§ Mr. CorbynTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how the least-developed countries will benefit from the new initiatives related to aid procurement and local cost rules which were announced at the second United Nations conference on the least-developed countries in Paris in September.
§ Mrs. ChalkerAllowing least developed countries to which we provide aid to use some of our aid funds to procure from other poor countries, as well as from the United Kingdom, should make a positive contribution to trade between developing countries and help to achieve good value for money from the aid programme.
The removal of limits on the extent to which our bilateral financial aid to the least developed countries can be used to meet local costs should give added flexibility in ensuring that our aid meets the most pressing needs of recipients.
§ Mr. CorbynTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what percentage of gross national product is currently spent on aid to the least-developed countries; and if he has any plans to raise this to meet the United Nations targets for such spending.
§ Mrs. ChalkerIn 1989 Britain's net official development assistance to the 42 countries presently classified by the United Nations as least developed was 0.10 per cent. of GNP. In the programme of action adopted by the Second