PRESS RELEASE 
26 September 2006

Campaigners call for urgent action by UK Government on trade pledge to world’s poor

Europe’s new unfair trade deals in danger of reversing progress to make poverty history for poorest nations 

The Trade Justice Movement today issues a warning to the UK Government that many of the poorest countries in the world will face deeper poverty and inequality unless it takes urgent action to stop Europe pushing unfair trade deals on its former colonies.

With world trade talks at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) suspended in July, the 80-organisation coalition is gearing up its campaign on the dangers of another wave of trade deals – called Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) – being negotiated between the European Union (EU) and the Africa, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) group of countries.

Campaigners highlight that Europe’s push to have many of the poorest nations sign up to unfair trade deals is putting 750 million people’s livelihoods at risk. These agreements could result in the widespread devastation of local industries and farming communities and a massive fall in revenue that developing countries rely on for health care, education and other essential services.

Last year, the UK Government pledged to do all it can to make poverty history and make trade work for the poor. In response to public action from supporters of the Trade Justice Movement, in spring 2005 the UK Government published a new position on EPAs stating that poor countries across Africa and elsewhere should not be forced to open their markets before they are ready and that alternatives to EPAs be developed.

The Trade Justice Movement welcomed the UK’s position - for the EU not to take an aggressive approach to trading deals with poor African, Caribbean and Pacific countries - as a step in the right direction for trade justice. Since then campaigners have become increasingly concerned that the UK has not done enough to actively prevent the European Commission from forging ahead with damaging negotiations, including on issues that have been ruled out at the WTO.

Glen Tarman, Coordinator of the Trade Justice Movement, said: “The UK Government must now put its words into action and deliver on its promise to make trade work for development. Having a more progressive position than other European countries on Economic Partnership Agreements will mean nothing if other countries across Europe are not brought on board to confront the European Commission so it drops its harmful demands on poor countries in these talks.”

The Trade Justice Movement is calling on the UK Government to stand by its promises on trade and poverty by using its full influence to:

• stop Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) going ahead as they are not  placing development and poverty reduction first  

• work with poor countries to develop alternative deals that will help bring about trade justice.

Alistair Darling, Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, acknowledged to the Trade Justice Movement in July this year that the UK needed to do more with other European countries to bring about a pro-development outcome.

In recent months the British public has begun writing to Alistair Darling in their tens of thousands urging the UK Government not to make poverty in poor countries worse and to take urgent action to stop these new free trade deals, which threaten to undermine development including the promises of more aid and debt cancellation which the UK helped deliver last year.

 - ends -

Media contacts:
Debbie Wainwright, CAFOD, tel: 0207 095 5541
John McGhie, Christian Aid, tel: 020 7523 2418
Harriet Binet, Oxfam, tel: 01865 472313
Jean Candler, Traidcraft, tel: 020 7274 3955
Jonathan Spencer, Tearfund, tel: 020 8943 7901

Note for editors:

1. Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) are free trade deals being negotiated between the European Union and ACP countries - 75 countries in Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific. 27 September marks the anniversary of the launch of the EPAs negotiations, which were opened in 2002. For more information on EPAs please visit the Trade Justice Movement’s website: www.tjm.org.uk.