§ Phil SawfordTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development what her priorities are in respect of the forthcoming CATS talks. [66559]
§ Clare ShortThe current negotiations on the GATS offer developing countries the potential to gain access to new markets overseas and to benefit from more efficient and competitive services at home. One of my key priorities for the GATS talks is to ensure that developing countries are able to participate fully in the negotiations. To this end, my Department is working with the UN Conference for Trade and Development (UNCTAD) on a £350,000 project to strengthen developing country involvement in the services negotiations in Geneva. We are also working with other donors and international organisations to find the best way of providing technical assistance to developing countries to carry out an impact assessment of the requests made of them.
More generally, my officials are working closely with the Department for Trade and Industry (DTI) and other Government Departments to ensure that UK and EC policy on trade in services takes development considerations into account. In the recently agreed EC requests of other WTO Members, for example, requests to least developed countries have been mainly limited to 3–5 sectors, with a focus on sectors where liberalisation is most likely to contribute to development. The requests also make clear that the EC recognises the importance of liberalisation being underpinned by domestic regulatory frameworks designed to ensure the achievement of public policy objectives.