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International Development (Reporting and Transparency) Bill

I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman. Having managed to persuade both Houses to enact my Disabled Persons Bill, I can assure him with some confidence that the expenditure mentioned in clause 12 would be very limited. I know that none of us would seek to exaggerate the extent of that necessary expenditure. I would not wish to make greater claims for the impact of the Bill, were it to be enacted, than its contents justify. However, apart from bilateral contributions to tackling problems faced in developing countries, its main thrust is to achieve two aims that are, are in my view, profoundly relevant. First, we need to work within multilateral institutions, including the European Union, to address the challenges of poverty and deprivation that have existed for far too long.