5 September 2011
Geoffrey Clifton-Brown asks the Prime Minister about Britain's role in the reconstruction of Libya.
Geoffrey Clifton-Brown (The Cotswolds) (Con): My right hon. Friend’s actions, saving many lives in Libya, have been totally vindicated. So that the National Transitional Council is not overwhelmed with offers of help, who will take the lead in reconstruction in Libya and precisely what role will this country play?
The Prime Minister: I am very grateful to my hon. Friend for what he said. The key is building up—and my right hon. Friend the International Development Secretary has been key to this—a Libyan-led and Libyan-owned plan for transition. It is Libya’s plan—we have assisted and helped to co-ordinate, but it is the Libyans’ plan; others can then slot into it. It has been interesting to hear what they want—not always the things that one might expect. The biggest single demand made in Paris was for temporary classrooms, because so many schools had been used by Gaddafi’s forces, and for some temporary housing. We will fit into these requests, but it is a Libyan-led plan.
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Geoffrey Clifton-Brown (The Cotswolds) (Con): My right hon. Friend’s actions, saving many lives in Libya, have been totally vindicated. So that the National Transitional Council is not overwhelmed with offers of help, who will take the lead in reconstruction in Libya and precisely what role will this country play?
The Prime Minister: I am very grateful to my hon. Friend for what he said. The key is building up—and my right hon. Friend the International Development Secretary has been key to this—a Libyan-led and Libyan-owned plan for transition. It is Libya’s plan—we have assisted and helped to co-ordinate, but it is the Libyans’ plan; others can then slot into it. It has been interesting to hear what they want—not always the things that one might expect. The biggest single demand made in Paris was for temporary classrooms, because so many schools had been used by Gaddafi’s forces, and for some temporary housing. We will fit into these requests, but it is a Libyan-led plan.
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