ANY QUOTES USED MUST BE ATTRIBUTED TO MURNAGHAN, SKY NEWS

DERMOT MURNAGHAN: Now famine is once again gripping large swatches of West Africa. It is estimated that upwards of seven million people are at risk of severe food shortages with 300,000 children suffering from malnutrition. Well Andrew Mitchell is the Secretary of State for International Development and he joins me from Nottinghamshire, a very good morning to you Mr Mitchell. Now the aid agencies warned last week about a slow response to what developed in the Horn of Africa, presumably we don’t want to be caught out twice in terms of West Africa.

ANDREW MITCHELL: Well Britain is announcing today that we will supply immediately emergency therapeutic food for 68,000 children in West Africa who are in imminent danger of dying through starvation. We are also giving direct food support to a population of 50,000 and thirdly, and finally, we are supplying fodder and vaccinations to keep the livestock and cattle of 30,000 families alive at this very difficult time. Britain has already been supporting both through the essential emergency relief fund of the United Nations and through the EU emergency resources but let me make this point, we led the famine relief in the Horn of Africa, particularly in Somalia. Britain, British taxpayers cash, a huge response from across our country from ordinary people supporting the Disasters Emergency Committee appeal. As a result of that work, hundreds of thousands of lives, particularly of children, have been saved in East Africa. In West Africa we look to other countries to help shoulder this burden, the British taxpayer is not supposed to be supporting this work in every single location where it takes place and we expect other countries now in West Africa to put their shoulder to the wheel immediately and do in West Africa what Britain did in East Africa.

DERMOT MURNAGHAN: I see, so trying to blaze a trail. Just be specific, what countries are affected?

ANDREW MITCHELL: Well I found in doing this job that it is not helpful to point the finger at individual countries but anyone can see the scale of the problem, they know the scale of the problem, they know the countries which have had traditional connections and links in West Africa and it is perfectly possible to see who else should be taking action. The European Union is taking action in West Africa, the United Nations is doing so as well, Britain will help in the way that I have set out but we expect other rich countries, particularly European countries, also to step forward now in a determined and effective way to have a real effect on saving the lives of the many children who are in imminent danger of starving to death.

DERMOT MURNAGHAN: Perhaps not in these areas but on the whole issue of international aid, do you feel you are beginning to win the argument now and particularly the sections of your own back benches in the Conservative party, that Britain spends too much of an already straightened budget, on international aid?

ANDREW MITCHELL: Well this is, I accept, a difficult argument to make at a time when we are facing all the economic difficulties we have in Britain but I think there is a widespread view across our country that it is right to go to the help of people who are caught in these desperate wretched circumstances. I think you can see that from the response that we get to these appeals and that saving lives is something that people across Britain want to see our government doing but it has got to be proportionate, we’ve got to ensure other countries too shoulder the burden and we have to make certain, particularly in these difficult times, that every single pound we spend secures 100p of results down on the ground and with a ring fenced and increasing budget, we owe the British taxpayer a double duty in that respect.

DERMOT MURNAGHAN: It is about so many things though isn’t it? It is money not without strings, you want some influence and I’m thinking in terms of other areas where we’re donating money, particularly those countries affected by the Arab Spring. Let’s look at Libya where there have been demonstrations recently in Benghazi, people who were involved in the liberation movement concerned about the pace of change. Now we are giving countries like Libya and indeed Egypt quite a lot of money and there are concerns in Egypt as well about how slow change is to come, are we making those thoughts and feelings known to the administrations there?

ANDREW MITCHELL: Yes, if you take Libya for example which you mentioned, both the Foreign Office and the Department for International Development have funds which are part of the Arab Partnership Funding. Libya is a rich country so it doesn’t need taxpayers money for ordinary programme spending but we are able to give them technical assistance, that technical assistance helps them to develop a constitution and it helps them to implement some of the changes which the new government in Libya has promised. Britain is prominent in giving that support but it doesn’t require huge amounts of tax payer’s money but more technical assistance and that we are supplying.

DERMOT MURNAGHAN: And just lastly, Secretary of State, can I just ask you about a story that has come across the radar today, there are concerns about what’s going on in one of the factories, several factories in China that are manufacturing mascots for the London Olympics, concerns there about pay and conditions. Will you investigate?

ANDREW MITCHELL: Well of course we don’t have a programme, a development programme in China, we closed it down on the first day the coalition government was in office because we didn’t think it was a proper use of British tax payers spending but LOCOG, the London Organising Committee for the Olympic Games, has set up an investigation of this. Just as in Britain we have a decent work agenda with proper working conditions, so we do in those countries which we are involved with overseas and I think that LOCOG will publish the results of their investigations and they will also make it very clear that all those who are part of the Olympic Games souvenirs industry must stand by the obligations to which they have signed up to in terms of a decent work agenda.

DERMOT MURNAGHAN: Okay, Mr Mitchell, thank you very much indeed, Secretary State for International Development there, Andrew Mitchell.