Fair Trade Initiatives

HC Deb 28 January 1998 vol 305 cc289-90W

24. Dr. Tony Wright

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what support she is giving to fair trade initiatives. [23882]

Clare Short

Fair trade initiatives help reduce poverty by ensuring that small producers get fair prices for their goods and also allow consumers to make choices that support development. I strongly support these initiatives and am very pleased fairly traded coffee is now available in the House of Commons. I hope other workplaces will follow suit.

I am ready to consider requests for support. However, to succeed, fairly traded goods must be marketable on their merits. The best known in UK, Café Direct, has achieved commercial success without financial support from my Department.