Bob Geldof: A 'You Ask The Questions' Special

Do you think Live8 could have achieved more? Simon Halton, Sheffield

You can always achieve more. We asked for debt cancellation and a commitment to double aid to Africa by 2010. We got that. I had hoped they'd be prepared to discuss trade issues, but they weren't. I'd also have liked an agreement to end all trade-distorting subsidies.

The Make Poverty History campaign had been steadily making inroads until it was hijacked by you and Bono. Is it not time for celebrities to step away from such campaigns and allow real people to carry them out with less noise but longer-lasting results? John Harris, London

Yeah, you're right, I'm really sorry. I called Bono and he says that he's sorry too. Hold fast to your illusions.

Do you accept you were wrong not to allow more African acts at Live8? Nasser Hamani, Birmingham

It was a political device, not a cultural event.

When did you realise that Africa's problems were a matter of global justice, not charity? Hamid Qureshi, Bristol

Band Aid in 1985 was dealing with an emergency. The aim was to stop as many of the 30 million people dying as possible. From 1986 it was a question of tackling the underlying causes that brought them to dying in the first place. Moving the general agenda from charity to justice was a bigger matter. In 1990 Paul Vallely, in his book Bad Samaritans, wrote correctly: "For all his skill as a populist, Bob Geldof could not shift the agenda from one of charity to one of justice." Well, maybe after 20 years we have finally got there.

What is the most beautiful thing you have seen in Africa, and what was the most horrific thing? Catherine Flynn

Both the same thing: man at his most extreme is man at his most dignified. It is the dignity of man.

As an African I appreciate your dedication. But why should it take 15 years to end poverty in a country like Malawi? Chako Chii

It will take longer. You do not build a mature sustainable economic system, that will provide for people, overnight - but you can start by putting the structures in place now.

How come 30 per cent of aid money goes on admin and the rest to corrupt state leaders to buy cars and booze? Robert Miles

It doesn't.

What do you hope will happen at the G8 meeting in St Petersburg this week? Tom Wells, Southwark

That they resolve to continue to meet the targets set at Gleneagles last year - which is already the most successful G8 ever in terms of promises kept so far, according to a report yesterday by the University of Toronto's G8 research group. And that they deal seriously with the impact of oil in Africa, something particularly suited to the energy agenda of this year's G8.

In light of the difficulty in trying to keep G8 nations committed to their pledges, do you think you should focus efforts on one or two nations that could be held up as African success stories? Michael Murphy, Suffern, NY, USA

There are many African success stories: there are 30 democracies; growth is exceeding 5 per cent in 24 separate countries; there are 13 million more kids in school than there were in 2000; total Africa GDP grew by more than 5 per cent last year: double the growth in the United States. There are success stories everywhere you look in Africa, if you're not intent only on looking for the bad news.

Why weren't you at the Make Poverty History march in Edinburgh in July last year? Sarah Hadland, West Sussex

Too busy.

Are you a saint or a sinner? Charlotte Denham, Bruges

Being an atheist I can't be either.

Do you really believe the Tories have anything positive to offer on the issue of Africa and global development? Katy Evans, Cardiff

They have to. Millions of supporters of Live8 and Make Poverty History are Tory supporters and yet up to now their party has offered them no political voice. There's a grand cross-party consensus on this issue in Parliament but there is a respectable argument to be made on both the left and right of this issue. The more it is discussed the better. It's up to the opposition to generate a creative argument that pushes the Government even further in the right direction.

Were you not indeed "off your trolley" when you lavished praise on the Bush administration's approach to Africa, given that Bush's Aids initiative is tied to sexual abstinence programmes? Tim Greene, Highgate, London

No. Difficult, and uncomfortable, as it is for many to accept - and improbable as it may seem - Bush has really done a lot, in US terms, for Africa and certainly more than previous administrations. He made the commitment on debt. He has doubled aid. He's asked Congress for the money to fulfil the Gleneagles pledges - which they have refused because they are small-minded protectionists. PEPFAR (the President's Emergency Plan For Aids Relief) has been effective, injecting $15bn into the fight against Aids. That aside, his wife, who's particularly concerned about girls' education, has made several visits to Africa and both his daughters have worked in Aids clinics on the continent. Bush's approach to Africa has a lot going for it.

