Will Doha Be Completed in 2010? The WTO's Seventh Ministerial conference which ran from 30 November-2 December 2009, billed as looking at the financial crisis, ended with a call to complete the Doha round in 2010.  However, whether there is the political will to push through on a deal is questionable as delegates believed that the Obama's administration is not engaging in the talks. Apparently the USA seeks greater clarity on what the USA will gain from Doha before asking the Congress to grant the administration the greater negotiating authority. However, the Doha round was meant to be about addressing the inequalities of previous trade rounds, not retrenching them.  At the end of this Ministerial, there was a commitment to have a "stock taking" exercise in March/April 2010 but the level of the meeting- namely, whether it would involve ministers- had not been set. However, it must be noted that WTO members have vowed several times to complete the Doha round- in 2005, 2006, 2007, and 2008.  The Trade Justice Movement's position remains that no WTO deal is better than a bad deal for the poor in developing countries. What will be interesting in 2010 is whether world leaders will truly grasp the need for the global trade system to be reformulated to address the challenges of climate change and the need for climate justice. » What's wrong with the Doha deal? » Click to see Guardian is Free Commentary » Copenhagen climate summit: Protestors in Seattle

Europe's Unfair Trade Deals  Europe's Unfair Trade Deals  Europe has been pushing unfair trade deals on countries in Latin America, Asia, the Middle East and Africa, the Caribbean and Pacific (ACP). The Trade Justice Movement lobbied the then EU Trade Commissioner Catherine Ashton for more flexibility in negotiations with ACP countries and to challenge the aggressive trade strategy set out by the EU in its 2006 "Global Europe" strategy. With Catherine Ashton's appointment as the new EU High Representative of Foreign Affairs, she steps down from the EU Trade Commissioner role on 1 December 2009.  The new EU Trade Commissioner has been announced as Karel de Gucht, the previous EU Development Commissioner and a former Foreign Minister in Belgium. The new EU Commission will have to be approved by the European Parliament in January 2010.  In the run-up to the June European elections, Trade Justice activists lobbied their prospective MEPs to sign up. Over 25% of all UK MEPs have signed our pledge to challenge unfair trade.  Thanks to all those campaigners who took part in the action to the EU Trade Commissioner.  » Click here to see which UK MEPs.  » See campaigners handing over campaign postcards to Catherine Ashton - click here.

Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) 

The deals - called Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) between the EU and African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries where 750 million people live- are set to put jobs and economies at risk in developing countries, undermine healthcare provision and education for poor people, as well as damage their environment - by subjecting ACP countries to unfair competition from Europeans. 
» See who has signed and not signed. Click here.
» Background information on EPAs. Click here.

Corporate Campaigning

The Trade Justice Movement worked with the CORE coalition in 2006 to secure improvements to the UK Companies Act. Over 100,000 supporters called on MPs to support the biggest shake up in company law for 150 years. 
As a result: 

• company directors must now consider the environmental and social impacts of their decisions 

• the largest public companies have to annually report on their environmental and social impacts 

However, much still needs to be done to address corporate abuses. Now, the CORE coalition looks to press the UK Government to support the need for a UK Commission on Human Rights, Business and the Environment. 

» Click here for more information.