing instability to grow."
This point was echoed by Tom Morrison MP, who warned that eliminating education funding would create a "less stable world" in which millions of children would be "less likely to be educated, employed or able to participate in and contribute to democracy – the cornerstone of global security."
Shadow Minister Wendy Morton MP reinforced the strategic importance of targeted aid, stating, "This work is not only a moral responsibility. It is one of the most effective and value-for-money ways to deliver on our wider development and foreign policy goals."
The All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Global Education welcomed the continued parliamentary engagement, recognizing that the broad political concern demonstrates a clear understanding that education underpins global prosperity and the delivery of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
