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Paper long abstract:

In previous research, we have explored how despite the ‘Global Britain’ discourse, the UK has turned increasingly inwards in many policy sectors, a trend intensified following the Brexit referendum (Lazell & Petrikova, 2023). For example, since the Covid-19 pandemic, the UK reduced its development aid commitment from 0.7% Gross National Income (GNI) to 0.5%. Moreover, it is estimated that this year, 2022, the UK spent most of its aid funds on domestic issues rather than externally, particularly to pay for refugee housing (Dercon, 2022).

In this article, I explore this ‘deglobalisation’ or ‘retrenchment’ trend in four major Western economies – the UK, US, France, and Germany, in three sectors - development assistance/climate finance, trade, and immigration. I hypothesise that the paradox observed in the increasingly nationalistic ‘Global Britain’ when it comes to aid provision can be observed more widely, beyond the UK and in a wider range of sectors. If real, this trend will certainly complicate efforts within the UN’s Common Agenda to improve the management of global commons and global public goods.