Hilary Benn tells left-wing NGOs to be more market-friendly

By William Danzek | 20 January 2006

Hilary Benn, the UK's International Development Secretary, used a speech yesterday evening to attack the anti-capitalism embedded in some of the left-wing NGOs. He said:

The Make Poverty History and other campaigns last year focused on more and better aid, debt relief and international obstacles to trade - on education, on HIV/AIDS - all absolutely critical and where we have made considerable progress.

But I do feel that many of these campaigns say little explicitly about the creation of more and better jobs for poor people. I think there is little real debate about growth.

Amongst some there is even hostility to the idea of international integration into the global economy. Some argue that globalisation is a race to the bottom. And amongst others there is a mistrust of the private sector.

I say that because it reflects the meetings I have.

This is not in the interests of poor people.

This view is bipartisan: Benn's speech echoes the words of David Cameron who last year said:

There is a danger that the anti-globalisation lobbies are teaching a whole new generation the wrong lessons.

Regrettably, even some of the most laudable campaigns against poverty in the developing world fail to understand the vital thread that links open markets, free trade, property rights, the rule of law, economic development and social progress. The latest poster from Christian Aid is deeply depressing. It reads: 'Aids, droughts, tsunamis. Can we add free trade to that list?'

Clearly, we still have our work cut out.