Thursday 10 Dec 2020 @ 15:43
Parliamentary Committees and Public Enquiries
Printable version

Future of the International Development Committee confirmed

The leader of the House of Commons has confirmed that the International Development Committee will continue scrutinising the work of Government.

Image representing news article

In a letter sent to Chair of the Committee, Sarah Champion, Jacob Rees-Mogg stated that the Government does not intend to bring forward a motion to alter the current committee structure. This means that both the International Development Committee, and the Foreign Affairs Committee, will be retained in their current form.

The future of the International Development Committee appeared uncertain following the merging of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) and the Department for International Development (DFID).

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) will now decide the final allocation of UK aid spending across Whitehall. With the FCO absorbing DFID’s budget, 93.5% of the UK’s aid budget will be spent via the FCDO.

In order to appropriately scrutinise the work of the FCDO, and other development spending departments, the Chairs of the International Development Committee and Foreign Affairs Committee have agreed to maintain a complementary focus on the portfolios of their former departments while recognising that over-arching and cross-cutting issues would also arise. Therefore, the IDC will continue scrutinising UK aid expenditure, including the portion implemented by departments other than the FCDO.

Chair's comments

Chair of the International Development Committee, Sarah Champion MP, yesterday said:

“It is a huge relief that IDC has been retained. I would like to thank the cross-party support from MPs and Peers and also the great campaigning from NGOs and activists.

“The International Development Committee has a unique role in scrutinising the Government on its Foreign Aid programme. This role is vital for aid beneficiaries around the world and also the UK public as both want the money well spent.

“Now more than ever parliamentary scrutiny is needed. As the UK looks to reposition itself globally, at the same time as Government announcing a decreasing pot of development money, we need to make sure the right support is going to the right people and that there is accountability for those decisions.

“UK aid is a lifeline for so many people around the world, it also increases our soft power and is the right and moral thing to do. We will continue banging the drum for all of the extraordinary benefits of aid and challenge when we see things going wrong.”

A new programme of work for the International Development Committee will be agreed in January with an announcement in due course.

Further information

 

Channel website: http://www.parliament.uk/

Original article link: https://committees.parliament.uk/committee/98/international-development-committee/news/137735/future-of-the-international-development-committee-confirmed/

Share this article

Latest News from
Parliamentary Committees and Public Enquiries

Government must invest in building new social homes to tackle chronic housing shortage, say MPs

08/05/2024 15:15:00

The range of financial pressures facing social housing providers has resulted in the building of less social housing and exacerbated a chronic social housing shortage in England, says the cross-party Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (LUHC) Committee in a report published today (Wednesday).

Use of WhatsApp for lobbying needs greater transparency, say MPs

02/05/2024 11:20:00

Lobbying of Ministers over WhatsApp and other Non-Corporate Communication Channels (NCCCs), should be subject to the same disclosure regime as face-to-face meetings, says the Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee in its new report. 

Committee publishes Government response to Large Language Models report – more action needed on copyright and market competition

02/05/2024 10:20:00

Baroness Stowell of Beeston, Chair of the Communications and Digital Committee, writes to Rt Hon Michelle Donelan MP, Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology following the publication of the Government’s response to the Committee’s report ‘Large language models and generative AI’.

Committee brands Government answers on adapting to heatwaves a “missed opportunity”

30/04/2024 15:15:15

The Environmental Audit Committee expects the Government to provide more detail on its plans to adapt the UK to climate change, as it publishes the Government’s response to its report on Heat Resilience and Sustainable Cooling.

MPs publish report on Government’s Holocaust Memorial proposals

26/04/2024 12:20:00

MPs today publish their report on the Government’s plans for a Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre next to Parliament. 

Freeports and investment zones governance ‘must be urgently improved’, say MPs

26/04/2024 11:20:00

A new report by the cross-party Business and Trade Committee demands the Government ‘urgently improve’ governance and transparency at freeports and investment zones.

Education Committee publishes Govt’s response to Ofsted report

25/04/2024 09:10:00

The Education Committee has published the Department for Education’s (DfE’s) response to its report on Ofsted’s work with schools. 

Britain and Northern Ireland diverge on fruit packaging due to new EU proposals

23/04/2024 12:15:00

New EU fruit and vegetable rules will create further differences in how fruit is sold in Great Britain and Northern Ireland, according to the European Scrutiny Committee’s latest report.

Gambling regulation: Culture, Media and Sport Committee publishes Government response to report

22/04/2024 16:25:00

The Culture, Media and Sport Committee recently (19 April 2024) published the Government’s response to its report on gambling regulation.

Derby City Council Showcase