UN World Food Council: Mexico Conference (Hansard, 13 July 1982)

§ Lord Brockway
My Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question which stands in my name on the Order Paper.

§ Lord Skelmersdale
My Lords, as the conclusions are rather long, I have placed a copy in the Library of your Lordships' House. The council examined in turn the pursuit of national food policies and strategies in developing countries, direct national and international measures to help eradicate hunger, the African food problem and the role of international agencies, and issues of world food security and trade. Britain is not this year a member of the council, but our representative was present as an observer and took part in formulating the common Community position, both for general debate and for the preparation of the conclusions.

§ Lord Brockway
My Lords, I thank the Minister for that very full reply, and I assure him that I shall read with great interest the Statement in the Library. May I ask him whether, in view of the need, he thinks that the conclusions are adequate? Did he note the statement of the Secretary-General of the United 126 Nations at the council meeting, that shortage of food is now more critical than it has been since 1970, and that in Africa the average person today eats 15 per cent. less than he did a decade ago? Will the noble Lord agree that there are two main problems? One is the maldistribution of food, as illustrated by the fact that America is reducing production because the poorer people cannot buy. The second problem concerns the absence of agricultural development in the rural countries, as illustrated by the fact that only nine of the 61 countries which signed the FAO Rome Agreement some years ago have increased production?

§ Lord Skelmersdale
My Lords, I am satisfied with the conclusions of the conference mentioned in the noble Lord's Question. However, I would point out that the object of the conference, which was set up in 1974, following the World Food Conference, was to provide a political forum where agriculture Ministers could, and should, meet annually to review the world food situation. Both of the points to which the noble Lord has drawn attention find expression in the communiqué concerning the conclusions and recommendations to which the Question refers. I most certainly agree with the noble Lord that these are the two most serious problems facing the world today.

§ The Earl of Lauderdale
My Lords, will not my noble friend agree that the rise of world hunger has followed startlingly the withdrawal of colonial power from a great part of the globe?

§ Lord Skelmersdale
My Lords, that may be a fact, but I do not think it is the reason here.

§ Lord Taylor of Gryfe
My Lords, will the noble Lord agree that the shortage referred to is a shortage not of food, but of credit, and that to make some impact in reducing interest rates might make it possible for the purchasing countries to buy food and to feed their people?

§ Lord Skelmersdale
Yes, of course, my Lords; I accept that there is currently a snarl-up in world interest rates, but I think that the most important thing is to give sufficient aid and instruction to enable the countries to grow their own food. This is probably the key to the whole problem.

§ The Earl of Lauderdale
My Lords, will not my noble friend agree that the aid should include encouragement to white colonials to remain and to help the oncoming countries?

§ Lord Skelmersdale
My Lords, that is a matter for the Governments and countries concerned.

Lord Oram
My Lords, is not the proposal on grain reserves one of the most important results of the conference, and will Her Majesty's Government seek to take an initiative in this matter? For instance, I gather from the noble Lord's original Answer that at the conference our delegate played a part within the Community's delegation. Will the Government continue to do that, since is it not the case that in terms of grain production the European Community 127 is much better placed to take an initiative in the matter of grain reserves than we would be, as a single country, and as a considerable importer of food?

§ Lord Skelmersdale
Yes, my Lords; certainly the Government attach great importance to our multilateral forms of aid, whether they be of grain or anything else, through our membership of the Economic Community. Regarding the special grain reserves to which the noble Lord referred in the first part of his supplementary question, I would say that this idea was noted with appreciation, but many questions were then raised, and have since been raised, about its economic and technical feasibility. The conclusions of the conference asked the director to do more work on it with other agencies concerned, and to bear in mind the related questions involved. In fact, it was agreed that there was a case for building up grain reserves in developing countries as part of their own stocks and production policies, as well as for protection against market fluctuations. The United Kingdom Government's view is that another thing which should go hand in hand with this is the solving of transport difficulties, which tend to preclude regional stores.

§ Lord Brockway
My Lords, may I ask a rather different question, of which I gave belated notice? May I ask the noble Lord this question: Arising from the meeting of the World Food Council, is it not desirable that there should be some simplification and co-ordination of the United Nations bodies on this subject? At present there are five different bodies, often rivals. Would it not be a good idea if the economic department of the United Nations sought to find some co-ordination of their activities and the ending of the bureaucracy which is present in many of them?

§ Lord Skelmersdale
My Lords, I must note with some measure of approval what the noble Lord, Lord Brockway, has said, and point out that the World Food Council was set up to serve as a co-ordinating mechanism to provide overall, integrated and continuing attention for the successful co-ordination and follow-up of policies concerning food production, et cetera. Certainly one of the things with which it could well concern itself is the rationalisation of the bodies to which the noble Lord refers.

§ Lord Seebohm
My Lords, would the noble Lord agree that the developing countries constitute the world's greatest reservoir of food production, that each country therefore has an obligation to pursue a food strategy which has a realistic chance of meeting basic internal needs, and that international aid should be conditional upon its being used primarily for this purpose?

§ Lord Skelmersdale
My Lords, many of these countries about which we are talking this afternoon have enormous potential, but without help they are unable to realise this potential. That, I think, probably answers the noble Lord's question.