Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale (Lab)

My Lords, I draw attention to my interests in the register. I noticed tonight on the news that there is a suggestion that the Government might be announcing another so-called U-turn—that would be the 13th, for those who appear to be counting in the media. I think 13 is a very unlucky number, if I can say that to the Minister and the Government. Perhaps they might want to consider a 14th before the 12 months are out since the announcement last year of the cut in ODA. The Prime Minister and the Chancellor really should think again about becoming the first Labour Government in history to spend less than the Conservatives on overseas development assistance. I hope that, between now and the one-year anniversary of the announcement last year, they will rethink this; otherwise, from April this year, people will be thrown out of school, lose vaccinations, lose job opportunities and lose access to clean water. That would be a humanitarian disaster, as described very eloquently by my friend, the noble Lord, Lord Bates, who has a terrific voluntary record in this sphere as well as a fantastic record as a Minister. However, I disagree with the noble Lord on one point. All, or a substantial proportion of, this budget should be directly allocated to the consequences of conflict and the displacement that we see around the world. I believe that in the new, reduced budget there is a desperate need for a specific allocation for conflict prevention and preventive work of the sort described by the noble Lord, Lord Evans. I hope that the Government, in allocating this reduced budget—if it has not changed before the end of this financial year—allocate a specific resource to expertise and to interventionist projects that help prevent conflict, and directly to the stability that is required to ensure that people have a chance to experience education, health services, job opportunities and other services that are so vital in their lives.