Today's Government White Paper on international trade and investment will allow UK business to continue to ignore their social and environmental responsibilities, according to the CORE Coalition - a group of NGOs campaigning to make companies legally responsible for their CSR.

CORE, which includes Friends of the Earth, Christian Aid, Amnesty International and WWF, argues the White Paper ignores public opinion about the need for a legal framework for CSR and is promoting bad business behaviour by allowing companies to take a voluntary approach to Corporate Social Responsibility, while at the same time putting a legal framework in place for international trade and investment.

The White Paper argues that binding international laws to govern the behaviour of multinational companies is not a "feasible" option, despite calls by NGOs, trade unions, and constituents from the UK and abroad, that this is the only realistic way forward.

The Corporate Responsibility (CORE) Coalition believes the Government has missed an opportunity to provide leadership and innovation on an issue important to the voting public.

Friends of the Earth Parliamentary Campaigner, Tricia Phelan, said:

"The Government is out of step with the voting public. People want companies to contribute to the community and environment they operate in and the Government needs to make this happen. The Government's excuse for not backing a binding international legal CSR framework due to `economic, legal and cultural' differences is nonsensical - it is already happening successfully in the financial world and is equally important in the area of CSR."

The White Paper says an internationally legally binding framework should apply for trade and investment in terms of access to markets and trade rights - including giving the right of redress when an ability to do business is denied by sovereign nation states - yet people and the environment are not being given the same legal protection.

In May, 26 leading organisations sent a letter to the DTI, boycotting the Government's consultation on a CSR framework, because of it's refusal to consider binding CSR legislation [1]. This new White Paper concludes that `the right way forward' is to work with interested parties such as NGOs, yet the CORE coalition, which was among the 26 signatories [1] has still yet to receive a response.

Deborah Doane, Chair of the CORE Coalition, said:

"What we're asking for is that trade be accompanied by progressive rules to ensure that human rights, labour or environmental standards aren't compromised in the interests of profits. Yet this government seems to ignore anything that will help protect the public interest, when it comes to business."

Notes

[1] Signatories to the letter were:

Action Aid, Amnesty International UK, CAFOD, Centre for Corporate Accountability, Christian Aid, CORE Coalition, Environmental Justice Foundation, Friends of the Earth England, Wales and Northern Ireland, Friends of the Earth Scotland, Global Witness, Green Alliance, Greenpeace UK, IFAW, International Alert, International Institute for Environment and Development, National Federation of Women's Institutes, New Economics Foundation, Oxfam, People & Planet, Save the Children, SustainAbility Ltd, The Greens, Tourism Concern, Traidcraft, World Development Movement, WWF.