Overseas aid works. Since 1990 global poverty has been halved. We need to continue this important work and not allow the government to use sneaky accounting to cut back our support to some of the world’s poorest communities. It’s just not in the spirit of Christmas.

Ask Foreign Minister, Bob Carr, not to divert Australia’s overseas aid budget to meet domestic budget shortfalls.

Recently, Foreign Minister, Bob Carr, announced the Federal Government’s decision to divert money from Australia’s overseas aid spending to meet a shortfall in funds to feed and house asylum seekers in Australia. This juggling of the books plays politics with two groups of extremely vulnerable people. But you can change this. Tweet the Foreign Minister, Bob Carr.

Australia has just been elected to sit on the UN Security Council but this is not the behavior of a good global citizen. As a wealthy nation we should be thinking like Santa not like Ebenezer Scrooge. The diversion of Australia’s aid budget will have devastating impacts on people in the world’s poorest countries – many of whom live in our region. Australia needs to support both vulnerable people in poor countries as well as asylum seekers in Australia.

Tweet to the Foreign Minister, Bob Carr, to show your support for Australia being a Santa in the international fight against poverty.

• .@BobJCarr – please don’t play politics with vulnerable peoples’ lives. Don’t divert funds from our overseas aid budget.
• .@BobJCarr – I don’t expect overseas aid to be spent in Australia. Don’t divert funds from our overseas aid budget.
• .@BobJCarr – I don’t support the Govt’s decision to divert $375m from overseas aid. Don’t divert funds from our overseas aid budget.