This from the New Statesman, full story here:

In a recent interview with the New Statesman, Mitchell admitted that the promise to ringfence the development budget was “the sort of thing you make in opposition, then rather regret in government.” As the autumn spending review looms, the pressure on departments to find spending cuts is growing, and it seems that even the supposedly protected development budget is not safe. Despite what Mitchell calls the “double duty” imposed on his department by its protected status, a silent withdrawal from the ringfencing policy seems to be underway.