Amnesty International staff braced for redundancies

Up to 70 jobs will go amid concerns that cuts will marginalise Amnesty causes such as torture and the arms trade

Human rights workers at Amnesty International are braced for scores of redundancies after the management admitted to a hole in its budget of up to 17m to the end of 2020.

Up to 70 jobs will go in voluntary and compulsory layoffs amid a slump in donations and a multi-million pound increase in spending on fundraising, the Guardian has learned. Staff have been told the organisation will be reshaped in line with the vision of recently appointed secretary general, Kumi Naidoo, who wants to increase Amnesty's work on climate change and economic rights. There are concerns that cuts will marginalise in depth research on totemic Amnesty causes such as the death penalty, torture and the arms trade.