Roger Godsiff – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2014-05-07.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will undertake a review of the effectiveness of the Debt Relief (Developing Countries) Act 2010 in preventing the use of the English legal system by vulture funds to extract funds from developing countries.

Andrea Leadsom

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by the former Financial Secretary to the Treasury, my right hon. Friend the Member for Bromsgrove (Mr Javid) on 6 January 2014, which includes information on the Government’s approach to promoting debt sustainability among low income countries.

The impact assessment for the Debt Relief (Developing Countries) Act 2010 indicates direct benefits to Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPCs) of between zero and £26m a year. The Government’s decision to make the Act permanent on 25 May 2011 was taken following consultation with relevant stakeholders; evidence from that exercise suggested that the Act had some benefit on HIPCs and no evidence was found of unintended or adverse effects.

The UK continues to be at the forefront of international efforts to promote responsible lending and borrowing practices, including our ongoing support for the IMF/World Bank Debt Sustainability Framework and OECD lending principles covering official export credits. The UK also supports the World Bank’s debt reduction facility, which enables countries to buy back their commercial debt at a deep discount with donor backing, and the African Legal Support Facility, which provides legal advice to countries facing litigation.