Cameron At Summit: Corruption Is 'A Cancer'

Prime Minister David Cameron has warned that corruption is "a cancer" at the heart of many of the world's problems.

Speaking as he opened a two-day anti-corruption summit in London, Mr Cameron said: "If we want to see countries escape poverty and become wealthy, we need to tackle corruption.

"If we want countries that have great natural resources to make sure that they can use those for the benefit of their people, we need to tackle corruption.

"If we want to defeat terrorism and extremism, we have to recognise that corruption and lack of access to justice can often be the way that people are driven towards extremism."

Oxfam GB chief executive Mark Goldring said the summit had "shone a welcome light on the problem of corruption".

But he added: "If corruption is a cancer, then this summit has delivered some pain relief but not the major surgery needed to heal the global economy."

US Secretary of State John Kerry, who is among those attending the summit, congratulated the Prime Minister on his "courage", adding: "There are sceptics, not just in the audience but in the world, who wonder whether or not this is a passing fancy ... or whether it is a serious commitment.

"I hope and believe something different is happening.

"We are fighting a battle - all of us - for our states, for our countries ... corruption is as much of an enemy - because it destroys nation states - as some of the extremist groups."

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Around 50 countries are attending the summit, which is being held at Lancaster House in London and is being attended by presidents and prime ministers from across the world.

But despite a session on the agenda on corruption in sport, football's world governing body FIFA, rocked by financial scandals, has been snubbed, although the International Olympic Committee, grappling with a drugs crisis in athletics, is taking part.

Britain is creating an international anti-corruption co-ordination centre in London with support from the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Switzerland and Interpol, which will work across borders to investigate corruption and recover stolen assets.

Overseas firms will also have to sign up to a new public register if they own or buy property or want to bid for central government contracts in a move aimed at stopping money being laundered using London's property market.

Sky News Senior Correspondent Jonathan Samuels said: "Six countries, including the UK, have said they'll establish registers of true company ownership and make the registers public.

"Six more have said they will consider doing the same. Forty other countries and jurisdictions will share registers but not in the public domain."

Mr Cameron's position as host of the two-day summit was made more awkward after he was caught on camera branding two participating states - Nigeria and Afghanistan - as "fantastically corrupt".