More than 160 people wrote to Prime Minister Keir Starmer as part of a Jesuit Missions campaign for Lent, urging him to take action on debt cancellation for low-income countries.
The campaign, which took inspiration from Pope Francis’s call to tackle the global debt crisis this Jubilee year, outlined three clear demands for the UK government.
It asked for unjust and unsustainable debts faced by poorer countries to be written off, support for a Debt Justice Law to ensure private lenders contribute to debt relief, and the creation of a new debt framework within the United Nations to prevent future debt crises.
The majority of signatories contacted the PM on Ash Wednesday (March 5), as suggested by Jesuit Missions, in the hope that this would have a greater impact.
According to a report by CAFOD on the global debt crisis, 3.3 billion people – almost half the world’s population – now live in countries that spend on more on debt payments than on health, education or life-saving climate measures.
3.3 billion people – almost half the world’s population – live in countries that spend more on debt payments than essential services
The financial burdens faced by such nations has been a hot topic of late – last month, 125 faith leaders wrote to the G20 finance ministers asking them to adopt policies that address the issue of debt.
And representatives from some 138 charitable organisations, including Jesuit Missions Director Paul Chitnis, signed an open letter to the Prime Minister and Treasury in response to the UK’s decision to slash its overseas aid budget
They urged them to reverse the decision, noting it will have a devastating impact on some of the world’s most vulnerable communities.
Richard Solly, Advocacy and Campaigns Officer at Jesuit Missions, said: “Many thanks to all those who took part in our Ash Wednesday debt cancellation campaign.
“It is really important that the UK Government gets the message that the unjust and unpayable debts supposedly owed by many developing countries have to be cancelled.
“People are suffering now because their governments have to pay more on debt repayments than on health or education, and people will suffer even more in future if governments cannot afford to take the action necessary to adapt to climate change and lessen its impacts.
“The UK Government’s recent decision to slash the aid budget, along with similar action by other governments, shows we need to stand up for compassion as well as for justice.
“This Jubilee Year is an appropriate time to end destructive and damaging debts.”
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