London Olympics
Debate between Barry Gardiner and Jim Dobbin(12 years, 9 months ago)
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Jason McCartney
On a point of order, Mr Dobbin, I would like to hear the Minister’s response. A lot of questions are being posed and I would really like to hear the Minister’s response.
Jim Dobbin (in the Chair)
I am sure that the Member leading the debate would like to hear the Minister’s response as well, but unfortunately time is running out. If the Member who is in charge of the debate wants to get complete answers, he must take that into consideration.
Barry Gardiner
Since then, earlier this month, Dow Chemical lost its bid to overturn anti-trust fines totalling in excess of €25 million imposed by the European Union for its part in colluding to fix prices of chloroprene rubber. Just last week, Dow was penalised and heavily fined for underestimating the greenhouse gas emissions from its Grangemouth plant in Scotland.
What is perhaps most incredible is that the Chairman of the Commission for a Sustainable London 2012, Shaun McCarthy, has gone on record as saying:
“LOCOG carried out its due diligence exercise with regard to reputation risk in relation to this procurement. At the time, when the bids were being considered in early 2011 LOCOG found no current media, political or NGO commentary that would give cause for concern.”
As ever, Meredith Alexander makes the best riposte. She has said:
“Even a twelve year old could have found them”.
The Minister is not a 12-year-old, and he knows that the public are not naive either. He must not reply with a speech that is long on examples of sustainability and good practice but short on answers to the questions that I have posed about Dow. To assist the Minister in preparing for the debate, I sent all the questions I would be raising to his office—[Interruption.] I did so at 3 o’clock this morning, to enable him to come to the House prepared.
Today, the Minister should have the courage to stand up and accept that Dow is not a fit and proper company to be a sponsor of the most sustainable Olympic games ever staged. If he does so, everyone would accept that although a mistake had been made, the Government have the determination to put it right. If he does not do so, he must accept that a cloud will hang over the London games. They will be tainted by a sham procurement process and a sponsor that has shown it is contemptuous of the law, defiant of regulations, willing to engage in bribery and corrupt practices, but indifferent to the continuing suffering of thousands of human beings.
Jim Dobbin (in the Chair)
Minister, as I am sure you are aware, you only have two minutes.