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Hilary Benn: I thank the hon. Gentleman for his kind words. I extend my sincere congratulations to him, and I warmly welcome him to his new responsibilities. I genuinely wish him well in the work that he will undertake. As he will rapidly discover—if he has not done so already—it is a privilege to have the chance to speak for our respective parties on international development in the House. I join him in expressing personal appreciation for the role played by the hon. Member for Buckingham (Mr. Bercow), who will be missed.
I thank the hon. Member for Rutland and Melton (Mr. Duncan) for his kind words about staff from DFID, the MOD, the FCO and, indeed, personnel serving on HMS Richmond and Royal Fleet Auxiliary Wave Ruler for the part that they have played. Our disaster response team, which is part of DFID's conflict and humanitarian affairs department, has been tracking the hurricane for some time, and the fact that I have been able to report to the House the steps that we have already taken is a testament to that preparation. We are proud to have played our part, but the hon. Gentleman is right that much more needs to be done. I cannot at this stage tell him the total spend in response to the hurricane, because that will depend on the assessment of need. Our immediate priority is to deal with the most urgent and pressing problems, and I set out in my statement the steps that we have already taken to respond to the needs communicated to us by people with whom we have been in contact, particularly on Grenada and the Cayman Islands, and by sailors and other personnel serving on HMS Richmond. That assistance will be used to support the Governments of the countries affected and at the same time—this will become more apparent when the Red Cross regional appeal is shortly launched—we will work, as we do wherever possible, through relief agencies on the ground, because they have the capacity. The best thing that we can do is use the
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resources that I am prepared to make available through them, thus ensuring that they can undertake the work that is required.
I agree that the presence of HMS Richmond has proved extremely important. It has played a valuable role and shows the continuing importance of that presence to deal with such disasters.
The hon. Gentleman is right to say that there have been a large number of hurricanes this year. Nobody knows for sure whether this is a manifestation of climate change, but he rightly draws attention to the challenge, and the world must respond to it. That is the point that the Prime Minister will make in his speech today. It is often the very poorest people who suffer most from the impact of climate change. We are talking today about flooding in the Caribbean, but only a short time ago there was flooding in Bangladesh, a country uniquely vulnerable to a rise in the water level because so many people live so close to sea level. The UK has made it clear that we intend to make climate change a priority for our G8 presidency next year.
The other truth, which I am sure the hon. Gentleman would recognise, is that unless in the long term we get an agreement that involves action by all the countries of the world, including developing countries and including some, such as China, which are in the process of becoming big emitters, we will never solve the problem.
On the final point that the hon. Gentleman makes about the long term, I recognise that although the cameras have moved on, the process of reconstruction will continue. I can tell the House that the Caribbean Development Bank and the International Monetary Fund have concessionary lending facilities that are designed to help countries recover from disasters of this sort. We will be looking at the assessments that are made by our own people, we will be responding to the appeals made by the Red Cross and others, and particularly in relation to Grenada, where we have a small programme of technical assistance, I will be looking at how we might refocus that to support the country to recover.
Tom Brake (Carshalton and Wallington) (LD): I thank the Secretary of State for providing an advance copy of the statement, and echo the condolences and sympathies that he expressed to people affected by the tragedy. I also pay tribute to the role that British forces are playing in the region. Their presence underlines the need for long-term engagement in that area.
I pay tribute to the hon. Member for Buckingham (Mr. Bercow), who was a real friend of international development. I hope that his successor, the hon. Member for Rutland and Melton (Mr. Duncan), will prove to be so too, and I wish him well in that position.
It is appropriate that the Government's response has been generous and immediate. I should like to ask the Secretary of State about the other action that the Government intend to take. What contacts have we had with other leading Commonwealth countries to see what role they could play? On the Government's position in relation to short-term commitment in the form of humanitarian aid and, just as important, in relation to their longer-term commitment to the region, particularly the need to rebuild the infrastructure, some details about Government plans would be appreciated.
