'Trumpian narrative' international aid a waste of money has been latched onto by populist right — minister

Neale Richmond: 'We’re starting to see that Trumpian narrative that this is a waste of money and all the different hot takes become opinions latched on to by the populist right in Europe.'

A “Trumpian narrative” that international aid is a waste of money has been latched onto by the populist right, the junior foreign affairs minister has said.

Neale Richmond has said the Government is investing in international aid as a preventative measure, as he criticised elements of the far-right who are opposed to it.

Ireland currently has the eighth-highest allocation for international development aid as a percentage of gross national income, with €807m being allocated in 2026.

Mr Richmond said only Ireland and Spain last year sought to increase their aid budgets, while other EU states reduced their spending.

“Against that backdrop, things are getting worse, and there is a very clear, orchestrated campaign against development.

We’re starting to see that Trumpian narrative that this is a waste of money and all the different hot takes become opinions latched on to by the populist right in Europe.

Mr Richmond criticised hard-right elements in the Swedish and Finnish Governments, saying they were “demonising development”.

He said it was worrying to see similar narratives emerging in Ireland, saying this took place during the fuel protests in April.

Mr Richmond was critical of the US government’s decision to end USAID, which provided significant funding for international development across the world, describing the decision as “devastating”.

The Fine Gael minister said he met with a director within the US State Department for USAID’s successor programme, Ryan Shrum. He added while it does provide for significant humanitarian funding, it does so “through a very blinkered guise”.

He cited the agency’s requirement for work to be funnelled via Christian charities, while also raising concerns about what work the agency does not do.

“They literally will put a search through documents, and if they see the term gender or women and girls, the funding could be pulled. That to me is just craven,” Mr Richmond said.

“I do think there is a future of bringing America back to the table, but the human toll already has been devastating.”

He said the world would only be moving into a “damage limitation situation”.

“If HIV/Aids infections are going up this year, and you’re not making everything better next year, they’re going to go up again next year.”

Asked if he was concerned about his criticism of the US administration just over a week away from US President Donald Trump visiting Ireland, Mr Richmond said he was not.

Mr Richmond said it was important to speak openly and frankly to the US.