The UK government's decision to reduce international aid from 0.5% to 0.3% of gross national income, intended to finance increased defence spending, is jeopardizing decades of progress against preventable diseases like polio, measles, and cholera worldwide. This retreat threatens millions globally and poses a direct risk to Britain's own health security, as evidenced by the detection of poliovirus in UK sewers last year. The article argues that continued investment in global health initiatives, such as the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI), is crucial for both humanitarian reasons and national interest.
Progress unravelled, and millions left vulnerable: how British aid cuts threaten British health too
Global developmentGlobal healthPolioAidHealthSocietyCholeraTax and spendingPoliticsLabourUK
AI Summary
TL;DR: Key points with love ❤️The UK government's decision to reduce international aid from 0.5% to 0.3% of gross national income, intended to finance increased defence spending, is jeopardizing decades of progress against preventable diseases like polio, measles, and cholera worldwide. This retreat threatens millions globally and poses a direct risk to Britain's own health security, as evidenced by the detection of poliovirus in UK sewers last year. The article argues that continued investment in global health initiatives, such as the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI), is crucial for both humanitarian reasons and national interest.
Trending- 1 1988: The Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) was formed.
- 2 40 years ago (1985): Polio paralysed hundreds of thousands of children annually.
- 3 Last year (2024): Poliovirus detected in UK sewers; a child was paralysed by polio in Gaza for the first time in two decades; polio continues to afflict families in Sudan.
- 4 2024: The number of children paralysed by polio rose in Pakistan and Afghanistan.
- 5 Last month (May 2025): Over 85,000 people across the UK participated in the Rise Together movement challenge.
- 6 Current: The government’s budget spending review promises aid cuts.
- Jeopardizing decades of progress against preventable diseases
- Leaving millions vulnerable to diseases like polio, measles, and cholera
- Resurgence of diseases
- Undermining UK domestic health security (e.g., poliovirus detection in UK sewers)
- Severe undermining of major global health initiatives
- Potential for 200,000 new polio cases annually
- Increased long-term costs for disease response
- Damage to the UK's reputation as a global health leader
What: The UK government is implementing significant cuts to its international aid budget, reducing it from 0.5% to 0.3% of GNI. This policy shift is undermining global health initiatives and progress against preventable diseases, creating vulnerabilities worldwide and posing a direct threat to the UK's domestic health security.
When: The aid reductions are part of the government's current budget spending review. The Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) was formed in 1988. Poliovirus was detected in UK sewers last year (2024), and the number of children paralysed by polio rose in Pakistan and Afghanistan in 2024. A child in Gaza was paralysed by polio last year. The 'Rise Together' movement challenge took place last month (May 2025).
Where: The policy impacts global health efforts, specifically mentioning Pakistan, Afghanistan, Gaza, and Sudan, and has implications for the UK's domestic health security.
Why: The UK government is cutting aid to control public spending and finance increased defence spending. The article argues this is a misstep, as it undermines global health security, which directly affects domestic health, and contradicts humanitarian values.
How: By reducing the percentage of gross national income allocated to international aid, the government is enacting a 40% real-term cut in development assistance over four years, which will severely impact funding for major global health initiatives.