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Climate change has been mentioned. Will the Secretary of State raise the matter with the Prime Minister and ask him to raise it in due course with President Bush? The hurricane is the most recent and forceful evidence of climate change in a region close to the United States.
Finally, with reference to Grenada, could the Secretary of State set out what assistance Grenada has asked for, and whether the UK Government would be willing to provide people to assist on the ground? I understand that the problem is not necessarily the quantity of aid available, but getting it out reliably and safely to the people who need it. Grenada, Jamaica and the Cayman Islands are all facing a tragedy. I am sure that if the Secretary of State chooses to push Britain's role even harder and faster in the region, he will receive support from all parts of the House.
Hilary Benn: I thank the hon. Gentleman for his kind words about those who have worked so hard to respond to the crisis. On his first point about the Commonwealth, as I said, a number of Commonwealth countries have already responded—the provision of practical support is, of course, a natural inclination, not least among neighbours and friends.
On the hon. Gentleman's second point about long-term plans, as I indicated to the hon. Member for Rutland and Melton, we must make an assessment based on priorities and the extent to which countries can help themselves. For instance, the Cayman Islands has suffered grievously, and we are providing immediate humanitarian assistance, but it has a relatively high GDP, and its need for long-term support will be different from that of Grenada or, indeed, Jamaica, which is why we must reflect on relative need in deciding how to support long-term reconstruction. We will examine the provision of further assistance, including a response to the Red Cross appeal.
On climate change, the hon. Gentleman knows that we have already raised that point internationally, including making clear our wish that the United States should sign up to the Kyoto protocol, but the United States Administration are not persuaded. We have been strong on both the targets that we have set ourselves in the United Kingdom and pressing the rest of the world to recognise that climate change is a challenge that we must do something about.
Ms Diane Abbott (Hackney, North and Stoke Newington) (Lab): The whole House is grateful to the Secretary of State for his prompt oral statement. He knows that millions of British residents, who have either friends or family in those countries, have watched the course of the hurricane with extreme anxiety hour by hour. Obviously, the Government must wait for a detailed assessment of need before taking steps, but we may need to examine special immigration arrangements for the residents of Grenada. Flexibility was introduced after the volcano in Montserrat, and many Grenadian families have elderly relatives who have nowhere to live. Will the Secretary of State consider whether his officials can brief Grenadian and Jamaican people who are over here and who want up-to-date information?
The real problem for those countries is not the provision of immediate humanitarian aid or even rebuilding infrastructure, but the savage blow that the
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hurricane has dealt to agriculture and tourism, which are the pillars of their economies. They need serious long-term help to rebuild and restructure their economies, because if we leave an economic vacuum in Grenada and Jamaica, the drug trade will move into it. We may need to examine large-scale, sustained economic advice and help so that those societies can remain stable and secure.
Hilary Benn: I thank my hon. Friend for her remarks, and I know that she takes a close interest in the matter. In addition to flights that have left Grenada, which removed people who were there on holiday, I understand that the one flight in carried friends and relatives who want to provide assistance. We will put my statement and other information on to the Department for International Development website, and I am happy to discuss other ideas that my hon. Friend and other hon. Members may have about how those communities that are particularly concerned can be kept in touch with events. I am happy to examine any proposals on reassuring people or telling people how they can provide practical assistance.
I undertake to raise my hon. Friend's point about arrangements for those who might want to bring relatives over to care for them with my right hon. Friends the Home Secretary and the Foreign Secretary. I do not know the answer, but I undertake to look into the matter and to ensure that either my right hon. Friends or I reply to my hon. Friend on that point.
Finally, my hon. Friend made a powerful point about the hurricane's possible long-term impact. The international community's response includes the Caribbean Development Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the European Community. Once we have dealt with the immediate crisis, on which we are focused today, particularly in Grand Cayman, where no one has been able to go ashore, it is essential that we examine supporting those countries in recovering from that terrible catastrophe.
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