Background and acknowledgements
In July 2007, we announced that we would conduct
a short inquiry into cross-departmental working on development
and trade. The aim was to assess DFID's place in the new departmental
trade policy structures announced in June and to examine how this
policy area would be managed across government in practice. We
were keen to look in particular at the likely effect of the changes
on aspects of policy which affect developing countries, including
bribery and corruption, major international trade negotiations
and natural resources.
This inquiry also followed up on issues raised in
our Report on Conflict and Development: Peacebuilding and Post-Conflict
Reconstruction.[1]
In particular, we revisited recommendations we had made about
matters which were the specific responsibility of the former Department
of Trade and Industry in relation to the regulation of the activities
of UK companies operating in developing countries.
We received written evidence from 14 organisations
and individuals. We subsequently held two evidence sessions to
hear from Ministers and five other witnesses. We would like to
thank the witnesses who gave evidence in those sessions and those
who provided us with written contributions.
1 International Development Committee, Sixth Report
of Session 2005-06, Conflict and Development: Peacebuilding
and Post-conflict Reconstruction, HC 923-I, paragraphs 105-119
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