International aid and children’s charities are among voluntary sector organisations to criticise the Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s Spending Review.
This week Sunak revealed details of his Spending Review, which includes a freeze on public sector workers’ pay, international aid cuts as well as an extra £2.2bn for schools, funding for holiday activities and meals for disadvantaged children out of term time.
Barnardo’s chief executive Javed Khan welcomed support for schools and holiday help for children but is concerned about the lack of support to address the growing mental health needs of vulnerable children.
“The Government is responding to a uniquely challenging situation, and we welcome the investment in schools, holiday help for children and for the NHS and local authorities,” said Khan.
“However, it was disappointing not to hear more about how the Government will address the challenges facing vulnerable children and young people, including the crisis in mental health and increased risk of harm and abuse.
"As highlighted today, the impact of Covid-19 will be with us for years to come. The effects of the pandemic and economic downturn will be most acute for children and families already facing disadvantage, so it's essential that we have long-term investment in children's social care and vital services, so that children and families can access support when they need it, not just after they reach crisis point.”
Missed opportunity
The End Child Poverty coalition, whose members include the City Bridge Trust, said it is “deeply disappointed” by the review. It is particularly concerned that the government has not committed to maintain an uplift in benefits due to Covid-19 beyond early next year.
The coalition’s coordinator Judith Cavanagh said: “Today was an opportunity to offer those families some hope. Instead we end 2020 with the Dickensian image of children holding out empty plates begging the Government for more.”
She added: “The Government has missed the opportunity to signal its intention to get to grips with the scale of child poverty in the UK, which will have been made worse by the pandemic.
International aid cuts
Meanwhile, aid charities are critical of the government’s decision to slash the international aid budget, from 0.7% of Britain’s gross national income to 0.5%.
Oxfam chief executive Danny Sriskandarajah said: “Cutting the UK’s lifeline to the world’s poorest communities in the midst of a global pandemic will lead to tens of thousands of otherwise preventable deaths."
“At a time when hundreds of millions of people are hungry and decades of progress against poverty is under threat, today’s decision is a false economy which diverts money for clean water and medicines to pay for bombs and bullets.”
In addition, Action Against Hunger described the cuts as “grossly cruel”.
We're devastated by today’s announcement from Chancellor @RishiSunak, that the #UKAid budget will be cut from 0.7% to 0.5% of GNI.
— Action Against Hunger UK (@ACF_UK) November 25, 2020
Read our full statement here ➡️https://t.co/SXBIRd3ZJ9 #SpendingReview
“No child should go hungry. This is true of children in the UK and children across the world, including in the poorest countries where hunger kills. If there was ever a time to cut our globally respected aid budget, now is not it,” Action Against Hunger’s statement added.
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