LONDON — The British Cabinet minister responsible for international development quit Friday in the wake of Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s decision earlier this week to ramp up defense spending by slashing the foreign aid budget.
In a letter to Starmer, which she posted on social media, Anneliese Dodds resigned as international development minister and minister for women, saying there were “no easy paths” to increasing defense spending but that she disagreed with the decision to cut overseas aid.
On Tuesday, Starmer said the government would raise U.K. defense spending to 2.5% of gross domestic product by 2027 from the current 2.3%, saying Europe is in a new era of insecurity that requires a “generational response.” The increase would be funded by a reduction in the aid budget from 0.5% of GDP to 0.3%.
The move, which drew support from U.S. President Donald Trump, was widely criticized by aid agencies, who said it not only harmed some of the world’s poorest people but also reduced Britain’s soft power.
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