Alan Duncan

The Conservative Party has committed itself to matching Labour's spending on overseas aid.

Shadow international development secretary Alan Duncan announced on Thursday that the Tories share the government's target of achieving the UN goal of spending 0.7 per cent of national income on aid by 2013.

But the Opposition insisted its move was not in response to the huge charitable donations given by the British public to the emergency tsunami relief effort in Asia.

The Tory policy means that all three major parties are now united in their aim of meeting the UN target by gradually increasing the Department for International Development's (DfID) budget.

It also closes off a potential area of weakness in the forthcoming general election campaign with Labour threatening to attack Conservative plans to cut departmental spending.

But with Michael Howard now promising to match Tony Blair on health, education, development and defence spending, Thursday's announcement closes off another of the shadow chancellor's avenues for finding tax cuts.

In the next three financial years all three parties would put £4.5 billion and then £5 billion and £5.3 billion into aid and development.

Efficiency

And Duncan promised that the Tories would spend the DfID budget more efficiently than Labour or the Liberal Democrats by making massive efficiency savings.

Ahead of the Conservative-commissioned David James review into departmental spending, set to be outlined next week, he pointed out that DfID uses nearly one quarter of its cash on consultants.

"The difference lies not in the amounts spent but in how they will be spent," he said.

"By applying Conservative principles to the way this money is spent, we will make it more effective," Duncan added.

"Efficiency savings will be ploughed back into aid delivery and will make DfID's budget go even further. More effective and well-focussed aid will allow us to save more lives and to lift more people out of poverty."

Duncan told ePolitix.com that unlike other departments targeted by James, the DfID budget would not depend on making the efficiency savings but could only benefit from them.

Reacting to the pledge, Steve Tibbett of ActionAid said: "This announcement ratchets up the fight for Britain to meet its UN commitment to spend 0.7 pc on aid.

"Now the government must promise to go further than the Conservatives this year as the UK holds the presidency of the G8 group of rich nations and the European Union."