The International Development Committee has called for an immediate pause of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office's staffing cuts, warning it will cause an exodus of expertise.
The committee’s chair, Sarah Champion, said the committee is “deeply concerned” that the staffing changes are happening “far too fast and without prioritising the best interests of staff, or the core objectives of the department”.
In a letter to the foreign secretary, Yvette Cooper, she said: "The FCDO’s greatest asset is its staff. There are inherent risks to losing these staff. Firstly, it reduces the ability of the UK to react fast to changing situations and respond to the needs of its international partners. Secondly, it risks making avoidable mistakes. Bad development assistance carries life and death risks to those it is designed to serve, and reputational risk to the UK government."
Around 1,885 jobs are thought to be at risk from the restructure, which is targeting a 25-30% reduction in staffing numbers at the FCDO.
Champion warned that a lack of transparency with staff over the evidence and rationale for the cuts could “lead to an exodus of staff, deterioration in morale of remaining staff, and may breach the department’s obligations to its workforce”.
She said the restructure should be halted “until ministers have had adequate time to articulate the government’s ambitions for the future of UK aid and development assistance and civil servants have laid out the detail of the planned restructure”.
Champion said the most concerning aspect of the restructure was “the apparent lack of ministerial oversight”.
“We understand that staffing is a delegated responsibility of the permanent under secretaries and the executive committee,” she said. “Nevertheless, reducing staffing on central teams or in-country, without a realistic understanding of what is required to deliver objectives is likely to lead to false economies – this we see as, very much, a ministerial responsibility.”
Before proceeding with the staffing cuts, Champion said the government should deliver:
- An articulated strategy of how aid and development assistance will be delivered and its place in wider government policy;
- A structured assessment of staffing required to deliver the government’s priorities;
- A thorough skills audit and equalities assessment; and
- An assessment of the impact on the extreme poor of the aid programming decisions being made.
Champion's concerns come after the committee this week took evidence from the PCS union and experts in the development sector as part of its inquiry into the future of UK aid and development assistance. The IDC chair said the government chose not to take part in the session.
In a statement, Champion said the evidence the committee heard left her “extremely concerned”.
“The financial situation facing the government is clearly serious, but this is not the right way to proceed,” she said. “If these cuts are made without proper planning, lives will be put at risk, not to mention the real risk to the UK’s global reputation.
“Once prized FCDO expertise is lost, it will be lost for good. I urge the government to press pause before it is too late.”
An FCDO spokesperson said the government "remains committed to international development" and is modernising its approach "to reflect the changing global context".
“This will be reflected in the changes the FCDO is planning over the next five years, including a reduction in headcount as we transition to a leaner, more agile workforce," the spokesperson said.
“These changes are a key step in our reform programme to ensure that the FCDO is more open, more strategic and more technologically enabled, to deliver maximum security and growth for the British people.”