Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative

HC Deb 02 December 2002 vol 395 cc529-30W

Mr. Dawson

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many companies have signed up to the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative. [84050]

Clare Short

The Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative was announced by the Prime Minister at the World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg in September 2002. At that initial stage, BP, Shell, Rio Tinto, BhP Billiton and Anglo-American committed to developing a framework for transparency in the extractive industries.

Since then, we have drawn up a set of principles underpinning the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative, which we will use to bring more companies and governments on board. A growing number of non-UK based oil and mining companies, industry bodies and UK asset fund managers have expressed interest in joining the multi-stakeholder coalition to devise mechanisms to make transparency a reality.