Examination of Witnesses (Questions 340-343)
Mr John Cooke and Mr Roger Brown
1 JULY 2008
Q340 Lord Watson of Richmond: If
I may, I think the question that you have put has not entirely
been answered. Is Doha in your judgment the last time that this
huge organisation can attempt a negotiation of this kind? In other
words, would there be a successor to a failed Doha or would we
be into different methodology and different formats?
Mr Cooke: A successor to a failed Doha?
Q341 Chairman: We are asking everybody
this.
Mr Brown: I would say that certain lessons
would need to be learned. With Doha you have two types of issues;
you have the negotiating substance and you have the logistics
and I think everyone recognises that the logistics are difficult
and one would expect that even if Doha was successful it may be
that they would want to look at the architecture of multilateral
discussions. It is not an easy one; nobody has a ready made solution.
Q342 Lord Watson of Richmond: There
is no blueprint.
Mr Brown: But I am sure a lot of thought
will go into that.
Mr Cooke: I think personally that there
would in the long run be multilateral rounds—but just how
big would their scope be? I think issues will build up where countries
begin to say in discussions "it would be worth having a round
about these". What I think would not happen will be another
development round because I think that has been extremely difficult
to deal with and has led developing countries to suppose that
they need not be involved—that they need only offer best
endeavours undertakings or need not liberalise—when in fact
the benefits for development may come with liberalisation. So
there is an internal contradiction in terms in the phrase "development
round".
Q343 Chairman: Yes, we have met that
argument. Thank you very much both of you, it was most interesting
and very helpful. I should have started by reminding Members and
witnesses alike that I am on the Board of the London Stock Exchange,
but at least let me do it now. We are not much involved in development
rounds, but certainly my question as to whether the City's interests
are being protected should have been prefaced.
Mr Cooke: We were aware!
Chairman: It is on all published lists but I should
have reminded you formally.
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