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Africa: Corruption

My Lords, I, too, add my congratulations to the noble Lord, Lord Chidgey, on securing this important debate on the APPG report. I pay tribute, too, to Lawrence Cockcroft and the group who were the advisers for this report. The opening paragraph of chapter three sets out depressing problems in no uncertain terms. The noble Lords, Lord Chidgey and Lord St. John of Bletso, both said:"““The World Bank estimates that US$1 trillion is paid in bribes each year globally””." That is on top of an,"““unknown figure for embezzlement of public funds, of the theft of public assets, by corrupt officials””." Of course, we must not forget to include the estimated US$1.5 trillion of ““tainted procurement”” or the,"““unquantified volume of fraud within the private sector””." I appreciate the APPG’s focus on Africa. Trevor Royle of the Sunday Herald said:"““For far too long Africa and corruption have been the gin and tonic of the continent’s political affairs. Add a little ice and lemon in the shape of bribes and pocket-lining and the cocktail is complete””." As your Lordships have said, corruption is unfortunately a problem that affects not only Africa but significant other areas of the world—some often closer to home than we think. It is a problem that pervades all sectors of society. It is no wonder that this destruction of integrity is considered the single greatest obstacle to global development. The statistics on the cost of corruption are most upsetting. However, their costs reach well beyond monetary terms. Corruption can act as a glass ceiling for those trying to pull themselves out of poverty, reducing a country’s annual growth by up to 4 per cent and tax revenues, if any are made, by 50 per cent. Assuming that the country in question is not also subject to civil war, an environment, which I believe only breeds and encourages the infection that we are discussing, it is always the public services that are overpriced and underperforming, if available at all, owing to the amount of graft in the systems—the very services that the poorest need most. Kenya has been a much-quoted example of where corruption permeates to the highest ministerial level. The outlook is dim. Foreign investment is discouraged and domestic growth retarded. These are not the precursors that countries need to meet their millennium development goals. This is a timely debate, with the arrival of the International Development (Reporting and Transparency) Bill last Friday. It will enable us to debate fully the need for transparency in the aid process, and the effectiveness of both our aid programmes. Aid goes some way to addressing recommendation 6 of the AAPPG. I look forward to those debates. The report also picks up on issues continually raised by organisations such as Global Witness: the plight of illegal natural resource extraction and the corruption and human rights issues linked with it—known as ““conflict demons””, ““conflict timber”” and ““conflict oil””—were discussed by my noble friend Lord Astor in a recent Unstarred Question. As such, I will not repeat the details. Suffice it to say that if we are to preach transparency, good governance and accountability, it is often a good idea to start at home. The noble Baroness, Lady Whitaker, rightly mentioned that we should crack down on UK companies involved in corruption abroad, be it selling illegally logged flooring, or companies providing bribes for work bids in Africa. Beyond Global Witness’s specific recommendations regarding natural resource industry, Transparency International criticised the Government in 2004 for not establishing an effective supervisory regime to regulate those who provide services to trusts and unlimited companies. What steps have Her Majesty’s Government taken to address these concerns, and what assessment has been made of their success? In getting our own house in order, what steps have Her Majesty’s Government taken since the release of this report three months ago to ensure that the Crown dependencies and overseas territories adhere to improving their own standards on corruption and money laundering? Will the Minister stand up to the report’s accusation of,"““a lack of political will at the highest levels to take a lead in fighting global corruption””?" In the short time available for a huge and complex subject, I beg your Lordships’ indulgence, as I have only been able to touch on a few of the recommendations. I hope that the Minister will be able to respond to at least the seven headline recommendations, and inform us when a government response will be made, in full, to the 38 recommendations put forward. After all, the real losers, of course, are the ordinary hard-working people we are trying to help.