Aukus spending sparks calls to boost Australia’s aid budget

Australian aid supplies are loaded on to a plane at RAAF Amberley. Humanitarian organisations are calling on the government to increase its aid spending. Photograph: Taylor Anderson/Department of Defence/AFP/Getty Images

The huge Aukus price tag has sparked calls to boost aid funding, with the sector lobbying the Australian government not to dismiss such measures as an optional “luxury”.

The nuclear-powered submarine program is forecast to cost between $268bn and $368bn by the mid 2050s, most of it beyond the first four-year budget period.