In response to Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s £2 bus fare cap funded by switching international climate finance from grants to loans, Heidi Chow, Executive Director of Debt Justice, said:
“This is a welcome step for the millions of people forced into debt to pay for essentials by the cost of living crisis across the UK.
“But tackling the cost of living crisis and deepening household debt in the UK should not be paid for by piling more debt onto people in lower-income countries like Malawi and Zambia. This is a slap in the face to countries already facing the double catastrophe of an escalating debt crisis and the climate emergency.
“In the midst of unprecedented heatwaves, the government needs to work in solidarity with other countries to tackle the climate crisis. The UK should take responsibility for its historic emissions by paying climate finance as grants, not loans, and prioritise tackling the global debt crisis.”
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Notes
Debt Justice (formerly Jubilee Debt Campaign) is a UK charity working to end poverty caused by unjust debt through education, research and campaigning: https://debtjustice.org.uk/
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