CHRISTIAN Aid has cautioned against making an increase in UK aid to Pakistan dependent on reforms to the country's tax system. The idea was suggested in a report by MPs, published last week.

The International Development Select Committee published a report on Thursday of last week urging the British Government to "raise the issues of corruption and tax evasion [in Pakistan] at the highest levels".

It said that corruption was "rife" in Pakistan, and the richest did "not pay taxes and exhibit little interest in improving conditions and opportunities for Pakistan's poor".

The report recommended that any increase in aid to Pakistan "be conditional on Pakistan increasing its tax collection and widening the tax base. We cannot expect the people in the UK to pay taxes to improve education and health in Pakistan if the Pakistan élite is not paying income tax."

The UK Government plans to double the amount of aid it gives to Pakistan from £267 million in 2012-13 to £446 million in 2014-15. It will make Pakistan the largest recipient of aid from the UK.

Responding to the report, Christian Aid's senior UK political adviser, Barry Johnston, said that making increases in aid dependent on tax reform "could be extremely damaging, when Pakistan suffers more devastating floods or faces another earthquake".

Christian Aid said in a statement that the UK Government should instead "use aid and technical assist-ance to help and encourage Pakistan to build a much fairer and stronger tax system. This means supporting the Pakistani government to improve its tax capacity.

"The UK should also help to break down the global financial secrecy that currently does so much to help Pakistan's wealthy tax-evaders. In addition, it should help the country to obtain information on the accounts held by its citizens in Britain and in other tax havens around the world."

A spokesman for the Department for International Development said: "The UK Government is clear that UK development assistance in Pakistan is predicated on a commitment to economic and tax reform and to helping lift the poorest out of poverty.

"We have made it clear to government and opposition politicians in Pakistan that it is not sustainable for British taxpayers to fund development spend if Pakistan is not building up its own stable tax take."

In February, Christian Aid expressed concern at the Prime Minister's suggestion that the Government's aid budget should be used to fund peacekeeping operations ( Online News, 22 February). It said that linking aid-spending with military spending would pose risks to aid workers.

Christian Aid was one of a number of charities to submit evidence to the International Development Select Committee when it was preparing its report.

A PAKISTANI Christian who had been sentenced to death for blas­phemy was freed on Wednesday after more than seven years in prison, writes Ed Thornton.

Younis Masih, who is a father of four, was released after a successful appeal in the High Court in Lahore, Release International, which cam­paigns on behalf of persecuted Chris­tians, said in a statement.

Mr Masih had been in prison since November 2005, and was sentenced to death for blasphemy in May 2007. He was first accused of blasphemy after he complained about noise levels at an Islamic religious ceremony that took
place late at night in the neighbour­hood in which he lived in Punjab. 

The chief executive of Release International, Paul Robinson, said: "We hope this sets a precedent for other victims of Pakistan's notor­i-ous blasphemy laws, who should now be released. We were encour­aged by the judges' decision to throw out a case against Rimsha Masih - no relation - last year, fol­lowing an international outcry" (News, 23 November).

"Release commends the bravery of High Court judges in Lahore today who released Younis, despite intense pressure from Muslim hard­liners who filled earlier court hear­ings, apparently trying to intimidate the judges."