Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2005-11-30-Speech-3-061"
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"en.20051130.10.3-061"2
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".
Madam President, this has been an extremely interesting and informative debate with a typically wide range of views expressed. I am pleased to see that Members of the European Parliament are so engaged in these important issues. I certainly look forward to discussing them further with the delegation that will be going to Hong Kong.
The key message I take from this debate is that we should maintain our level of ambition for the round as a whole. We should be supporting the package of measures for developing countries outlined by Commissioner Mandelson and this must be seen as a down-payment with more to come, not a final deal.
We should not underestimate the benefits of trade to the developing world. Just look at where South Korea was in the 1950s – a country with a similar level of income to the average in the continent of Africa – and compare that with where it is today as a result of trade. Look at China, which over the last 20 years has taken one third of a billion people out of extreme poverty as a result of trade. The results are enormously impressive. Our objective should be to kick open the door to the developed world’s economies for the least-developed countries. That is what the EU package is about.
However, we should not underestimate the benefits of an ambitious trade round to the European Union either. As Commissioner Mandelson said, the benefits in terms of services and NAMA if we achieve a balanced outcome to the round will be of benefit to the EU economy and indeed the world economy as a whole.
There are difficult issues in this trade round. We have heard about sugar, bananas, cotton: all these require discussion internally and will be part of the negotiations. As the UK Presidency we fully support the Commission and its negotiating tactics in the round. Commissioner Mandelson has made a serious offer that requires serious consideration by other countries. We now need to see progress on NAMA, on services, on the part of Brazil, India and other countries.
I would like to say to you, the Members of this Parliament, that we recognise that we all have to take any final deal home and justify it to our electorates.
I was asked about the specific arrangements for Hong Kong as regards the European Parliament delegation. The UK Presidency is making plans to meet with members of the delegation near the launch of the conference and hopefully again towards the end. The Commission will be holding daily briefings that will be given to MEPs. We are also planning a reception co-hosted with the Commission for MEPs to meet with EU Ministers.
Once again, I thank you for your time today and for your support in our preparations for Hong Kong."@en1
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