UK government rules out post-election international aid cuts

UK Prime Minister Theresa May has ruled out cuts to overseas aid if the Conservative government win the 8 June election.

It comes after speculation that the Conservatives might drop its long-standing pledge to commit 0.7 percent of the country's national income to international aid in its upcoming election manifesto.

The policy "will remain" in place, May insisted during a visit to a factory in Bershire, as part of her election campaign.

"Let's be clear, the 0.7 percent commitment remains and will remain," she said. "What we need to do, though, is to look at how that money will be spent, and make sure that we are able to spend that money in the most effective way."

She said that the UK should be proud of its commitment to an international target which has been met by Conservative governments every year since 2013.

"I'm very proud of the record we have, of the children around the world who are being educated as a result of what the British taxpayer is doing in terms of international aid."

The UK spends around $17 billion in international aid, making it one of the biggest doners in the world.

Pakistan is the biggest recipient of UK aid, receiving over $350 million in bilateral aid in 2015, according to BBC figures.

The UK has also committed huge amounts in aid to Syrian refugees living in camps in neighbouring Jordan and other countries.

This includes a $1.3 billion aid package to provide education and employment opportunities to Syrian refugees in the region.

Concerns were raised that Theresa May might drop the UK's international pledge during the build-up to this summer's surprise snap election.

US philanthropist Bill Gates warned May against the cuts which he said would likely result in reduced UK influence in the world and many more deaths in Africa from starvation and disease.

"The big aid givers now are the US, Britain and Germany - those are the three biggest, and if those back off, a lot of ambitious things that are going on with malaria, agriculture and reproductive health simply would not get done," he told The Guardian.

Aid agencies have begged the world to increase their contributions to relief groups working in Yemen, South Sudan and some East African countries.

These are bracing themselves for expected devastating famines this summer.

The United Nations' refugee agency said millions of people risk starving to death in Yemen, Nigeria, South Sudan, Somalia and elsewhere, due to war, blockades and failed harvests.