MPs coming on board transparency campaign

Jul 29th, 2010 5:10 PM UTC
By Joseph Powell

The momentum behind the campaign for the UK to legislate on greater transparency in the extractive industries is gathering pace.

On Monday Eric Joyce MP, Chair of the Parliamentary Group on the Great Lakes, introduced an Early Day Motion (EDM 642) calling for the Government to match the recently passed US legislation forcing companies to publish what they pay developing countries. Amongst the signatories so far are Chair of the International Development Select Committee, Malcolm Bruce MP, and Peter Bottomley MP, Vice-Chair of the Parliamentary Group for Debt, Aid and Trade.

ONE believes that greater transparency in energy and mining companies will be good for development in poorer countries and help ensure natural resources benefit all citizens, not just corrupt elites. Secrecy hides incompetence, mismanagement, and corruption; while transparency stimulates competitiveness and an open discussion about the management of a country’s natural resource assets. Opening up the books will allow civil society groups to hold their governments to account for money received.

Now we are asking for your help. We need as many MPs as possible to sign the EDM and send a message to the Government that they need to act on this as soon as possible. So if you live in the UK, please contact your MP and tell them why you think they should care about transparency.

The text of EDM 642 ‘Disclosure of Payments to Governments by Oil, Gas and Mining Companies’:

That this House notes that corruption in the oil, gas and mining industries has caused great human misery in Africa and other developing regions; considers that corruption would be curbed by full disclosure of revenue payments to governments by oil, gas and mining companies; further notes that the United States Congress is considering a law to require all such companies regulated in the US to fully disclose such payments; and urges the Government to consider similar legislation.

Many thanks to the following MPs who have already signed up:

Bruce, Malcolm
Durkan, Mark
Hancock, Mike
Joyce, Eric
McGuire, Anne
Russell, Bob
Ritchie, Margaret
Hopkins, Kelvin
Hughes, Simon
Jackson, Glenda
Corbyn, Jeremy
Bottomley, Peter
Williams, Stephen
Edwards, Jonathan

TAGS: Corruption, Spotlight, Transparency, UK