Boris Johnson narrowly avoids immediate Tory rebellion against foreign aid budget cuts | Politics News

Boris Johnson narrowly avoided a rebellion by some of his own Conservative Party MPs over cuts to the foreign aid budget.

Thirty Tories, including former Prime Minister Theresa May and four other cabinet ministers, had backed a rebellion against the £ 4bn cut and had hoped to force a vote on the issue.

But House of Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle ruled the amendment, proposed by former Conservative minister Andrew Mitchell, was “outside the scope” of the Agency bill. of advanced research and innovation.

Noting that MPs have not had the opportunity to debate the issue, Sir Lindsay however said he would accept requests for an emergency debate on the issue today, which would take place on Tuesday if successful.

If a request made by a backbench MP for an emergency debate on reducing the international aid budget were to succeed, any vote at the end of it would not be binding.

The proposed amendment sought to force the government to commit to reinstating the 0.7% target from next year – from that agency’s funding if not met by others. means.

Under parliamentary procedure, the Speaker of the House of Commons, Sir Lindsay Hoyle, decides whether to select amendments and allow votes on them based on advice from his clerks.

Responding to Sir Lindsay’s decision not to retain the rebels’ amendment, Mitchell accused the government front seat of “disrespecting the House of Commons”.

He added that “hundreds of thousands of preventable deaths would result”.

Britain’s aid spending was cut by the Chancellor last November in what was supposed to be a temporary measure, but without a vote in parliament.

Mr Sunak told MPs at the …