What you've achieved is amazing but you seem to perpetuate the misleading and ultimately unhelpful image of a white guy solving a black problem. What is that all about? Claire Smith

It's not a black issue. Poverty is colour-blind. Humans die simply because they are too poor to stay alive. What does it matter what colour they are? Or what colour are the people protesting that grotesque carnage?

Critics say your approach to African problems is simplistic often ignoring complicated local realities. What do Live8 and Gleneagles mean to a shattered community in eastern Congo? Chris Simpson, Abidjan, Ivory Coast

Try to get a copy of the Commission for Africa report. There's nothing simplistic about that. It deals specifically with the underlying structural problems that allow poverty to exist. The disease, hunger and conflict faced in eastern Congo are just the symptoms of those structural problems. Live8 and Gleneagles were simply the cultural and political expressions of the economic analysis of the Commission for Africa - a body I was proud to spend a year on my life working on, with some amazing Africans.

Your major achievement seems to have been trojan horsing capitalism as the panacea of the world's ills - Bill Gates at Live8 was particularly shameful. As someone who started his career by jumping on the punk bandwagon is this your attempt to castrate rock'n'roll as a vehicle for youth protest? John Newlands

Yes. Right on.

What should be done to stop the real cause of famine in Africa - population growth? Mary Taylor

The real cause of famine isn't population growth. Africa is chronically underpopulated, to the extent that it impedes development.

You've suggested that we should start taking holidays in Africa. Where would you recommend I go first? Jason Parkes, Worcester

I'd dip my toe in the water. Once there you'll be smitten. I'd recommend Ethiopia immediately, except that the government there has begun to put their political opponents in jail and I can't stand that. But it is sublime and vastly varied, with cool cities and decent hotels. Tanzania is gorgeous, Ghana, Kenya, Mozambique, South Africa, Namibia, Mali... don't get me started.

Did you decide to save the world when you realised your pop career was over? Carrie Buckeridge, Islington

Absolutely. What else is left after a No 1?

Should Britain apologise for its role in the slave trade? Manuel Lopez, Ealing

No.

Why can't your campaign make former colonisers such as Britain pay reparation for their looting of Africa instead of projecting Africa as a sinkhole that needs to be fixed through the "generosity" of the western world? B Bhagirathi

Forget the past, deal with the present. African economic revival requires a partnership between the North and the South. The world economy is crucially interdependent. We need to change our debt, aid and trade policies and they need to focus on governance and corruption. One won't work without the other. Read the Commission for Africa report.

You have been poor and are now very rich. Does money make you happy? Elizabeth Franks, Guildford

It makes you panic less. It allows you to look up, to lift your head from the grindstone and look a little further ahead and around. I hated being poor. It's better having some wedge. It gives you more control of your life. But money is about everything outside yourself; happiness is about everything within.

Do your daughters spend too much time putting together their outfits? Anna Snider, New York City

No, not that much. They're girls, but they're not mega-girly girls. They throw it together and look cool I think.

Who is the most inspirational person you have ever met? J Greene, Liverpool

Easy and predictable: Nelson Mandela.

What is your guilty secret? Ben Kennedy, New Jersey

I'm a fraud. I will soon be discovered.

Was it fair to give your kids the names you've given them? Dominic Steel, Nottingham

Is it fair to be a Dominic, an Ethel or an Agnes?

How do you feel about your daughter Peaches being pictured on the London social circuit the whole time? Shouldn't she be at school? Nancy Osborne, Bournemouth

She's at school. She does her homework. She has weekend and holiday jobs. She does great in her exams. She likes to be with her friends and boys and bands. Just like any kid of her age. The difference is that the press take photographs of her doing the stuff that other kids do too. Because she's my kid she gets to go to things other kids don't, and because of her surname they take her picture. I loathe that and I wish they would stop but they won't, and that's not her fault or mine. She's a fantastic girl and I'm very proud of her.

