On Monday 12 November, members of Reading World Development Movement (WDM) will be asking students at Reading College what they think of UK aid backing tax breaks for sweatshops in Bangladesh.
Jackie Oversby, group co-ordinator said, ‘When done properly , overseas development aid can make a wonderful difference to some of the poorest people in the world. However I am very worried about a new trend in development giving which is prioritising private-sector interests. For example, I can’t understand why £14 million of UK aid is being spent in backing sweatshops in Bangladesh. It is helping the Bangladesh government to set up special economic zones where unskilled workers will be paid on average of about £1 a day and will be banned from joining trade unions, and where the multinational companies who employ them, won’t pay taxes for 10 years. Our aid money should help the poorest people in poor countries, not big business. I want our government to think again about how they use our Aid budget.’
WDM is calling for a full parliamentary investigation and a wider debate around the efficacy of concentration on private sector development at the expense of public sector solutions.
WDM is looking for new members to tackle the root causes of poverty and to campaign for global equality and economic justice. For more information check http://www.wdm.org.uk or call Bente on 
0118 958 6692
