§ Mr. StreeterTo ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make a statement on the role of her Department in the(a) previous and (b) forthcoming rounds of World Trade Organisation talks. [56542]
§ Clare Short(a) As the Overseas Development Administration, the Department played a minimal role in previous trade talks—the Uruguay Round—though it kept a watching brief on implications for developing countries.
(b) As we made clear in the White Paper, this Government support an open, fair and sustainable multilateral trading system for the benefit of all countries. The second WTO Ministerial meeting in May 1998 established a preparatory process for a prospective trade round. My officials are actively working within Whitehall and Brussels to ensure that prospective talks take due account of development concerns. At the same time, we are working with multilateral agencies to enhance the capacity of developing countries to articulate and negotiate their own trade interests.
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