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Why is our council tax supporting arms firms?
• AS a resident of Islington, a borough that claims to have a sustainable community strategy that it wants to achieve in “an environmentally sustainable way”, I was dismayed to discover that the Islington Pension Fund holds in the region of £1,883,000 investments in arms company BAE Systems.
This company is said to have put pressure on the UK government, in collusion with the Saudi Arabians, to close down the Serious Fraud Office investigation into its Al-Yamamah arms deal.
The company’s deals with several countries (Chile, Qatar, Tanzania, Romania, Czech Republic, South Africa) are under investigation and a recent judicial review involved claims that it has made payments of £1 billion to a Saudi Prince as “commission” on an arms deal.
I am shocked that money from our council tax payments is used to support this and other arms companies (more than £3 million total investments in arms companies) despite the indiscriminate nature of their deadly business.
Islington boasts a proud history of celebrating diversity yet its investments support companies whose business fuels conflict in areas that Islington residents have fled. How can this be defended?
Islington should set standards that the rest of London can follow by divesting from this killing trade and putting the money into ethical investments instead. I urge other residents to contact the chairman of the pension fund, Councillor Andrew Cornell (andrew.cornell@islington.gov.uk) to demand divestment.
ROBIN YU
Address supplied
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