Government stalling in efforts to cut foreign aid spent on asylum seekers

The government is struggling to cut the amount of money from the foreign aid budget it spends on asylum seekers in the UK, new figures show.

Home Office figures show the department expects to spend £2.2bn of overseas development assistance (ODA) this financial year, of which £2.1bn is expected to be spent on asylum support. The predictions for this year are only slightly less than the £2.4bn spent in 2024/25.

Official development assistance (ODA) – which was slashed earlier this year to 0.3 per cent of GDP to pay for a boost to defence spending - is used to promote the economic development and welfare in developing countries around the world.

[Home Secretary Yvette Cooper appeared before the Home Affairs committee on Tuesday (House of Commons/UK Parliament/PA) (PA Wire)][Home Secretary