DECLARATION BY THE SINGAPORE MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE

11:50 AM Nov 22, 1996

DECLARATION BY THE SINGAPORE MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE
The draft for discussion at the informal HOD meeting Friday, has formulations on the new issues that have been extensively discussed, at earlier HODs, and in smaller green-room consultations, without any consensus or convergence of views.

Rather there has been sharp polarisation of views.

The inclusion of these issues in the draft, and formulations on them, even though there is no consensus, is certain to make the first Ministerial Conference of the WTO contentious and confrontational.

In the recommendations to the SMC, from the WTO General Council and its bodies, on the review and implementation of the Uruguay Round agreements, and the so-called built-in agenda, the WTO members agreed that only formulations and recommendations that command consensus would go before the SMC.

But the Ruggiero draft for the Ministerial Declaration has not followed this and includes formulations on labour standards, and a post-Singapore work programme on trade and investment, competition, government procurement and trade facilitation.

The Ruggiero revised draft in effect embraces the US position on labour standards and government procurement, the Canada-EU-Japan thrust for beginning a process on investment rules. It also calls for a expert group study on relations between competition policies and WTO (that EU wants), but not also embracing trade policies.

And on the socalled built-in agenda and environment, the Ruggiero text contains formulations that go beyond the agreed conclusions and recommendations in the reports of the committees, and subtly tilts the balance for future work based on the "reports" (which reflect various views), and not the recommendations.

On labour standards, the new draft would have the Ministers recall that all WTO members have subscribed to the Universal Declaration on Human Rights and renew their commitment to observance of core labour standards and ILO's work in promoting these standards. The WTO's own contribution is to be "through increased adherence to the rule-based system together with further trade liberalization and economic growth fostered by increased trade."

The formulation would also have the ministers agree that "protectionist measures should not be used to enforce labour standards, and that the competitive advantage of low-wage countries should not be put into question."

This may even be capable of interpretation in the future that trade measures to enforce labour standards are fine by the WTO, so long as they are not "protectionist measures".

On the new agenda proposals, the new draft would have the Ministers at Singapore agree to:

* begin an examination of the relationship between trade and investment leading to a report to the General Council. In the conduct of this work, encourage close cooperation with the UNCTAD Secretariat, both to make the best use of available resources and to ensure that the development dimension is taken fully into account.

* establish an expert group to study the relationship between competition policies and the WTO, to identify any problems that may require action in the WTO framework, and to report its findings to the General Council.

* establish a group to develop an interim agreement on government procurement in order to improve transparency and due process in government procurement procedures.

* WTO Goods Council undertaking exploratory and analytical work, drawing on the work of other relevant international organizations, on the simplification of trade procedures in order to assess the scope for WTO rules in this area.