Initiative led by British International Investment aims to make returns for the UK taxpayer while also driving global development Paul Nuki Global Health Security Editor Paul Nuki is Global Health Security Editor at The Telegraph. A senior journalist and former editor at the Sunday Times, he leads coverage on global security threats including epidemics, biosecurity, and international health crises. He has also written and reported extensively on the conflict in Israel and the Middle East. See more Published 23 April 2026 6:00am BST Britain will invest up to £8bn in companies across the developing world over the next five years, in a bid to make a return for the UK taxpayer while driving global development. The initiative is being led by British International Investment (BII), a government owned UK investment vehicle founded in 1948 to boost agricultural production across the empire. At the time, Britain faced food shortages and rationing in the wake of the Second World War.…