G8 Agenda for Africa

Part of the debate – in Westminster Hall at 11:52 am on 18 October 2005.

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Photo of Bill Cash Bill Cash Conservative, Stone 11:52, 18 October 2005

Does my hon. Friend agree that for those of us who feel passionately about the African problem and the alleviation of poverty, the question of how much aid is given has to be paralleled by the extent to which there is a proper audit of how it is spent and where it goes? Is he aware of my International Development (Anti-corruption Audit) Bill, which would have requirements for external audits when there was any uncertainty within the mechanisms of the public accounts committees of the countries concerned about where money was going and whether it was being properly deployed? It does not matter how much money is provided if it is going to the wrong place and not being properly audited. I know that the Under-Secretary is interested in such matters and I should be grateful to know through my hon. Friend whether he is willing to make his views known.

Annotations

I J
Posted on 21 Oct 2005 6:41 pm (Report this annotation)

The effective audit of public finances all over the world is heavily constrained. Steps therefore to make the supply of aid conditional on the acceptance of international audit are a welcome step forward.

Auditors may have difficulty in deciding though whether "sound policies and high standards of governance" have been implemented; the yardstick?

I J
Posted on 13 Dec 2005 10:30 am (Report this annotation)

There is scope here for a joint approach involving, at least, the UK, the EU and the US.

"President George W. Bush’s administration is drawing up plans to carry out the biggest overhaul of the US foreign aid apparatus in more than 40 years in an attempt to assert more political control over international assistance, according to officials and aid experts." (11 December, 2005) http://news.ft.com/cms/s/2a05367a-6a7a-11da-ba41-0000779e234...