BORIS Johnson has claimed “lefty propaganda” is behind attacks on his foreign aid plans – despite senior Conservative MPs leading the opposition to his £4 billion spending cut.
The Prime Minister was accused by the SNP of being “on the run” from not only his “moral and legal responsibilities” but also his own backbench MPs.
Former prime minister Theresa May is among at least 30 Tory MPs to urge Johnson to reinstate the budget from 0.5% of national income to 0.7%, in line with the party’s 2019 General Election manifesto pledge.
Commons Speaker Lindsay Hoyle has also signalled his desire for MPs to have a vote on the matter, but Downing Street has insisted it has “no plans” to bring one forward.
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Speaking at Prime Minister’s Questions, SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford said: “Later this week the Prime Minister will walk into the G7 summit as the only leader cutting development aid to the world’s poorest.
“At the very moment when global leadership is needed more than ever, this Tory government is walking away from millions still struggling from the Covid pandemic and a poverty pandemic.
“The Prime Minister has been hiding on this issue for months. This is a government on the run from their own moral and legal responsibilities, and on the run from their own backbenchers.
“But the Prime Minister can’t hide from this issue any longer and he can’t run from democracy in this House.
“Will he stand up today and commit to a straight vote in this House on his inhumane cuts, as demanded by the Speaker? Prime Minister, it is a very simple question: yes or no?”
Johnson replied: “I think the answer is clear: the people of this country... were given a vote on this and many other matters very recently and I think they adjudicated very firmly in favour of the balance the Government is striking.
“We’re in very, very difficult financial times, but he shouldn’t believe the lefty propaganda you hear from people opposite.
“We’re spending £10bn overseas. All they want to do is run this country down when we’ve increased spending on girls’ education alone to almost half a billion pounds.”
Blackford said: “I don’t think I’ve ever heard the previous prime minister called a leftist propagandist.”
May appeared to smile as she looked on from the third row of the Tory benches.
Later in the exchanges Johnson made a bizarre taunt at Blackford over the name of the Oxford Astra-Zeneca vaccine.
“In the week of the G7 what kind of world leader washes their hands of responsibility by cutting water and hygiene projects by more than 80% in the middle of a pandemic?” asked Blackford.
Johnson dismissed Blackford’s question as “absolutely disgraceful” and listed financial support being given by the UK Government to international vaccination programmes.
He said: “Let me just remind him ... one in three of the vaccines being distributed around the world to the poorest and neediest come from the Oxford/AstraZeneca supply. Thanks to the deal this government did.”
He added: “Or does the name Oxford/AstraZeneca still continue to stick in his craw?”
It is the second time the Prime Minister has shared a conspiracy theory about the Scottish Government apparently being too petty to use the word Oxford when referring to the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine after first referring to it in January.
READ MORE: PM makes bizarre taunt at Ian Blackford over name of Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine
Labour leader Keir Starmer urged the UK to “lead, not just to host” as the G7 summit in Cornwall approaches. He said: “The Prime Minister has made big promises on this, but he needs a truly global effort to make it happen, so will the Prime Minister take the lead at the G7 and do whatever is necessary to make global vaccinations a reality?”
Johnson replied: “We were able to ensure that one in three of the 1.5 billion doses that have been distributed around the world are the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine – that is global Britain in action, to say nothing of the billion vaccines that we hope to raise from the G7 this week.”
Starmer added: “That would sound a lot better if the Prime Minister wasn’t the only G7 leader cutting his aid budget.”
Johnson said his Government spent more more than Labour on international aid.
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