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Brexit and UK International Development Policy[Note 1. We would like to thank Simon Maxwell and Niels ...]
Author(s) -
Lightfoot Simon,
Mawdsley Emma,
SzentIványi Balázs
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
the political quarterly
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.373
H-Index - 37
eISSN - 1467-923X
pISSN - 0032-3179
DOI - 10.1111/1467-923x.12369
Subject(s) - brexit , variety (cybernetics) , state (computer science) , political science , process (computing) , economics , international trade , public administration , business , european union , algorithm , artificial intelligence , computer science , operating system
In this article we explore the implications of Brexit for the UK and the EU 's development policies and strategic directions, focusing on the former. While it is likely that the operational process of disentangling the UK from the various development institutions of the EU will be relatively straightforward, the choices that lie ahead about whether and how to cooperate thereafter are more complex. Aid and development policy touches on a wide range of interests—security, trade, climate change, migration, gender rights, and so on. We argue that Brexit will accelerate existing trends within UK development policy, notably towards the growing priority of private sector‐led economic growth strategies and blended finance tools. There are strong signals that UK aid will be cut, as successive secretaries of state appear unable to persuade a substantial section of the public and media that UK aid and development policy serves UK interests in a variety of ways.