Primark urges factory pay-outs

New UK support of £4.8 million will go towards the International Labour Organisation's ‘Improving the Working Conditions in the Ready Made Garment sector in Bangladesh’ programme to improve fire safety and protect workers.

International Development Secretary Justine Greening said:

“April’s factory collapse took a dreadful toll on people in Bangladesh and galvanised much-needed action on safety. Six months on, this UK action will help the Government of Bangladesh, employers and manufacturers make improvements on safety and conditions.

“But there is still a long way to go. Everyone needs to continue to work together to maintain momentum and prevent future tragedies.”

Read: Primark urges factory pay-outs

Primark has shown ITV News details of its strategy to track down the 550 workers who were employed by its subcontractor in the Rana Plaza factory in Bangladesh.

The challenge is made harder by the fact that many of the workers and their dependants have left Dhaka and are spread the "length and breadth of Bangladesh," senior executive Paul Lister said.

Read: Primark says it's time rivals also pay Bangladesh factory victims

Primark, working with the University of Dhaka, has devised a scheme whereby students will travel out to each of the victims in order to assess their level of need.

This data will be entered into touch tablets, which contain software to calculate the level of compensation they can expect.

Read: What happens next in Bangladesh is partly up to us

High-end retailers are sourcing garments from the same factories in Bangladesh as Primark but are charging a higher price, one of the company's senior executives, told ITV News.

Paul Lister said: "If you look at who is sourcing out of Bangladesh, you'll see that clearly Primark sources out of Bangladesh, but actually next door to Primark in any given factory could be a Bond Street retailer, sourcing exactly the same sort of garment, sourcing a T-shirt.

"So ours at Primark would be £5 on our shelf, it could be £60 for the Bond Street retailer, in the same factory, with the same conditions, the same workforce, the same pay, as the £5 Primark T-shirt."

Senior Primark executive Paul Lister has told Business Editor Laura Kuenssberg that the company regularly makes unannounced checks on the 88 factories it uses in Bangladesh in a bid to improve safety standards.

A senior Primark executive, Paul Lister, has told ITV News that it was time for their "competitors to step up to the plate" and compensate victims of the Rana Plaza disaster in Bangladesh