What Are We Doing To Help The Poorer Nations Through This Pandemic?

[ToraToraTora]

not my question, Thomas from oop north on the Roger just now! Hopefully the answer is sweet FA, we are trying to help our selves through this you wally! We already give 0.7% of GDP to foreign despots as it is! Perlease!

[barry1010]

A whole 0.7%! I am shocked to my marrowbone

[Mamyalynne]

I'm sure Thomas will get a well thought out response in clear English.

[ToraToraTora]

0.7% GDP in 2019 = £15bn barry

[barry1010]

So what is 99.3%?

[ToraToraTora]

It's a very simple piece of rithmetic me old china.

[barry1010]

Well you tell me, petal

[ToraToraTora]

so, barry, you are happy to give £15bn to foreigners? Even those with space programs?

[Mamyalynne]

Did Thomas get an answer?

[Mexican18]

Did you see the Times rich list?
Let Bill Gates, Dyson, Green etc help
They've got more
money than the country has!

[ToraToraTora]

well if 0.07 x N = 15 then N = 15/0.07

[maggiebee]

As we say in Scotland 3T, you wouldnae gie anybody the reek aff yer ***e

[barry1010]

We have no choice but to meet our obligations re the foreign aid commitment. Really, it's a drop in the ocean to us as a nation. If I am right we have only met this target set by the United Nations in the last couple of years with Denmark, Luxembourg, Sweden and other countries exceeding us in previous years and we are not leading the way now, although we are not the worse. Even the UAE contribute more than us.

In 2013 the government made it law that we give 0.7% of GDP to foreign aid, the target set by the UN in 1970. Yes, 1970. It took us that long to catch up. I don't resent it, the government wastes far more than that on crackpot ideas in the UK.

[ToraToraTora]

well we do give a lot to WSS I grant you!

[pixie374]

You're still working, ttt, I take it?

[CrapAtCryptics]

217 billion on pensions and benefits per year out of a gdp of 2.8 billion

[ToraToraTora]

gdp in 2019 was 2.1Tn

[ToraToraTora]

yes I'm WFH pixie

[pixie374]

Good, not furloughed then.

[cassa333]

I don’t have a huge problem with the aid budget per sa. But who gets it is the bigger issue for me.

Tyrants and despots who treat their people like fodder. Countries with space programs but have a huge amount of poverty. Communist countries that ‘disappear’ people. Programs in these countries that teach nothing but are used as virtue signal for the right-on liberals.

[jourdain2]

If we can improve our own GDP then we give more to poorer nations. It seems fairly straightforward to me that we help them by helping ourselves to prosper. At the moment it looks as if the aid we give will be reduced.