The UK also cut costs and streamlined the state apparatus.

(CLO) The ruling Labour Party in the UK is stepping up cost-cutting measures similar to those implemented by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) in the administration of US President Donald Trump.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer recently announced that the foreign aid budget would be reduced from 0.5% to 0.3% of GDP by 2027 to increase defence spending. Cabinet Office Minister Pat McFadden has also proposed plans that could lead to mass layoffs of public sector workers.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer meets US President Donald Trump. Photo: X

President Donald Trump has repeatedly criticised NATO member states for failing to meet military spending targets. Prime Minister Starmer appears keen to ensure the UK-US alliance remains strong, as evidenced by his personal invitation to President Trump from King Charles III for an unprecedented second state visit to the UK.

Accusations that Britain's recent cost-cutting proposals resemble DOGE in the US come as Mr Starmer and the centre-left government try to stem a surge in support for the right-wing Reform Party.

On Sunday, Secretary McFadden announced reforms to the public sector, the equivalent of the federal government in the US. This includes linking senior officials' salaries to performance. Some civil servants who perform below expectations could be "encouraged" to leave their jobs through a "mutually agreed" process.

The FDA civil servants union general secretary, Dave Penman, warned that the UK government should not fall into the “trap” of public sector reform like that in the US. Meanwhile, Mike Clancy, general secretary of the Prospect union, accused the government of turning civil servants into “political punching bags”.

Clancy wrote an editorial warning that Britain would “live to regret” if it copied Elon Musk’s spending cuts. An unnamed Labour MP also criticized the reform plan as a “knee-jerk reaction,” similar to DOGE, which led to thousands of US federal workers being laid off and agencies like USAID being dismantled.

Separately, independent MP Shockat Adam warned that Mr Starmer's move to cut foreign aid in the "Elon Musk direction" was a "Trumpification" of British politics.

The British government plans to cut around 10,000 civil servants and reallocate international aid budgets to defence, which could impact Britain's diplomatic relations with aid recipient countries, especially in Africa and the Middle East.

Cao Phong (according to BBC, Newsweek)

Source: https://www.congluan.vn/vuong-quoc-anh-cat-giam-chi-phi-va-tinh-gian-bo-may-nha-nuoc-post337948.html