Commonwealth Development Corporation Bill

Lord Shutt of Greetland Excerpts

2nd reading (Hansard): House of Lords & 3rd reading (Hansard): House of Lords & Committee: 1st sitting (Hansard): House of Lords & Report stage (Hansard): House of Lords
Thursday 9th February 2017 Lords Chamber

[Lord Shutt of Greetland (LD)]

My Lords, it is a great pleasure to follow so many noble Lords who have had experience of these matters over very many years and particularly of the splendid historical context in which we see the CDC. This short Bill is twice as long as another little Bill that we will have when we return after the recess. We may have a couple of hours now, but of course there are five whole days so far in the weeks that follow, although there could be more. We have no opportunity to amend this Bill, as money is at stake.

We know that there are two basic aims: to quadruple the resources available to the CDC and then, by order, to double them on top of that. Because we cannot amend the Bill at all, it is an act of faith as far as we in this place are concerned. We have to have faith that the funds will be properly used. I do not wish to detract at all from the concerns that have been expressed by so many noble Lords, and look forward to hearing about a sound business plan and strategy.

I have only two points to raise. First, when the resources available are increased, will the CDC, where appropriate, have the opportunity to invest beyond the continent of Africa and the countries of south Asia? I do not think there are any legal constraints on this. It is not in the text of the Bill, and the title says “Commonwealth”, but it certainly seems that investment goes beyond Commonwealth countries. Will the new resources allow investment elsewhere?

The second point, which may not come as any surprise to the Minister, is about the British Overseas Territories. It is government policy that their reasonable needs are the first call on the UK aid programme. For each aided territory, DfID’s objective is to assist it in reaching self-sufficiency. The extension of the potential CDC resources would be but a pinprick for the CDC but could be highly significant for dependent territories such as Montserrat and the St Helena group of islands. I have a particular interest in St Helena, having made two visits there. Even with the delays, the availability of the airport there for mainstream use is keenly awaited, which we hope will happen during this summer. We know that there are detractors around, so it is important just to mention that there have now been several medivac flights of small aeroplanes, and six people are alive now who might not be had they had to wait three weeks to get a boat to Cape Town.

However, St Helena still needs the infrastructure to cater for airborne visitors. When I was there three and a half years ago, two very significant developments were about to happen, but they have not taken place. It would be a proper use of CDC resources to assist with some of these developments in order to take St Helena away from DfID dependency, whether by investment, loan or even guaranteed support.