London:
Tony Blair, in his annual foreign affairs speech,
has tried to break the logjam over a world trade agreement
by calling on rich nations to set a date for ending their
export subsidies.
Tony Blair appealed to France and the United States not
to squander a chance to seal a historic agreement on global
trade that has the potential to allow millions of people
in the poorest countries to escape poverty. In his speech,
Blair issued a detailed list of proposals aimed at reviving
the process ahead of a critical meeting in Hong Kong next
month.
He said: "The European Union and the US must go further,
within the negotiations, on agriculture. We must reduce
trade-distorting subsidies; we must see a credible end
date for export subsidies; we must put an ambitious limit
on the number of sensitive products that can be afforded
extra protection.
"In return Brazil, India and others must move on
cuts in industrial tariffs, services liberalisation, with
proper flexibility for developing countries that need
to sequence their commitments in line with their development
needs."
He said: "Agriculture accounts for under 2 per cent
of the GDP of rich countries and roughly the same share
of employment. Can we afford to allow differences over
support for agriculture in rich countries to block an
agreement that could give renewed hope to the 1 in 5 people
in the world living on less than $1 a day? And can we
afford to weaken an international trading system on which
future employment and prosperity in rich countries depends?"
He said that a one per cent increase in Africa's share
of world trade would benefit Africa by over US$70bn, three
times the aid increase agreed at the G8 summit at Gleneagles
in July.
Blair warned rich nations that they would enjoy "no
security or prosperity
at home" unless they "deal with the global challenges
of conflict, terrorism, climate change and poverty."
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