Chaired jointly by the Archbishop of Canterbury and Baroness Chalker, the meeting reviewed the experience of debtor countries and the responses so far of the international community to their plight, especially in the case of those countries most affected by enduring poverty.

Present, in addition to Bishops widely representative of the Anglican Communion, were the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Rt. Hon. Gordon Brown MP, and the Secretary of State for International Development, the Rt. Hon. Clare Short MP. Included amongst those attending, in addition to the High Commissioner of Canada and Ambassadors of Germany and Russia, were senior representatives of the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and international banks.

Discussion showed the meeting united in concern for the condition of heavily indebted countries. On the one hand, the urgency both of the situation in these countries and of the moral case for change was pressed, and on the other, attention was drawn to the need to identify policies which linked debt reduction with effective long-term policies for economic and social development, and poverty eradication. Ministers outlined the Government proposals for addressing these concerns within the international community.

Discussions identified that, even where there were complex economic issues, these must not stand in the way of real debt relief. It was not a case of morality and economics being in opposition to each other, but a question of establishing a moral economics. It followed that a new framework was needed for economic progress, and which recognised that debt relief was a necessary but not a wholly sufficient condition for economic development and poverty eradication. Above all, it was agreed that it was essential to communicate to everyone a possibility of hope.

Meeting on International Debt at Lambeth Palace, July 28, 1998

Co-Chairs:

The Baroness Chalker of Wallasey
The Archbishop of Canterbury
The Rt. Hon. Gordon Brown MP, The Chancellor of the Exchequer
The Rt. Hon. Clare Short MP, The Secretary of State for International Development
HE The Hon. Roy McLaren, The Canadian High Commissioner
HE Mr. Gebhardt von Moltke, The German Ambassador
>HE Mr. Yuri Fokine, The Russian Ambassador
Mr. Nikita Matkovski, Political Counsellor, Embassy of the Russian Federation
Mr. Michael Monderer, Director, Office of International Debt Policy, US Treasury

Representatives from:

IMF
The World Bank
HSBC Holdings plc
Barclays Bank plc
Standard Chartered Bank
The Most Rev. and Rt. Hon. The Lord Eames, The Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland
The Most Rev. Peter Hollingworth, The Archbishop of Brisbane
The Most Rev. Njongonkulu Ndungane, The Archbishop of Cape Town
The Most Rev. Khotso Makhulu, The Archbishop of Central Africa
The Rt. Rev. Luiz Prado, The Bishop of Pelotas, Brazil
The Rt. Rev. Dinis Sengulane, The Bishop of Lebombo, Mozambique
The Rt. Rev. Peter Selby, The Bishop of Worcester
The Rt. Rev. Leo Frade, The Bishop of Honduras
The Rt. Rev. Kenneth Fernando, The Bishop of Colombo
The Rt. Rev. Ronald Haines, The Bishop of Washington