TRADE LIBERALISATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT
7. The Government is committed to protecting the
environment and promoting sustainable development. The Government's
memorandum asserts that liberalising trade can help ensure that
resources are used efficiently, and to generate the wealth necessary
for environmental improvement and for the spread of cleaner technology
and environmental goods and services. However, the Government's
simultaneous recognition that "where economic activity is
unsustainable, trade can act to magnify this"[11]
was welcomed by other witnesses.[12]
A recent report from the WTO secretariat on trade and the environment
argues similarly that there is no basis for sweeping generalisations
that trade is good or bad for the environment but that the need
for sound policies at national and international levels on environmental
protection are reinforced by economic globalisation.[13]
8. The European Commission's Communication on the
Millennium Round states that "a central benchmark of the
New Round should be the WTO's overall objective of sustainable
development"[14]
and the conclusions of the October General Affairs Council stated
that there was a need to ensure that an appropriate balance between
liberalisation and the strengthening of multilateral rules contributes
to "sustainable development. Environmental protection, social
progress, the reduction in poverty and consumer health."[15]
9. Evidence from the Environment Agency, English
Nature and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) was unanimous
in calling for international economic liberalisation to be explicitly
recognised as one tool amongst others to achieve multilateral
and national policy objectives of sustainable development rather
than as an end in itself.[16]
The WTO needed to be reoriented towards 'better' rather than simply
'freer' trade with the emphasis on an assessment of the outcomes
and impacts of liberalisation proposals, on a case-by-case basis,
in terms of the three sustainable development objectives: economic,
environmental and social.[17]
This approach should be founded upon a more comprehensive and
empirical analysis of the impacts of the Uruguay Round.[18]
11 Ev p.1 Back
12 See
Q58 Back
13 Special
Studies No. 4: Trade and Environment, 8 October 1999, WTO Back
14 Communication
from the European Commission, The EU Approach to the WTO Millennium
Round,10297/99 (hereafter the 'Commission Communication'),
p.14. Back
15 Ev
p.105 Back
16 See
ev pp. 27, 45, 101 and 103 Back
17 Ibid,
and see Q58 Back
18 See
ev pp.16, 31 and 45 Back
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