Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2007-12-13-Speech-4-018"
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"en.20071213.4.4-018"2
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".
Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, a few days away from the fateful deadline of 31 December 2007, when the quotas system for textiles from China will be abolished for good, concerns are growing within European industry.
China joined the World Trade Organisation some time ago, and has enjoyed many benefits as a result of this, starting with the ban on reintroducing quotas on its textile exports. Having accepted these advantages, it should have reciprocated by meeting requirements defined and ratified by the World Trade Organisation. It does not seem to us that this has happened, and this is bad for international competition, which is still far from fair, and still far from having the same rules for everyone.
I am not talking about the comparative social and environmental advantages that unfortunately still remain outside any legal framework in multilateral trade negotiations and that one day, very soon I hope, must be brought into the framework of trade that can truly be described as fair. Today, I am talking about the rules that govern the strenuous fight against counterfeits, the safety standards of many products from toys to medicines, and access by our companies to markets like China, which is not the only one where, not just for textiles but also for other sectors, there are still tariff barriers and especially non-tariff barriers that make it very difficult for European industry and small and medium-sized enterprises in the sector to break into the Chinese market.
In view of situations like this in international trade, we should not be afraid, provided that the legal and economic requirements are met, to use the legitimate instruments available, which have been put in place by multilateral international agreements to protect and safeguard the textile industry, specifically to counterbalance the potential negative effects of the ending of quotas. I am talking about the function and effectiveness of the High Level Group for surveillance of the textile market, which will have the task of monitoring the operation of the market in Europe through the import and export licence twin checking system. This is one method that should identify indirect trade movements and provide information about flows of imports.
We need to have the courage and strength to implement the safeguard clause on the basis of the WTO rules and to reintroduce the quotas, at least temporarily, if there is serious damage to our industry from abnormal import levels. I am thinking about the constant use of trade protection instruments, such as anti-dumping and anti-subsidy rules and, more generally, about keeping a channel of comparison open between China and the European Union at all times.
Our textile industry is not afraid of competition, but it must be put in a position to be able to cope with it. Consequently, we need to act on two different fronts. On the one hand it is important to encourage the modernisation and restructuring process that will make the sector more competitive, with social shock absorbers to cope with a possible backlash, and on the other we need to ensure the sector is fighting on a level playing field, with the same rules for everyone.
Mr President, Commissioner, this is also why we are inviting the Commission and the Council to get the identification of product origins off to a stronger and more incisive start."@en1
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