Bond UK ODA cuts briefing – October 2026

The UK government’s decision to slash the UK aid budget from 0.5% to 0.3% of GNI by 2027 to fund an increase in defence spending has undermined Labour’s manifesto commitments and its credibility at home and abroad. Most importantly it has forced lifesaving humanitarian and development programmes to close, including in fragile and conflict-affected countries, leaving communities without vital support and all of us more vulnerable to the impacts of the climate crisis, conflict, inequality and poverty. This briefing is a follow-up to Bond’s October 2025 briefing, ‘Cuts that cost lives’, available to read here.

This briefing sets out:
• How, since 2025, UK aid cuts, which have been compounded by global aid cuts by the US and other
major donors, have impacted essential humanitarian, development and climate programmes.
• Bond’s calls on the new prime minister and foreign secretary to set out an ambitious agenda for
international development.