§ Mr. MacShaneTo ask the President of the Board of Trade what representations he proposes to make about child labour at the forthcoming World Trade Organisation conference in Singapore. [7010]
§ Mr. NelsonI will strongly support calls to encourage the International Labour Organisation in its efforts to promote the elimination of exploitative child labour worldwide.
§ Mr. MacShaneTo ask the President of the Board of Trade what steps he is taking to ensure that goods imported into the United Kingdom are not produced by child labour. [7182]
§ Mr. NelsonThe Government are as strongly opposed to the exploitation of child labour as anyone, but we believe that import restrictions and other trade measures are not the way to deal with social issues.
§ Mr. MacShaneTo ask the President of the Board of Trade what representations he has made to European Union member states about European Union policy on child labour at the World Trade Organisation interministerial conference in Singapore. [7008]
§ Mr. NelsonWe have made it clear to our European partners that we do not support the inclusion of trade and labour standards in the work programme of the World Trade Organisation or the establishment of a WTO working party on the issue, and the Council of Ministers has agreed to promote the primacy of the International Labour Organisation in this area.