14 January 2025
Andrew Mitchell urges Government to boost ODA budget to cover asylum seeker costs

Andrew Mitchell calls on the Government to match the £2.5 billion that the previous Government added to the 0.5% official development assistance (ODA) budget, to cover the costs of first-year asylum seekers which are paid for out of the ODA budget.

Mr Andrew Mitchell (Sutton Coldfield) (Con)

The Government are right to continue the all-party approach to the next International Development Association replenishment of the World Bank, which is extremely good value for taxpayer money. Will the Foreign Secretary press the Treasury to match what the former Chancellor, my right hon. Friend the Member for Godalming and Ash (Jeremy Hunt), did in adding £2.5 billion to the 0.5% official development assistance budget, to help defray some of the costs of first-year asylum seekers, which that budget bears? Otherwise, we will be spending more development money in UK postal districts than in Africa.

The Minister for Development (Anneliese Dodds)

I am grateful to the right hon. Gentleman for raising this issue. He understands deeply that under Conservative Governments, we saw those so-called in-donor refugee costs spiralling out of control. The system was not being brought under any kind of coherent plan by previous Governments. Now there is a plan, which is being delivered by the Home Secretary. We are determined to ensure that those costs are brought down.

Hansard