§ 8. Mr. Phil Hope (Corby)What measures her Department is taking (a) bilaterally and (b) through multilateral organisations to support trade capacity building in the poorest countries. [95587]
§ 9. Mrs. Sylvia Heal (Halesowen and Rowley Regis)If she will make a statement on the actions her Department is taking to support trade capacity building in developing countries. [95588]
§ 10. Mr. Tony Colman (Putney)If she will make a statement on the World Trade Organisation Seattle development round negotiations. [95589]
§ The Secretary of State for International Development (Clare Short)We are working both bilaterally and with a wide range of international organisations to help build the capacity of developing countries to participate effectively in the international trading system. A full list of the work that we are supporting has been placed in the Library of the House.
It is not widely appreciated that three quarters of the members of the World Trade Organisation are developing countries. That means that they are in a position to make great gains and improve their development prospects in the next trade round. It also means that agreement in the next round is dependent on their support. We have, over the past two years, provided £10 million to support training on the negotiating capacity of developing countries and their ability to make use of trade opportunities. We are also working to encourage the EU, the World bank and other agencies to provide further support.
§ Mr. HopeI thank the Secretary of State for that answer. I recently visited Vietnam and saw at first hand—[Interruption.]
§ Madam SpeakerOrder. The House must come to order. I cannot hear what hon. Members are saying; it is very disruptive.
§ Mr. HopeThank you, Madam Speaker. I recently visited Vietnam and saw at first hand the excellent poverty reduction work that is funded by DFID. Vietnam has applied to join the World Trade Organisation, but is not yet a member. Many developing countries that are members of the WTO are not getting a fair deal from that organisation. Will the Secretary of State take action to ensure that countries such as Vietnam and other WTO member states get a fair deal and are better able to participate in the system for resolving world trade disputes?
§ Clare ShortI am grateful to my hon. Friend. I am absolutely convinced that a membership-based, rules-based organisation—which is what the WTO now is—gives developing countries the chance to secure better rights in the international trading system. However, we are concerned that some countries are reluctant to use the rules to exercise their rights because they fear the costs involved. Therefore, we have joined other countries in establishing a legal advisory centre, which will be launched in Seattle. It will make it easier for developing countries to exercise their rights under the rules-based system.
§ Madam SpeakerOrder. I cannot hear the hon. Lady.
§ Mrs. HealIn thanking my right hon. Friend for her answer, I draw her attention to the disappointment felt by 284 many developing countries at the outcome of the Uruguay round. What realistic expectations can they have for the new round?
§ Clare ShortMy hon. Friend is absolutely right: it is alleged that developing countries did not make gains from the Uruguay round. However, the World bank and others conducted a thorough study which found that developing countries' gains were at least as good as—and, in proportion to income, better than—those of the industrialised countries. That is not to say that the developing countries cannot make greater gains, but it is not true that they did not benefit from the last round. It is important that everyone understands that developing countries can gain more from a comprehensive round, which is the position that we should support.
§ Mr. ColmanGiven the failure of negotiations on the multilateral agreement on investment at the OECD, does my right hon. Friend agree that it would be sensible to restart investment negotiations at the World Trade Organisation, with proper safeguards for core labour standards, environmental protection and good governance? If she agrees, will she take that agenda to UNCTAD 10 in Thailand in February in order to ensure consensus among the United Nations community?
§ Clare ShortI agree that the poorest developing countries need massive inward investment that will provide infrastructure and access to modern technology and knowledge. The World Trade Organisation is the right place to negotiate an international investment agreement that will bring benefits to developing countries. The EU believes that such an agreement should be included in the next round, and we support both securing agreement in Seattle and assisting developing countries in fighting their corner.
§ Mr. John Wilkinson (Ruislip-Northwood)Is it not the case that the illegal distortions to world trade that are inherent in the protectionist regime of the European Union—particularly with regard to bananas, to which the Minister referred earlier—are causing severe impoverishment in third world countries? Is the World Trade Organisation not entitled to ask the European Union to put its own house in order? For example, there has been severe disruption on the streets of Ecuador, a third world banana producer, which is so severely in debt that it has been forced to renege on its obligations.
§ Clare ShortI assure the hon. Gentleman that talks on bananas are continuing and we are hopeful that we will secure an agreement that will be WTO compatible and will guard the interests of the banana-producing Caribbean countries, in particular. I hope that we are on the brink of settling that long-running, unhelpful dispute.
I completely agree with the hon. Gentleman that the European Union's highly protective, highly subsidised agriculture is not good for consumers in Europe and is a barrier to trading opportunities for developing countries that have their natural advantage in agriculture production. We strongly support the consideration of agriculture as a major issue in the next trade round, and we hope to dismantle some of that protectionism.