Is it not a bad example to your children and my children to swear as much as you do in public? Ben Hoffman, Greenwich

Fuck, no.

In what way did the tragic death of Paula affect your attitude to drugs and drug policies? Jennifer Peterson, Glasgow

We just miss her.

Do you believe things are getting better for estranged fathers? Adam Cecil, Cheltenham

No, the law remains a terrible reactionary sickening disgrace. But it will change.

What actions do you suggest that fathers should take to ensure that the God-given right of a child to a relationship with both parents is enforced? Rob Whitfield Reston, Virginia

Leaving God out of it, for the moment people must not give up lobbying and pushing. The social reactionaries who currently fashion the gender politics that destroys fathers will ultimately be seen to be pathetic. That will end soon.

Are more people beginning to understand that children need dads as much as moms? David L Levy, Maryland

Yes, emotionally we have always known that. But now the sociological evidence is piling up that clearly shows that this is the case.

Is life one big rat trap? Ken Simpson, Edinburgh

Yes, if you live in extreme poverty. But it's possible to get out of that trap with a little help.

Should an Irish person accept a knighthood, given Britain's history of repression in Ireland? Richard Leyland

If they feel like it. If they feel gratitude to the British for allowing them the opportunities denied to them in Ireland. If they admire the modern culture, kindness and tolerance of their adopted home. If they believe the past is another country...

There was a story in 1997 doing the rounds that you were looking to run for President of Ireland. Anything in it? Martin Green, West Indies

Forget it.

Ireland was, economically, a dismal place when you were growing up in Dublin. Do you think the Irish are happier now for all the new wealth, material gain and greed? Dan Suiter, Oxford

I think the Irish are more free, have more options and more pride. The shackles of a crushing state church have been loosened and the country breathes.

How do you actually have a conversation with Bono? You both can talk at great length... Who talks, who listens? Julie Koretz, Oxford

We talk non-stop at each other, pretending we're listening. We then feign agreement on a given strategy, and then go and do completely different things, under the false impression the other is all for it. As a result we drive each other mad. But it works. As the showbiz line goes: he's my brother, but he ain't at all heavy. He's great.

Why do you hate charity shops? F Ahmad, Coventry

Shite clothes.

If you could go back and do it all again, would you swap the past 20 years of hard work and international respect as a campaigner for five more years at the top as a rock star? Gareth Roberts, Dubai

The respect bit doesn't interest me. Playing music is the one thing I love: at the moment I'm en route to a gig in Lisbon. But the star stuff I couldn't care less about. Which is just as well, as I haven't troubled the Top 100 for a few years.

What do you consider your greatest achievement to date? Angela Elliott, Welton Le Marsh

The Gleneagles G8 result.

What is the highest moral principle of humanity, in your opinion? Olga Besler, Hove, Sussex

Do all you're capable of, without hurting anyone else.

When is the next album coming out? We have waited four years since Sex, Age and Death and are feeling a bit left out. - Irene Clayton, Edinburgh

Oh thanks, finally an excellent question. Unfortunately no-one but you and me knows what you're on about. I'll do another record when I'm ready. Something's happening now in my head, the process is starting. How long or what it is I don't know. It feels like there's something there. I'll only do it when there's something new to discover or say. No rush.

Did you actually sleep with Mary of the Fourth Form? Chris Simpson, Abidjan, Ivory Coast

No, I bloody well didn't. She still told me to bugger off when she was a gorgeous 42-year-old and I was an international bloody megastar.

I worked a party for the Boomtown Rats in the late 1970s and you were wearing pyjamas through the whole party. Were you trying to make a statement ? Don Skiba

You're confusing me with Johnny Fingers, the piano man, who always wore pyjamas. He liked them.

What are you singing at the end of 'Banana Republic'? Arr Gee

The end of the song. What is this bloke talking about?

What do you make of Jarvis Cockers new track 'Cunts are Still Running The World'? Dave & Avril Murphy, Dublin

It's a profoundly correct intellectual analysis.

Do you believe in God? Sylvie Balescu

No.

What would you have as your epitaph? Kate Mccarthy, Dublin

Hmmm. That was interesting.