Geldof claims overseas aid is pathetic

LIVE Aid founder Bob Geldof condemned Tony Blair’s attempts to tackle world poverty as “guff and grandiose schemes”.

Mr Geldof questioned the British Prime Minister’s commitment to tackling hunger and disease and demanded he immediately “puts our money where his mouth is”.

Mr Geldof was launching an emergency appeal to the Government for a massive increase in overseas aid in the imminent comprehensive spending review.

He joined MPs, trade unionists and religious leaders in demanding the Government commits at least 0.5% of GDP to overseas aid in its immediate spending plans.

The group wants ministers to commit to spending 0.7% of GDP on aid by 2011.

British Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown has drawn up an action plan for the British presidency of the G8 next year, calling on countries who have yet to commit 0.7% to aid to “move further and faster to higher aid levels and on towards that target”.

But the British Government has yet to reach that level or set a date. It currently spends 0.34%. Its target for 2005/06 is 0.4%.

Britain ranks 11th in the league of generous nations, a position Geldof condemned as “pathetic”.

He said it was obvious that, as the fourth-richest country, Britain should be the fourth most generous.

“I am sick of sitting with Tony and Gordon and hearing guff about scars on the face of the world. I am sick of the grandiose schemes.

“If you really want to get rid of the scars and you want the Commission for Africa to have credibility, then the minimum you do is you take the fourth-richest country in the world and you measure it against its pathetic ranking as the 11th most generous. It’s as simple as that,” he said.