Countdown to Fairtrade as TV presenter gives his backing
COUNTDOWN presenter Nick Hewer was special guest at a parliamentary party to mark Fairtrade Fortnight.
The reception at the Palace of Westminster was also attended by Barwell Fairtrade campaigner Mathew Hulbert, who is chairman of Hinckley and Bosworth Fairtrade Forum and the East Midlands Representative on the Fairtrade Foundation’s National Campaigner Committee (NCC).
Mr Hewer, a one-time adviser to Lord Sugar on the BBC One show The Apprentice, was there to show his support for the cause.
The event was hosted by the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Fairtrade.
APPG co-chairmen Holly Lynch MP and Will Quince MP addressed the gathering, along with the Minister at the Department for International Development (DfID) Lord Bates.
Fairtrade producer John Joseph, who runs a coffee and spices co-operative in Kerala, India, also spoke, as did representatives from Fairtrade-supporting retailers Greggs and the Co-Op.
Mr Hulbert said: “It was an honour to represent Hinckley and Bosworth and the wider region at this prestigious event.
“We don’t always realise it, but we have tremendous power as consumers, in how we shop and what we buy.
“We can either choose to feed exploitation or, by buying Fairtrade products, ensure that developing world farmers get paid a fairer wage and get better infrastructure for their communities.”