EU says to push labour issues in Asia trade talks
Source: Reuters
(Adds Latin American talks paragraph 9, Italy last paragraph) By William Schomberg BRUSSELS, Dec 5 (Reuters) - The European Union will push to include labour standards in new bilateral trade deals including those it plans to hammer out with Asian countries next year, EU trade chief Peter Mandelson said on Tuesday. The EU failed to get labour issues into the World Trade Organisation's (WTO) Doha negotiations to boost global commerce. Developing countries, which generally have poorer working conditions than rich countries, blocked the idea, fearing it could be used to slow their exports. With the Doha round now on hold, the EU Commission is due to ask member states on Wednesday for a mandate to launch talks for separate trade deals with fast-growing India, South Korea and southeast Asian nations such as Malaysia and Thailand. "I would like to see us make a step change in how we integrate decent work and the broader agenda of sustainable development into these bilateral agreements," Mandelson said in a speech to a conference on labour issues in Brussels. He said incentives could be offered to countries which agree to improve labour standards. The EU Commission hopes to launch negotiations for the Asia trade deals early next year and wants them to be broader in scope than the WTO's Doha round, which focuses mostly on cutting tariffs and removing other barriers to trade. The Doha round was suspended in July and risks being delayed by several years if there is no breakthrough in early 2007. The Commission will also seek mandates on Wednesday for trade talks with Andean and Central American countries. EU SPLIT Mandelson's push to give labour issues more prominence in future bilateral trade deals is likely to be welcomed by some EU countries, mainly in southern Europe, which have complained about under-priced imports hurting their manufacturers. But they are concerned about another prong of his trade strategy -- a proposed review of the EU's anti-dumping rules which could make it harder for manufacturers to request and secure punitive duties on cheap imports. A consultation paper, due on Wednesday, suggests the growing interests of importers and consumers could be taken into account when deciding what is in the EU's interest -- the key to dumping decisions -- and which now focuses on manufacturers' needs. The paper also asks whether Brussels ought to require a bigger chunk of EU industry to back requests for dumping investigations, according to a draft copy seen by Reuters. The proposals are likely to split the EU between its generally pro-free trade and more protectionist camps, making radical changes unlikely, according to some trade experts. Mandelson also urged EU countries to back a plan to remove trade privileges for Belarus, specifically over labour abuses but also reflecting wider concern in Brussels about rights issues in the former Soviet state. EU members Poland, Latvia and Lithuania, which are located close to Belarus, have opposed the plan for sanctions. But Italy backed the plan at a technical-level meeting on Tuesday, giving the Commission enough support for its eventual approval, trade officials said.
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