London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Monday, Aug 25, 2025

UK accused of ‘abandoning’ Rohingya with ‘catastrophic’ 40% aid cut

UK accused of ‘abandoning’ Rohingya with ‘catastrophic’ 40% aid cut

Children in overcrowded Cox’s Bazar settlement likely to suffer most from reduced humanitarian spending, say campaigners

The government has been accused of abandoning Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh after cutting aid to the humanitarian response by more than 40%.

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) pledged £27.6m to the humanitarian sector’s joint response plan launched this week, compared with £47.5m last year.

“This decision will have catastrophic consequences for some of the world’s most desperate and vulnerable people. The UK is stepping back when they need us to step up,” said Kirsty McNeill, Save The Children’s executive director of policy, advocacy and campaigns.

McNeill said the cuts were not surprising after the government already reduced aid to Yemen and Syria, but were “shortsighted”.

“[Rohingya refugees] now live in dangerous and cramped refugee camps struggling to contain Covid-19. There have been more than 80 fires so far this year in what is the world’s largest refugee settlement [around Cox’s Bazar], with a population density six times that of New York City,” said McNeill.

On Thursday, Bangladeshi authorities imposed a lockdown in five refugee camps in Cox’s Bazar following a rise in Covid-19 cases. According to the UN’s refugee agency, UNHCR, 320 cases have been recorded in April and May, more than a third of the total since the pandemic began.

Anupom Barua, the principal of Cox’s Bazar Medical College, told AFP the number of infections in the camps is “alarming”.

There are at least 885,000 Rohingya living in Bangladesh, most of them since 2017, when the Myanmar military launched an operation against the minority group, which the UN described as genocidal.

“This is not the moment for the UK to abandon international leadership,” said Tun Khin, president of the Burmese Rohingya Organisation UK, in a statement.

“When foreign secretary Dominic Raab is cutting aid, the main target of these aid cuts will be Rohingya children. The future is disappearing for the children in the camps. With the growing population hardly receiving any education, in 10 years we will have a lost generation.”

During the launch of the response plan, the UK’s ambassador to the UN in Geneva, Simon Manley, recognised that no long-term solution to the Rohingya had been found and that the military coup in Myanmar had complicated the situation.

Burma Campaign UK accused the government of not matching its condemnation of the coup with support for the Rohingya.

Dominic Raab talks the talk but he doesn’t walk the walk on Burma. He likes to offer statements, whether it is on justice or support to protesters, but doesn’t follow it up with action. This includes aid. In their most dire moment of need, Dominic Raab has decided to abandon the poorest people of Burma,” said Karin Valtersson, its campaigns officer.

In 2017, the British government pledged £129m to the Rohingya response after the mass displacement. But spending has reduced each year.

Tents donated by China in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, 24 March 2021. The UK has reduced its spending on Rohingya response each year since 2017.


The joint response plan has suffered overall from dwindling donations. On Tuesday, it was announced donors had pledged just 35% of the $943m needed for 2021 to support the Rohingya and almost 500,000 people living near the camps with a range of basic services including food, water and healthcare, as well as protection for women and girls.

The UK government is cutting its aid budget from 0.7% to 0.5% of gross national income this year, but it has said it aims to raise spending when the financial impacts of the coronavirus pandemic have eased.

The FCDO said: “The UK is spending more than £10bn this year to fight poverty, tackle climate change, respond to humanitarian crises and improve global health. Since 2017, the UK has contributed over £321m to the Rohingya response and we remain a leading donor to the Rohingya crisis response in Bangladesh.”

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Vietnam Evacuates Hundreds of Thousands as Typhoon Kajiki Strikes; China’s Sanya Shuts Down
UK Government Delays Decision on China’s Proposed London Embassy Amid Concerns Over Redacted Plans
A 150-Year Tradition to Be Abolished? Uproar Over the Popular Central Park Attraction
A new faith called Robotheism claims artificial intelligence isn’t just smart but actually God itself
Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner Purchases Third Property Amid Housing Tax Reforms Debate
HSBC Switzerland Ends Relationships with Over 1,000 Clients from Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Qatar, and Egypt
Sharia Law Made Legally Binding in Austria Despite Warnings Over 'Incompatible' Values
Italian Facebook Group Sharing Intimate Images Without Consent Shut Down Amid Police Investigation
Dutch Foreign Minister Resigns Amid Deadlock Over Israel Sanctions
Trump and Allies Send Messages of Support to Ukraine on Independence Day Amid Ongoing Conflict
China Reels as Telegram Chat Group Shares Hidden-Camera Footage of Women and Children
Sam Nicoresti becomes first transgender comedian to win Edinburgh Comedy Award
Builders uncover historic human remains in Lancashire house renovation
Australia Wants to Tax Your Empty Bedrooms
MotoGP Cameraman Narrowly Avoids Pedro Acosta Crash at Hungarian Grand Prix
FBI Investigates John Bolton Over Classified Documents in High-Profile Raids
Report reveals OpenAI pitched national ChatGPT Plus subscription to UK ministers
Labour set to freeze income tax thresholds in long-term 'stealth' tax raid
Coca‑Cola explores sale of Costa coffee chain
Trial hears dog walker was chased and fatally stabbed by trio
Restaurateur resigns from government hospitality council over tax criticism
Spanish City funfair shut after serious ride injury
Suspected arson at Ilford restaurant leaves three in critical condition
Tottenham beat Manchester City to go top of Premier League
Bank holiday heatwave to hit 30°C before remnants of Hurricane Erin arrive
UK to deploy immigration advisers to West Africa to block fake visas
Nurse who raped woman continued working for a year despite police alert
Drought forces closures of England’s canal routes, canceling boat holidays
Sweet tooth scents: food-inspired perfumes surge as weight-loss drugs suppress appetites
Experts warn Britain dangerously reliant on imported food
Family of Notting Hill Carnival murder victim call event unmanageable
Bunkers, Billions and Apocalypse: The Secret Compounds of Zuckerberg and the Tech Giants
Ukraine Declares De Facto War on Hungary and Slovakia with Terror Drone Strikes on Their Gas Lifeline
Animated K-pop Musical ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ Becomes Netflix’s Most-Watched Original Animated Film
New York Appeals Court Voids Nearly $500 Million Civil Fraud Penalty Against Trump While Upholding Fraud Liability
Elon Musk tweeted, “Europe is dying”
Far-Right Activist Convicted of Incitement Changes Gender and Demands: "Send Me to a Women’s Prison" | The Storm in Germany
Hungary Criticizes Ukraine: "Violating Our Sovereignty"
Will this be the first country to return to negative interest rates?
Child-free hotels spark controversy
North Korea is where this 95-year-old wants to die. South Korea won’t let him go. Is this our ally or a human rights enemy?
Hong Kong Launches Regulatory Regime and Trials for HKD-Backed Stablecoins
China rehearses September 3 Victory Day parade as imagery points to ‘loyal wingman’ FH-97 family presence
Trump Called Viktor Orbán: "Why Are You Using the Veto"
Horror in the Skies: Plane Engine Exploded, Passengers Sent Farewell Messages
MSNBC Rebrands as MS NOW Amid Comcast’s Cable Spin-Off
AI in Policing: Draft One Helps Speed Up Reports but Raises Legal and Ethical Concerns
Shame in Norway: Crown Princess’s Son Accused of Four Rapes
Apple Begins Simultaneous iPhone 17 Production in India and China
A Robot to Give Birth: The Chinese Announcement That Shakes the World
×