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Editorial
- Who will be the champion of a world free from leaded petrol?
by Elizabeth
O’Brien and Anne Roberts
Ivan Glasenberg |
Ivan
Glasenberg, Australia’s 2nd-most wealthy citizen, resident of
Switzerland, CEO of Xstrata, whose Mt Isa Queensland lead mine
supplies the UK’s smelter with lead that is sold to Innospec,
maker of the lead-petrol additive?
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| David Cameron,
Prime Minister of the UK, who could ban the manufacture and export
of the lead additive for petrol, banned in the UK for nearly 10
years? |
David Cameron
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Julia Gillard |
Julia Gillard,
Prime Minister of Australia, who could declare a moratorium on lead
exports destined for the UK and being made into lead petrol additive
by Innospec? |
| Barack
Obama, President of the USA, by demanding an end to the sale of
lead additive for petrol? The US was the first to begin phasing out
leaded petrol – in 1972. The US has prosecuted Innospec – a US
corporation – for bribery which had resulted in lead petrol being
sold in Iraq, and also in Indonesia - where it is officially banned.
Obama has the power to direct the US Securities and Exchange
Commission (SEC) to demand that Innospec cease selling the lead
additive for road use and take back all stocks.
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Barack Obama |
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Micheline Calmy-Rey
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Micheline
Calmy-Rey, President of Switzerland? The Swiss company
Alcor, a
wholly owned subsidiary of Innospec, was involved in bribing
officials in Iraq and Indonesia in order to sell leaded petrol
beyond the phase-out date in those countries. The Swiss company
Xstrata mines the lead and owns the smelting company that smelts all
the lead that is later manufactured into the lead additive for
leaded petrol. Surely a President can require better stewardship
from companies incorporated in her country? |
| Patrick
Williams, Innospec’s CEO, who has the power to re-write the
Tetra-ethyl lead (TEL) supply policy of Innospec’s Stewardship
programme? In order to champion corporate stewardship, the policy
would need to state that TEL will no longer be manufactured or
exported and that all stocks currently overseas will be bought back
and safely managed by the company. |
Patrick Williams
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