Dear fairtraders,

Dfid is awarding £750,000 to the fairtrade foundation over three
years to support it's work with fairtrade. There is also now a new
EDM which reads as follows, please ask Tony McWalter to sign it.

EDM 797
NATIONAL FAIRTRADE FORTNIGHT 28.02.05
Lazarowicz/Mark
That this House welcomes the beginning of Fairtrade Fortnight on 1st
March; recognises that the Fairtrade mark is the only independent
guarantee of a fair deal for farmers in developing countries; notes
the difference which can be made to producers in the developing world
when towns and cities across the UK achieve Fairtrade status;
welcomes the news that by the end of Fairtrade Fortnight 100 towns
and cities across the UK will have reached Fairtrade status and that
over 220 further towns and cities are actively running Fairtrade
campaigns; welcomes the Department for International Development's
support for the Fairtrade Foundation in the UK; and calls on the
Government to continue to raise awareness and actively encourage
schools, local authorities and retailers to adopt fair trade
principles.