PRESS RELEASE : UK statements at the World Trade Organization General Council [December 2023]

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 20 December 2023.

The UK’s Permanent Representative to the WTO and UN in Geneva, Simon Manley, spoke on a number of issues at the WTO General Council (17-19 December 2023).

Item 16: The contribution of the Multilateral Trading System to Sustainable and Resilient Agriculture and Food Systems – Statement by the Cairns Group (GC/261)

Thank you to the Cairns Group for their statement. As the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) said, agricultural markets are facing a triple challenge providing adequate, affordable, safe, nutritious food for a growing global population.

Providing livelihoods all along the food value chain, and at the same time, increasing the sustainability of the agricultural sector.

We all need to be thinking about how we align our work across different WTO fora, and wider international fora, and have a serious conversation about sustainability and resilient food systems.

We also really welcome the statement out of COP28: the declaration on sustainable agriculture, food system, and climate action.

This calls for exactly the strengthening of the rules-based multilateral trading system, with this organisation, with its fantastic leadership, at its very core.

A multifaceted problem requires a multifaceted solution. And that includes elements highlighted in this Cairns Group declaration, including progressing agricultural reform, to promote fair, rules-based, market-orientated, agricultural trade.

Key to that effort is repurposing the way in which public support is directed towards agriculture to improve the activity, the resilience and sustainability of agricultural practices and systems.

So it is absolutely right that we have a serious conversation about sustainability, about resilience of our food systems, here in this organisation, as part of a wider conversation we need to have, urgently, about how we use this organisation, and the trading system, to support the transition to net zero and save our planet.

Item 18: Information on Investment Facilitation for Development (IFD) – Request from Chile and Korea

Thank you Chair.

We rightly talk a lot about the importance of this organisation in development. It is great to hear the reaction to the fabulous work being led by the brilliant co-facilitators.

This is a significant new agreement that we genuinely hope is going to turbo-charge sustainable development, so as to equip developing and Least Developed Countries (LDC) Members to address the global poli-crisis.

As we all know, this IFD is the largest with 116 participants (over two thirds of the Membership of this organisation.)

The agreement shows for us that this organisation can deliver for global trade, and for development, and we can address these current economic challenges.

Facilitating investment flows, is, as we all know, a key driver of economic growth, productivity and development.

We think it is going to provide significant economic benefits for Members, in particular for developing countries, by removing barriers to investment and reducing transaction costs.

It is predicted to increase global welfare by almost 2 per cent, boost cross-border investment – absolutely key to closing the US$4 trillion funding gap in the SDGs so we look forward to the successful incorporation in the WTO in due course and to celebrating this achievement at MC13, where Members from over two thirds of the organisation will join together to mark our shared ambition of driving sustainable global development.