Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2015-05-18-Speech-1-140-000"
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"en.20150518.17.1-140-000"2
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"Mr President, I would like to make two points. One is on setting targets and the second is on aid-giving itself. This institution believes that nations setting targets of 0.7% of GNI and an EU foreign aid budget of EUR 960 billion can only have positive outcomes.
As is always the case, just throwing money at problems seldom solves the problem. The reality is that the culture of targets has caused an environment of deceit. In the UK, the Conservative Government is very proud of the fact that we achieved the target of 0.7% of GNI last year. The British Department for Foreign Aid and Development forced civil servants to go on a GBP 1 billion spending spree at the end of 2013 just to hit that target. We have food banks, a GBP 30 billion black hole in our NHS, potholes everywhere, a failing education system, underfunded police with bobbies being taken off the beat everywhere, thousands of policemen being taken away from service, and reduced bin collection – now fortnightly and, in some places, monthly. Libraries are closing, post offices are closing and street lights are being switched off. We can use that GBP 11.4 billion much better in the UK than giving it, in many cases, to dictators and people who squander it.
My second point is that there is no guarantee that the aid that we give to some of the poor countries has had any lasting effect whatsoever. Some of the countries are still as poor as they were 20 years ago. I ask this institution to remove the barriers it has placed on these countries; remove the common fisheries policies from their shores and allow them to sell their goods at a rate that suits them. Increase the trade, decrease the aid and you will see that poorer countries will start to flourish."@en1
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"(The speaker agreed to take a blue-card question under Rule 162((8))"1
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