Cameron: Aid pledge one of my proudest achievements

DAVID Cameron has said that one of his proudest achievements while at Number 10 was binding Britain to spend at least 0.7 per cent of national income on foreign aid each year.

In his first public appearance in Westminster since he left Downing Street, the former prime minister said: ‘Two years give you time to reflect about the things you got wrong, and the things that you got right.

‘The decision to deliver 0.7 per cent of our gross national income in aid is one of the things that I am proudest of.

‘The most important thing was the act of political will to make this choice. We shouldn’t underestimate the controversy, or the difficulty, or the unpopularity among some people.’

The 0.7 per cent pledge was protected by law following a historic vote in March 2015.

Mr Cameron, who left office in July 2016 after losing the Brexit referendum, was speaking at the launch of a new aid campaign in Parliament Square.

His comments angered Tory MP Andrew Bridgen, who said: ‘As a Conservative I always judge the effectiveness of any policy by its outputs, whereas the former prime minister seems to be judging the success of his 0.7 per cent target policy by the amount of taxpayers’ money shovelled out the door.’

Meanwhile, Mr Hammond appears determined to keep this country shackled to the Brussels rule book in perpetuity – instead of liberating us from stifling bureaucracy, as Brexit demands.

Only last month it emerged that the Bank of England – hardly a bastion of Eurosceptic sentiment – was furious at his willingness to hand the EU powers to regulate the City of london, our world-leading financial centre.

Now, from a tape recording of a private dinner, Boris Johnson warns that the Treasury is the ‘ heart of remain’, and wants to keep us ‘locked in orbit around the EU, in the customs union and to a large extent still in the single market’. Another shameful betrayal.

There is, of course, no shortage of alternatives to this timid beancounter, whose every utterance reveals his view of Brexit as a damage limitation exercise. And as the days tick down to our departure, the arguments for replacing him grow ever stronger. Installing a highly capable Brexiteer with a bold vision for this country’s great future outside the EU could, at a stroke, transform the Government’s fortunes.

The Mail cannot see any obvious political risks, as Mr Hammond is a man lacking in Parliamentary support. Indeed, such an appointment would help combat the worrying sense of drift within government.

As this paper argued yesterday, now is the time for Mrs May to go on to the front foot against EU bureaucrats who think they can sneer at Britain with impunity.

So what better way to signal her intent than to show Mr Hammond the door?

THIS paper has long argued that far too many students are racking up huge debts on degrees which will do little to improve their job prospects. As education minister Sam Gyimah exposes the worst offenders, isn’t it time for vice chancellors to pull the plug on these Mickey Mouse courses that do nothing except fill their bloated coffers?

DAVID Cameron says his proudest achievement is the foreign aid target. The Mail suggests otherwise, but not because billions have been wasted or handed to corrupt regimes instead of going to the NHS or social care. In truth, though he may not be proud of it, there is only one great achievement this country can thank the former PM for: Brexit.