I was appalled to hear that the Government is backing plans for the sale of a £28m air defence system, made by British Aerospace which has a local presence, to Tanzania, one of the world's poorest countries.

Tanzania is a country where one in four children die before they reach the age of five and half the population has no access to water. Even the World Bank has said that this deal is not what the people of Tanzania need. Having visited last year and toured the country I know this is not what they need but more importantly the people of Tanzania know this is not what they need.

We need to stop selling weapons to governments who put military spending before the basic needs of its people, such as education and health.

The UK arms export bill needs toughening up, so that deals like this do not continue to undermine the fight against poverty.

Kieran Battles

King William Street, Swindon