'We should see this statement for what it is, the tactics of pure distraction' Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer says the announcement to merge DfID and the FCO is intended to 'deflect' from the virus death toll, unemployment and free school meals 'U-turn'
Simon Davis/DFID
It is understood ministers are aiming to set up the new joint department - known as the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office - by September.The move to combine the two, which have a previous history of being merged and split up again, has long been mooted in Conservative circles. Keeping development spending part of a separate government department, he said,"undermines the coherence of our foreign policy".
The UK will remain committed to spending 0.7% of its national income on overseas assistance, currently about £15bn. In response, Sir Keir said there was"no rationale" for the merger, which he said was being made now to"deflect attention" from the government's handling of the Covid-19 crisis.
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