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| UK pledges £5m in aid for Burma | |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| Britain has promised £5m to Burma to help the survivors of a cyclone that struck on Saturday leaving more than 22,000 dead and many more missing. | |
| International Development Secretary Douglas Alexander told BBC News it was the right response for "an extremely serious humanitarian situation". | |
| International aid agencies are pushing to gain access to the area for a massive relief operation. | International aid agencies are pushing to gain access to the area for a massive relief operation. |
| Some UK charities have already begun distributing aid packages. | |
| Save the Children aims to provide 20,000 families with food supplies, water purification kits, plastic sheeting, kitchen equipment and rehydration salts. | Save the Children aims to provide 20,000 families with food supplies, water purification kits, plastic sheeting, kitchen equipment and rehydration salts. |
| 'Largest single effort' | |
| Christian Aid launched a public appeal to raise £2m in donations, and has already sent £50,000 to its four partners carrying out relief work in the country. | |
| Meanwhile, Cornwall-based charity Shelterbox is sending 200 tents to provide shelter for 2,000 people, with another 600 expected to be sent over in the next few days. | |
| I believe nearly a million people are now in need of food aid Gordon Brown, UK prime minister | |
| Mr Alexander told BBC Radio 4's World at One programme that Britain's contribution was "the largest single effort of any member state of the United Nations so far". | |
| He also called for the Burmese government to allow the international community access to carry out assessments and provide much-needed relief. | |
| Speaking earlier at a conference in London, the prime minister offered sympathy on behalf of the British people to all those suffering as a result of the cyclone. | |
| Gordon Brown said: "I believe nearly a million people are now in need of food aid, and we will have to help the families of those where people have died. | |
| "I want to pledge on behalf of the British government that we will work with the whole international community to make sure that the food aid and the other support that is necessary is available to the people of Burma." | |
| 'Stretched to the limit' | 'Stretched to the limit' |
| Save the Children has had a presence in the military-ruled country for 13 years, making it easier for it to mobilise support than other charities. | Save the Children has had a presence in the military-ruled country for 13 years, making it easier for it to mobilise support than other charities. |
| A spokeswoman for the charity said those who lost their homes in the disaster were gathering in schools, monasteries, churches and mosques and there were concerns over soaring food and fuel prices. | A spokeswoman for the charity said those who lost their homes in the disaster were gathering in schools, monasteries, churches and mosques and there were concerns over soaring food and fuel prices. |
| They're seeing scrambles over people trying to access water, nails, even candles Dan Collinson, programme manager for Save the Children | |
| Dan Collinson, programme manager for Save the Children in South East Asia, said his relief teams had already reported that resources were stretched to the limit. | Dan Collinson, programme manager for Save the Children in South East Asia, said his relief teams had already reported that resources were stretched to the limit. |
| "People living in shelters, over 1,000 people per shelter, these are sheltering in pagodas and schools and churches, they're seeing scrambles over people trying to access water, nails, even candles are just disappearing off the market very, very quickly." | "People living in shelters, over 1,000 people per shelter, these are sheltering in pagodas and schools and churches, they're seeing scrambles over people trying to access water, nails, even candles are just disappearing off the market very, very quickly." |
| Shelterbox said 200 boxes which include a 10-man tent, blankets and water carriers were on their way to the country. | Shelterbox said 200 boxes which include a 10-man tent, blankets and water carriers were on their way to the country. |
| Tom Henderson, the charity's chief executive, said a team of four workers were flying out on Tuesday to distribute the packages and he was confident they would be allowed access. | Tom Henderson, the charity's chief executive, said a team of four workers were flying out on Tuesday to distribute the packages and he was confident they would be allowed access. |
| "We have operated in North Korea and Lebanon and are well used to working hard to get this done," he said. | "We have operated in North Korea and Lebanon and are well used to working hard to get this done," he said. |
| Christian Aid's four local partners say shelter, food, and clean water are urgently needed. | |
| The charity's Asia specialist, Anjali Kwatra, said it had been difficult to get information from the ground. | |
| But one handwritten letter taken into Thailand revealed salt water had been contaminating fresh water wells and a lot of military were on the streets of Rangoon trying to organise relief work, she said. | |
| Oxfam said it was currently assessing the situation. |