Press briefing from the Prime Minister’s Official Spokesman on: Germany and Africa Progress Panel and Security and Terrorism and Committee
Germany and Africa Progress Panel
Asked if the Prime Minister had just arrived in Germany, the Prime Minister’s Official Spokesman (PMOS) confirmed this and added that the Prime Minister had just gone into the Africa Progress Panel meeting, this would then be followed by a press conference with Chancellor Merkel, Kofi Annan and the Prime Minister. There will then be the separate bilateral and dinner between the Prime Minister and Chancellor Merkel.
Asked if the Prime Minister would be urging Chancellor Merkel to keep Germany’s commitment that it made in Gleneagles, the PMOS said in terms of Germany’s commitments and aid, that was entirely a matter for the German Government. The PMOS added that progress that has been made towards meeting the commitment, the entire point however of setting up the Africa Progress Panel was to ensure that the commitments that were entered into at Gleneagles are delivered by 2010, it is delivering them by 2010 that matters.
Asked if there was any reaction to the comments made by Kofi Annan that suggested that the Prime Minister’s actions in Iraq had damaged Britain, the PMOS said that it was surely only because of a shortage of time and breath that led the reporter to omit the fact that Kofi Annan also praised the Prime Minister, particularly for his leadership on Africa, and no doubt the reporter would put equal weight behind that. In terms of Iraq, Kofi Annan’s view on Iraq has been well known and has been well known for some time, there is no particular surprise in that.
For more information on the Africa Progress Panel, go to: http://www.africaprogresspanel.org/
Security and Terrorism and Committee
Asked if the PMOS could offer some assurances that it was a coincidence that on the same day of the first Security and Terrorism Committee there had been several arrests in counter terror raids, the PMOS, as he had said this morning, that the timing of the arrests, the decision to make the arrests was entirely an operational matter and nothing to do with Ministers or Government. Therefore it is not for the PMOS, in any way, to comment on those arrests. The timing of the meeting this morning was a matter for Government and that was set in the diary after the announcement on 29th March.
¼/p>
delicious
digg
facebook
