MPs seek action from G7 to reduce African debt burden

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AN ALL-PARTY committee of MPs has launched a campaign to get Africa onto the agenda of the G7 summit next month and to persuade world leaders to reduce Africa's debt burden, which now represents more than the continent produces in a year.

The MPs, led by Sir David Steel, are meeting the Prime Minister tomorrow to urge him to persuade the leaders of the other six leading industrial countries to implement the Trinidad terms - the writing off of two thirds of Africa's debt - which he proposed in 1990. At present the G7 leaders are only committed to writing off half the dollars 183bn debt. Sir David said many sub-Saharan countries owed more than three times their national incomes.

Michael Meacher, Labour's spokesman on overseas development, said the debt crisis had reached astronomical levels and was 'the number one problem holding back world economic recovery'.