World Trade Organisation

HC Deb 20 December 1999 vol 341 c378W

Mr. Dawson

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what measures he will urge the World Trade Organisation to adopt in respect of environment and labour standards in order to ensure that free trade is fair and sustainable. [103099]

Mr. Caborn

Although the recent WTO meeting in Seattle did not launch a new round of trade negotiations, the UK, alongside its EU partners, will continue to press for negotiations to clarify the relationship between Multilateral Environmental Agreements and WTO rules; to clarify the rules on environmental labelling; and to examine the scope for taking into account the precautionary principle in WTO rules in relation to environmental risks. The UK will continue to press for a joint forum of the ILO and WTO to consider trade, globalisation and labour issues.