The Rt Hon Caroline Spelman MP
Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
DEFRA
Nobel House
17 Smith Square
London SW1P 3JR

17 December 2010

Dear Caroline,

EU cotton subsidies

I understand that a number of my constituents have written to you about cotton subsidies being included in the forthcoming discussions on reform of the Common Agricultural Policy. I agree that this is an area of the CAP which is ripe for reform and I would like to join my constituents in asking you to make sure that cotton subsidies, and the grave impact they have on the economies of a number of developing countries, are not overlooked during the coming negotiations.

I am sure you are familiar with the arguments against the current subsidy regimes for cotton in Europe and the US; they are vividly expressed in the Fairtrade Foundation's recent report, and I know you will be aware of the deep damage that artificially cheap EU cotton does to the livelihoods of poor farmers and communities in the developing world.

The coalition government's commitment to prioritising support for international development is welcome, but policy on agricultural subsidies and trade must reflect this priority. Otherwise, there is a risk that aid will fail to make a substantial difference to poor people's lives because local economies in poorer countries will be blighted by unjust and uncompetitive trading conditions, imposed by the same industrialised nations who offer the most help.

Allowing cotton farmers in West Africa to compete in a global market, free from the distortions caused by subsidies, will raise incomes and go a long way towards alleviating the grinding poverty that afflicts much of a region where this crucial crop is the mainstay of entire economies. By contrast, cotton is arguably of little importance to the agricultural economy of the EU. It produces only around 2 per cent of the global cotton crop, and, while it is widely grown in some member states, the EU as a whole possesses the resources and the resilience to mitigate the effects of a decline in cultivation in those member states.

A strong stance at EU level may also help bring pressure to bear on the US as the bigger player, still paying out far more in subsidy to its farmers. The EU, guided by a UK delegation willing to take a bold stand on this issue, has the opportunity to lead by example.

I look forward to your response.

Yours sincerely,

Caroline Lucas, MP, Brighton Pavilion

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