WTO Conference (Doha) (Hansard, 19 November 2001)

§ Annabelle Ewing
To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what discussions she has had with the Scottish Executive with respect to the preparation of the position of the UK Delegation to the 4 World Trade Organisation Ministerial Conference in November in Doha. [15064]

§ Ms Hewitt
[holding answer 15 November 2001]: Regulation of international trade is a reserved matter under the Scotland Act 1998. The Scottish Executive receive invitations to the Whitehall-wide Trade Policy Group, and through this process of information exchange and consultation, the Scottish Executive are involved in trade policy.
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§ Annabelle Ewing
To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if a representative of the Scottish Executive formed part of the UK Delegation to the fourth World Trade Organisation Ministerial Conference in November in Doha. [15065]

§ Ms Hewitt
[holding answer 15 November 2001]: Regulation of international trade is a reserved matter under the Scotland Act 1998. and there was no representative of the Scottish Executive in the delegation. The DTI is in discussion with the Scottish Executive on a number of issues in line with the agreed Memorandum of Understanding and Concordats.

§ Mr. Ruffley
To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps she is taking at the WTO Ministerial meeting in Doha to meet the concerns of the least developed countries. [14408]

§ Ms Hewitt
[holding answer 13 November 2001]: I refer to my Statement to the House on 15 November, reporting on the successful outcome of the WTO Ministerial Conference in Doha.
As well as launching a development-focused trade round, which we believe offers the best route for the developing world to escape from poverty, the Doha Development Agenda includes a number of measures specifically focused on developing countries, with particular extra benefits in some areas for the least developed countries.
The WTO Ministerial Conference also agreed a Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement and Public Health, which clarifies the action that WTO members can take to secure access to essential medicines during public health crises, and a Decision on Implementation-related Issues and Concerns, which contains many provisions specifically intended to benefit least developed countries.