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Mr. Harry Cohen (Leyton): Although I support the removal of barriers to world trade, does the Foreign Secretary agree that one of the biggest barriers is corruption, which is devouring such countries as Nigeria, Pakistan and Zaire? What proposals do the Government have to tackle corruption? For example, how will they deal with the Swiss banks that are holding the £5 billion that President Mobuto stole from the people of Zaire? Do they propose to implement the OECD recommendation that countries should not give tax relief on commissions or other bribes to foreign dictators? What do the Government intend to do about corruption?
Mr. Rifkind: The hon. Gentleman refers to important matters, but they are not relevant in the context of developing global free trade. I entirely endorse the view that any steps that can be taken to limit the effects of corruption must deserve our support.
Sir Mark Lennox-Boyd (Morecambe and Lunesdale): Does my right hon. and learned Friend agree that a successful, enterprising and adventurous economy such as Britain should follow the example of other adventurous economies and avoid any restrictions on employment laws as advocated by the Labour party? Will he remind the Labour party that we are against the social chapter and the minimum wage not because we do not want high standards of living, but because we know that that is not the way to achieve them?
Mr. Rifkind: Yes, and it is not simply doctrine on our part; it is reflected in the unemployment effects. The fact that unemployment in Britain has been falling for several years while that elsewhere in western Europe has been between 10 per cent. and 25 per cent. and rising must have something to do with the different approach to employment legislation and the additional burdens placed on the wealth creators in those countries.
Mr. Bernie Grant (Tottenham): I would have been more impressed had the White Paper been about fair trade rather than free trade. What is the Government's current stance in respect of the eastern Caribbean banana-producing countries? The Foreign Secretary will know that the Americans and the dollar banana countries have taken the European Union to the World Trade Organisation for what they consider to be the anti-competitive position of the European Union. Has the Government's position changed as a result of that statement?
Mr. Rifkind: As it happens, I saw the Prime Minister of Jamaica this morning and he welcomed the support given by the United Kingdom in the very matter to which the hon. Gentleman refers. The United Kingdom is well aware of the sensitivity to the exports of that product of the small island economies to which it is a highly important source of foreign exchange. We recognise the importance of those matters and therefore support the views of the Caribbean countries.
Mr. David Howell (Guildford): Does my right hon. and learned Friend agree that the White Paper is a
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reminder that the wider world is just as important to Britain's interests and prosperity in the future as western Europe--perhaps even more so, as the great emerging markets develop and become the markets of the future? Does he agree that several steps are highlighted by the White Paper? First, as my right hon. Friend the Member for Westmorland and Lonsdale (Mr. Jopling) mentioned, we should concentrate much more, in terms of both policy and resources, on developing the Commonwealth network of the great markets of south-east Asia and Africa and putting some effort behind that endeavour. Secondly, we should develop those agencies that encourage the investment and the knowledge-intensive exports from Britain that will be the pattern of the future and make them receptive and friendly to British commerce--I refer to agencies such as the BBC World Service and the British Council.
Thirdly, will my right hon. and learned Friend consider the need to put still more resources into the commercial elements of our diplomatic posts, which can develop those markets in the Commonwealth and Latin America? Finally, will he make sure that his colleagues in the Treasury read the White Paper as carefully as his colleagues in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Department of Trade and Industry?
Mr. Rifkind:
On the final part of my right hon. Friend's question, my right hon. and learned Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer played an important part in the drafting of the document and will, I am sure, welcome my right hon. Friend's observations. I agree that many of the United Kingdom's most important markets in years to come will be in other parts of the world. Western Europe remains important, but it is interesting that the growth of imports--and, therefore, demand for our exports--in western Europe has been only 4.5 per cent. over the past five years, whereas it has been 10 per cent. in Asia and 11.5 per cent. in Latin America. We must be more aware than we have been in the past of the crucial importance of south-east Asia, Latin America and other regions as potential markets for significant and substantial export growth.
Mr. Andrew Faulds (Warley, East):
What does this beautifully delivered, futuristic guff about free trade actually mean for the economies of the under-developed world throughout the whole of the universe?
Mr. Rifkind:
No one would be other than pleased to be given the compliment of having presented a White Paper that can be described in the terms used by the hon. Gentleman. For the developing world, the crucial importance of this document is that developing countries need access for their exports, which means the removal of trade barriers. The third-world countries that have made the most remarkable economic progress in the past 10 years are the countries of south-east Asia and Latin America. It is no coincidence that those are the countries that have done most to sweep away barriers to trade and over-bureaucratisation of their economies and have endorsed and welcomed a capitalist economy in a way that we have long encouraged. The fact that, as a consequence, they are moving out of the third world into the developed world should be an exhortation to all other countries.
Sir Teddy Taylor (Southend, East):
Does the Secretary of State agree that this superb and uplifting policy should
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Mr. Rifkind:
Without necessarily endorsing all my hon. Friend's rhetoric, I say that global free trade means exactly that--all free trade, including agriculture. It is not possible to say that we have achieved our objectives unless we extend the policy to goods, services and all products, including agricultural products. That does not mean that there will not have to be continuing support for the rural sector; but that support should not be in the form of tariffs, production subsidies or other measures of that sort, because that interrupts the free trade objective that we have set ourselves.
Mr. Robert Hughes (Aberdeen, North):
Will the Foreign Secretary put aside for the moment the party political gloss on his statement and come to terms with the realities? Does he agree that the European Union's trade negotiations with South Africa have less to do with helping South Africa to develop its economy and much more to do with the self-interest and protectionism of the European Union? In the context of those negotiations, does he also agree that proposals rapidly to enforce a total free trade area between Europe and all the countries of the South African customs union will lead to serious consequences, including a 15 per cent. loss in Namibian revenue? How can that help stability if the process is not two way but based on the one-way self-interest of the developed countries?
Mr. Rifkind:
The hon. Gentleman refers to the negotiations between the European Union and South Africa, and I entirely agree with him. The United Kingdom was highly critical of the European Union's negotiating policy and we worked closely with the South African Government. When President Mandela was here, he paid tribute to the United Kingdom for standing shoulder to shoulder with South Africa in demanding more generous access in the European Union's negotiating mandate. As the hon. Gentleman takes such a deep interest in those matters, he should have paid tribute to what the Government have been seeking to achieve.
Sir Michael Spicer (South Worcestershire):
Although I warmly welcome my right hon. and learned Friend's general attitude towards free trade, does he agree that one of the most protectionist influences in the world nowadays is the European Union? It is a question of not just agriculture but its attitude to eastern European countries. On reflection, does he agree that, far from being a benign influence in the Uruguay round of GATT, the EU was one of the major causes of the massive delays that took place?
Mr. Rifkind:
That is the paradox of the European Union. Within its boundaries there has been a greater realisation of genuine free trade than the world has ever known. The single market is a remarkable achievement, which would not have happened without the European Union and which has brought great benefits to the United Kingdom. My hon. Friend is also correct to say that, in terms of the EU's relationship with the rest of the world, there has been a lack of generosity and imagination, which
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