Tony Blair to meet fair trade campaigners today

Tony Blair will meet representatives of TJM member organisations today, before the Mass Lobby of Parliament, which more than 10,000 people are expected to attend. He will be lobbied by one of his own constituents, Laura Brown, who is travelling from Sedgefield to ask him to take an international lead on making trade fair at the forthcoming EU Heads of State Summit in Spain (21-22 June), G8 Summit in Canada (26-27 June) and World Summit on Sustainable Development in South Africa (26th August- 4th September). CAFOD's Head of Campaign's Allison Marshal, said: "Tony Blair has made some bold promises about helping Africa and free trade. But free trade isn't always fair. Sometimes it pitches the weakest and most vulnerable against the strongest and most powerful. Today's lobby will show him that thousands of people in the UK think this is immoral - and want to see trade rules that put the Third World first." Laura Brown, from Sedgefield will tell the Prime Minister to wise up to the importance of changing the trade rules. She said: "I used to campaign on debt in the past. I feel very strongly that the issue of trade justice is linked to this: not only does debt need to be cancelled, but you've also got to do something about making trade work for poor people. Otherwise, you're just going to keep running into the same problems." The lobby is organised by the Trade Justice Movement (TJM), a new grouping of 50 charities, aid agencies and campaigning groups calling for fundamental changes in the rules and institutions governing international trade. The focal point of the lobby will take place at 3.30pm, when a 'Mexican Wave' of noise will pass along the queue of people waiting to meet their MPs. This will signal the beginning of the lobby, which will see MPs being taken in rickshaws to meet their constituents in the queue