In response to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office’s provisional statistics on how UK aid was spent in 2025, Christine Allen, Director of the Catholic Agency for Overseas Development (CAFOD), says:
“Today’s statistics showing a £1 billion reduction in aid spend is further proof that the UK is failing in its manifesto pledge to ‘turn the page to rebuild Britain’s reputation on international development’. UK aid cuts will soon be more severe than any other G7 country including the US, leaving our global standing in tatters.
“The world is plagued with conflict, famine and destruction, and turning our backs on the most vulnerable is not only short-sighted, it is morally wrong.
“We urge the UK government to stem the tide on these devastating cuts and ensure that the overseas aid budget is not diverted to domestic matters.”
Notes to editors
For more information or interview requests, please contact:
Rosalind Mayfield, CAFOD Media Officer
Melissa Nethersole, CAFOD Media Officer
CAFOD’s out-of-hours media line
CAFOD is the official aid agency of the Catholic Church in England and Wales, and part of Caritas Internationalis, working with communities across Africa, Asia, the Middle East and Latin America to fight poverty and injustice, including those worst hit by climate change. The agency works with people in need, regardless of race, gender, religion or nationality.
CAFOD is funded mainly by voluntary donations from people in the Catholic community of England and Wales. We also receive funding from fellow Catholic charities and development agencies, the DEC, trusts and foundations, and the UK and other governments.
What we do
CAFOD is the official aid agency for the Catholic Church in England and Wales.
With your help, we reach out to people living in hard-to-reach places, in war zones and those who are discriminated against.