Overseas Aid (Private Sector Contracts) Debate

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Department: Department for International Development

Overseas Aid (Private Sector Contracts)

Fiona O'Donnell Excerpts
Monday 11th March 2013

(11 years, 2 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Justine Greening Portrait Justine Greening
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My hon. Friend is absolutely right. There is another reason that the involvement of the smallest companies in developing countries is so important. Many of them are agricultural smallholdings run by women, and we know that if they can invest in and grow those businesses, 90% of the income will be reinvested in their families and communities, providing a double bonus.

Fiona O'Donnell Portrait Fiona O’Donnell (East Lothian) (Lab)
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In her response to the shadow Secretary of State, the right hon. Lady rightly mentioned the need to increase tax receipts in developing countries and to have responsible trade. Has she had any discussions with the Chancellor of the Exchequer to advance those two causes ahead of next week’s Budget?

Justine Greening Portrait Justine Greening
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The hon. Lady might have seen that I have today set out our plans to work with Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs to set up a tax capacity-building unit, which will provide tax expertise to developing countries to help them to broaden their tax base and improve their tax collection. The Chancellor has made it clear that we want to see real progress on tax and tax transparency at the G8, which is why they are on the agenda.