Britain pledges cash for Commonwealth education

Jamaican PM urges May to resolve crisis facing migrants who arrived in London 50 years ago

British Prime Minister Theresa May pledged cash to help improve children’s education in the Commonwealth and call for a commitment from fellow leaders to tackle malaria yesterday.

May’s government is looking to reinvigorate the Commonwealth, a 53-country network of mostly former British colonies, as it seeks to define its post-Brexit role in the world as a leader of free trade and active global citizen.

“We need to show the world what the Commonwealth is capable of,” she said.

May committed £212 million (Dh1.1 billion) to try to make sure children living in developing Commonwealth countries receive 12 years of quality education.

“I want this to be the summit where the Commonwealth agrees to make that the goal for all our members and begins to put in place the concrete measures that will allow it to become a reality,” she said.

May spoke alongside Microsoft co-founder and philanthropist Bill Gates, also touching on the need to reduce malaria deaths, saying around 90 percent of Commonwealth citizens live in countries where the disease is endemic.

Britain is already committed to spending half a billion pounds per year on tackling malaria, and may will urge fellow leaders to target a halving of malaria rates by 2023.

“We cannot in good conscience, talk about the young

May also touched on the need to reduce malaria deaths, saying around 90 per cent of Commonwealth citizens live in countries where the disease is endemic.

people of the world, about securing a legacy for our children and grandchildren, without tackling a disease that, worldwide, kills one of them every two minutes,” she said.

Anti-gay legislation

May also said she regretted Britain’s role in anti-gay legislation across its former colonies, seeking to address criticism of the Commonwealth at its gathering in London.

“I am all too aware that these laws were often put in place by my own country. They were wrong then and they are wrong now,” May said.

“As the United Kingdom’s Prime Minister I deeply regret both the fact that such laws were introduced and the legacy of discrimination, violence and even death that persists today.” London’s hosting of the summit has also been clouded by an official admission that the British government had treated migrants who arrived from Caribbean countries more than 50 years ago in an “appalling” way by incorrectly identifying them as illegal immigrants.

Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness drew loud cheers from the audience as he urged May to speedily respond to the issue. “It is only fair,” he said. “It will lead to security, certainly for those who have been affected, and it is the kind of inclusive prosperity for which we stand as Commonwealth peoples.”