COMPANIES extracting
natural resources in developing countries would be forced to declare all
payments made, under a Private Member’s Bill tabled by Glasgow Central
MP, Anas Sarwar.
He argues that energy companies and those
involved in mining for minerals and precious metals should be forced to
make full disclosure so that civil society and non-government
organisations in the UK and around the world could hold governments to
account over allegations of bribery and corruption.
The MP, a member of the International
Development Select Committee, said: “I want to see the vast sums of
money made through natural resource extraction in developing countries
put to effective use for the public good.
“At the moment there is a major lack of transparency, which makes
it easy for corrupt officials to siphon off public money for their own
private benefit, instead of using it to reduce poverty and enrich the
lives of their country’s people.
“If all
the money received was spent accountably, more children would be in
schools, more nurses in clinics, and more farmers would get better seeds
to grow enough food to feed their families and earn some money to
support them.”
He said the Energy
Security through Transparency Act of 2009, backed by US President Barack
Obama, had forced US-based extractive firms to reveal what they paid to
developing countries.
French President
Nicolas Sarkozy recently pledged to put pressure on the European Union
to pass similar legislation. The Bill would apply to all companies
trading on the London Stock Exchange.
“It’s time for the UK to step up
and show leadership,” said Mr Sarwar, who hoped that people would urge
their MPs to support the Bill’s hearing tomorrow and write to Chancellor
George Osborne asking him to give a public statement in support.
The HeraldScotland
