Government 'exceeds target' on international aid spending

The government's aid target of 0.7% of national income has proved controversial Credit: Reuters

The government has overshot its international aid spending target by more than £170 million, according to official figures.

Provisional figures released by the Department for International Development (DfID) show that aid spending in 2015 was 0.71% of national income - putting it above the 0.7% target.

With a total aid bill of £12.2 billion, The Mail on Sunday reported that it represented an overshoot of £172 million.

While the percentage difference is small, the figure itself is likely to prove controversial with some Conservative MPs who argue the money would be better spent at home.

Some MPs argue the money could be better spent at home Credit: PA

Tory backbencher Jacob Rees-Mogg told The Mail on Sunday: "There can be no more graphic example of the idiocy of setting such a fixed target.

A spokesman for the government said: "These are provisional statistics that will fluctuate and we'll only know the final figure towards the end of the year.

"As an example, for both 2013 and 2014 the provisional estimate was revised down from 0.71% to 0.7%.

"UK investment in overseas development is firmly in the UK's own national interest. Aid goes only where it is most needed and where it will deliver the very best results for taxpayers' money."