§ 34. Mr. Rhodri MorganTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps he is taking to reduce the debt burden of the poorest countries. [41708]
§ Mrs. LiddellDebt relief was discussed at the G8 foreign and finance ministers meeting on 9 May and the G8 Summit in Birmingham last weekend. The G8 agreed to encourage all eligible countries to adopt the policy measures necessary to embark on the process of securing a sustainable exit to their debt burdens by the year 2000, and agreed that their export credit agencies would seek to ensure their export credits to Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPCs) would be used only for productive expenditure.
The Chancellor's latest initiative has concerned the debt burden of countries that have recently emerged from conflict. The communiqué issued after the Birmingham summit recognised that the present framework of the HIPC initiative was not able to provide debt relief quickly enough to post-conflict countries. These countries have large arrears to the International Financial Institutions (IFIs) and require special assistance in the wake of long conflicts. The G8 urged the IMF and World Bank to look at the possibilities of helping these post-conflict countries—which include Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, Liberia and Rwanda—by finding mechanisms for dealing with their arrears payments to the IFIs.
§ Mr. CanavanTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many representations he has received about third-world debt; and how much money has been sent to him by people making such representations. [41677]
§ Mr. Gordon BrownSince 1 January 1997, the Treasury has received over 12,000 letters and postcards on the subject of third-world debt. To date, more than £7,000 has been sent in as part of these campaigns.