Day 292 - 01 Nov 96 - Page 31


     
     1        once for pollution incidents.
     2
     3        So to some extent, we don't know how far, the Tidy Britain
     4        Group was dependent on funding from the very organisations
     5        that were contributing to pollution problems and environment/index.html">litter
     6        problems.  We cannot speculate on the motives of Coca-Cola
     7        and Shell for sponsoring Tidy Britain Group, but we can
     8        speculate on McDonald's motives through an analysis of the
     9        evidence.  I wish I could find that quote actually, about
    10        wanting to be seen to be part of the solution rather than
    11        part of the problem.
    12
    13   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  You mentioned that before.  That is just
    14        typical of something which could go on a list of things and
    15        be given to me in due course.  If you do give me a list,
    16        just give me a little key so it jogs my memory as to what
    17        it came in on.  Not so much this, but any other matters you
    18        do.  Can you just put this down: 34.16.  It is my own
    19        notebook reference.  I would have had even more notebooks
    20        than 34 if it had not been that I was relying on CaseView
    21        for the first several weeks of this trial.  Carry on.
    22
    23   MR. MORRIS:   Sorry, I don't actually understand 34.16.
    24
    25   MR. JUSTICE BELL:   It is page 16 of notebook 34.
    26
    27   MR. MORRIS:   Right, and that quote relates to that?
    28
    29   MR. JUSTICE BELL:   That is your being seen as helpful, helping
    30        rather than hindering.
    31
    32   MR. MORRIS:   Right.
    33
    34   MR. JUSTICE BELL:   Yes.
    35
    36   MR. MORRIS:   It does puzzle me, that one.  I seem to remember
    37        it was an internal McDonald's document.
    38
    39        Professor Ashworth admitted, or told the court, that the
    40        Tidy Britain Group had changed its name from the Keep
    41        Britain Tidy Group after, quote, it had been apparent,
    42        unquote, in the late 1970s and early 1980s that Britain was
    43        no longer tidy.  It was, he said, quote, strange to have an
    44        organisation talking about keeping a situation that did not
    45        exist, unquote.
    46
    47        He also accepted, or admitted, that, quote, the rise of the
    48        fast food business, unquote, was, quote, certainly a
    49        factor, unquote, in that process.  And of course we note
    50        that McDonald's was launched in the mid 1970s in this
    51        country.  He said that it was part of a great increase in
    52        packaging in general.
    53
    54        We would say McDonald's bears a collective responsibility
    55        with the rest of the fast food take-out sector, on top of
    56        their specific responsibility, and we have to recognise
    57        McDonald's position as a pioneering company who others
    58        would aim to follow who would want to make similar levels
    59        of profits and have a similar amount of influence.  And
    60        McDonald's knows that.  And there are any number of levels

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