Subsequently, Bishop announced substantial expenditure cuts in the aid program. In Opposition, the Liberal Party had publicly endorsed the aim of maintaining the Australian aid budget at the level of 0.5% of GDP. Aid spending amounted to around $5.0 billion in 2014/15. However budget cuts introduced after the new government took office led to marked reductions. Expenditure was reduced to around $4.2 billion in 2015/16. Further reductions were introduced in following years. Aid spending as a share of GDP fell from 0.32% in 2014/15 to an estimated 0.23% in 2018/19.