Oral question asked in the House of Commons, by David Anderson (Labour). It was answered on Wednesday, 11 June 2008 on behalf of the Department for International Development.

Non-Governmental Organisations (Iraq)

Question: I thank the Minister for that response. Is he aware that last year his Department withdrew funding from support for trade union development in Iraq because of the"““sectarian violence engulfing the country at the moment””?" Clearly, the security situation is better now. Will he agree to meet trade unions from Iraq and Britain to try to move the issue forward again?

Answer: Trade unions are a vital part of any democracy. That is why my hon. Friend is right to say that, between 2004 and 2007, DFID provided through Unison training for trade union leaders and helped to establish a trade union resource centre in Iraq. This programme came to a natural end in 2007, which coincided with a spike in violence preventing us from renewing the programme. Since then we have successfully focused on supporting the Iraqi Government to provide essential services to their own people and stimulating private sector investment. In April, I met Governor al-Waili, the governor of Basra, who expressed his optimism about the future of Iraq. I assure my hon. Friend that as security improves, we will continue to assess how we can best support increased prosperity and stability in Iraq, including opportunities to work with trade unions.

Secondary information

Type: Oral question
Reference: 477 c293
Session: 2007-08
Oral question type: 1st Supplementary
Chamber / Committee: House of Commons chamber
Subjects: Finance Iraq Politics and government Trade unions Reconstruction Non-governmental organisations
Link: View this Oral question on www.publications.parliament.uk