Herefordshire students led a crucial debate on the UK's overseas aid policy at The Guardian Hay Festival on June 2nd and told new MP Jesse Norman how they think his government should spend our limited national purse.

Six young panellists, chaired by Radio 4's Francine Stock, braved a packed Hay audience to discuss the question, "Should the new government cut our overseas aid budget and prioritise spending at home?" Faced with a majority audience who thought that aid should not be cut, the Home team urged that they were not "heartless in prioritising British spending in the UK", but that "economic problems in Britain must first be addressed by the British government so that giving can come from a position of strength".

The Overseas team stressed that we live in a global world and that Britain has a "moral responsibility" to look beyond its borders and support people living on less than $2 a day. They went on to state that "grassroots projects such as provision of safe water and sanitation, healthcare and education were making significant differences to the lives of many individuals" and these are not only projects but "human rights". "Through cutting the budget for overseas aid human rights would be totally undermined," said Rosa, a student at Hereford Sixth Form College.

Questions and comments from the audience demonstrated a lot of interest in the topic, and included an appeal for better aid distribution, the necessity to learn from wastage of aid in previous years, the difficulty of comparisons of poverty in UK compared with poverty in Africa and the connections between climate change and poverty. Francine Stock, who hosts The Film Programme on Radio 4, chaired the event and concluded with a show of hands. While some people voted in favour of prioritising spending at home, the audience had not been swayed; the vast majority voted against the motion to cut overseas aid.

Following the debate, young people discussed their opinions with Jesse Norman MP, who will represent their views to Ministers in Parliament.
Maggie Tate, 17 from Hereford Cathedral School gives her reasons for being on the panel: "I took part in this debate because I care about what our government is doing to help others. About 8 million people in the world die of poverty every year. I believe it is important for governments to work together, so that the world is a better and fairer place for everyone, not just for those who are fortunate enough to have been born in this country"

Passionate about development issues? We're recruiting panellists aged 15 - 18 to join our next debate. Contact Jenny on 01432 355111 or email jenny.holland@concern-universal.org

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