§ Mrs. SpelmanTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development what discussions her Department had at the European Council's meeting in Laeken; and if she will make a statement. [25274]
§ Hilary BennThe European Council meeting at Laeken on 14–15 December 2001 was attended by The Prime Minister. The conclusions of the meeting were deposited in the House Library and The Prime Minister made a statement to the House on 17 December.
Paragraphs 53–56 of the conclusions deal with development co-operation. The UK strongly supports EU work to improve the co-ordination of European and international development policies, as a contribution to the Monterrey Conference on Financing for Development in March and the Johannesburg Summit on Sustainable Development in September. We also support EU efforts to encourage progress towards the target of providing 0.7 per cent, of gross national income as official development assistance. We are prepared to examine the proposal to establish a Euro-Mediterranean Development Bank but believe that the first step in improving the effectiveness of EU financial support to countries of the Mediterranean region must be to deliver funds from the EC's MEDA programme more effectively.