I met with Debt Justice this month to discuss how fighting debt is integral to fighting the crises facing countries in the Global South. At a time when countries urgently need resources to tackle the pandemic and climate emergency, more and more cash is being drained to wealthy lenders through debt payments.
The UK has a particular responsibility to ensure private lenders take part in debt relief, since our country hosts more of them than any other country in the world, with these debts governed by English law. Of bonds owed by countries eligible for G20 debt relief schemes, 90% are governed by English law. The failure to include private lenders, such as banks and hedge funds, has been a block to agreeing to further international debt relief.