Britain 'to give more to poor countries'

Britain is to spend more on helping developing countries in a fresh drive against child poverty, Gordon Brown was expected to signal today.

The Chancellor was set to drop a big hint that the UK's international development budget is likely to rise from its current low level of only 0.32 per cent of the nation's income.

The UN wants Britain to get much closer to a target of 0.7 per cent - bringing it more into line with other leading industrialised countries. Mr Brown was to pave the way for the increase as he launched a £10 million Commonwealth Education Fund, aimed at tackling the failure of 75million children in the organisation's countries to complete basic education.

The aid increase will be a victory for International Development Secretary Clare Short at a time when Mr Brown is ordering Whitehall budget cuts.