§ Lord Kennetasked Her Majesty's Government:
What progress has been made by the World Trade Organisation in adjusting its criteria to ensure that its decisions take proper account of the precautionary principle as regards their social and environmental effects; and, if not, whether they will seek to halt the WTO's activities until these improvements in its procedure have been affected. [HL1437]
§ Lord Simon of HighburyDiscussions are taking place in the World Trade Organisation's Committee on Trade and Environment on the relationship between multilateral environmental agreements (some of which are underpinned by the precautionary principle) and trade rules. Progress in this area will have to satisfy concerns that any trade measures in this area might be used as a cloak for protectionism.
Separately, the WTO's Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) Measures to protect human, animal and plant life or health provides a framework to ensure that such measures are soundly based. The Government fully support a precautionary approach in cases where there may be serious risk to health, and provision is already available for such an approach within the SPS Agreement (Article 5) provided that members seek to obtain the additional information necessary for a more objective assessment of risk and review the measure accordingly within a reasonable period of time.