WHY IS THE SCOTTISH GOVERNMENT GIVING £1M TO PAKISTAN?

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THE Scottish Government is to make almost £1 million available to Scottish-based organisations helping Pakistan flood victims.  They’re giving emergency funding of £500,000 for humanitarian aid and more than £400,000 of development funding.
External Affairs Minister Fiona Hyslop said, “It’s our moral duty to do whatever is in our power to ease the suffering of the people whose lives have been devastated.  “In providing assistance Scotland is saying it cares.”
A further £415,450 has been allocated to projects in Pakistan this year under the South Asia strand of the Government’s international development programme.

Now don't get me wrong.  I give to charity.  I may or may not have given to this charity, although the site of the Pakistan President over here, lecturing our Prime Minister,  while his country is dealing witht the floods, could get your back up, but that would be down to my personal choice.

But WHY is the Scottish Government giving OUR TAX MONEY to a disaster in Pakistan.. International Aid is as far as I know, is a matter reserved to WESTMINSTER and we are pledged to give 0.7% of GDP to aid which currently amounts to nearly £9billion.  The Scottish Government is about to tell us how bad the cuts are going to have to be, so surely this £1m, could have been used elsewhere, in SCOTLAND.  As my Granny used to say, "CHARITY BEGINS AT HOME" and the Scottish Government would do well to remember that.