Meeting of the Committee on International Trade&nbsp;(INTA) on trade Policy Day in the EP in Brussels.&nbsp;Hearing with Cecilia MALMSTR&Ouml;M, Member of the EC in charge of Trade and statements by Bernd LANGE (S&amp;D, DE), Chair Committee on International Trade, Karl BRAUNER, WTO Deputy Director-General, Jeffrey FRANKS, Director, IMF Offices Europe, and Joakim REITER, Deputy Secretary-General UNCTAD (UN Conference on Trade and development).

Brussels

meeting

Committee on International Trade

LANGE, Bernd (S&D, DE)

MALMSTRÖM, Cecilia (ALDE, SE, EC)

hearing

EU trade policy (T)

Trade Policy Day: extracts from the hearing with Cecilia MALMSTRÖM, Member of the EC in charge of Trade

SOUNDBITE (German), Bernd LANGE (S&amp;D, DE), Chair Committee on International Trade, We as European Parliament have been pioneers in this area, we have furthered this idea of a values-based trade policy, on the other hand it is difficult to understand that populist forces in the UK are now arguing against trade policy, they have argued in favour of Brexit, and in the US a new President has been elected and he is explicitly going to favour protectionist polices, that is what he said at least in his electoral campaign, and in many of our capitals we have people who for reasons of fear and anxiety have taken to the streets to demonstrate against trade policy.

SOUNDBITE (German), Bernd LANGE (S&amp;D, DE), Chair Committee on International Trade, We want globalisation in the interest of people, we want to shape it in the interests of the people, we want rights to be protected, we want to do all this in a democratic way, we dont want to call into question European integration, we want to guarantee transparency so that trade is not free but fair in the interest of the people.

SOUNDBITE (English), Cecilia MALMSTR&#214;M, Member of the EC in charge of Trade, This agreement with Canada, CETA, as we call it, is a good if not an excellent example of how the EU can actually shape global trade policy, thereby shaping globalisation itself. Because the first task of EU trade policy is to give Europeans the opportunity to benefit from an integrated global economy. And CETA does this, by expanding opportunities for people who work in manufacturing companies, service providers, farmers.

<p>SOUNDBITE (English), Cecilia MALMSTR&Ouml;M, Member of the EC in charge of Trade, We have a very ambitious, if not the most ambitious globally, agenda, when it comes to bilateral and regional trade agreements. Beyond CETA we have another five finalised agreements, which we hope will enter into force soon. Including an agrement with Vietnam that is now under translation. It is a ground breaking deal, because it successfully addresses one of the major challenges of globalisation, how we relate to emerging economies.</p>

SOUNDBITE (English), Cecilia MALMSTR&Ouml;M, Member of the EC in charge of Trade, We do have to acknowledge that we have legitimacy problems in this. Because these things that we do can only benefit the citizens if  they have trust in it. And even if we have been good at reaching agreement, we must of course reach out to the citizens even more than we did before. It was good that we signed CETA, but it was a long and difficult process, and we will have to reflect on what it means in the short, medium and long term for trade policy.

SOUNDBITE (English), Karl BRAUNER, WTO Deputy Director-General, We have to gain the confidence of people that trade policy is trying to shape globalisation and make it beneficial for everybody. The value driven approach by the EU should make this possible.

SOUNDBITE (English), Jeffrey FRANKS, Director, IMF Offices Europe, In his song "the Times are a-changing" Bob DYLAN says the following: "if the waters are rising, and you are wet to the bone, you better start swimming or you'll sink like a stone, for the time they are a-changing." I think we cannot afford to stand still as the waters rise around us. We have to move forward, we have to start swimming. As my boss Christine LAGARDE eloquently put it last month at the IMF International meetings,  "while some of the currents may be flowing against us, now is the time when we actually need more international cooperation".

SOUNDBITE (English), Joakim REITER, Deputy Secretary-General UNCTAD (UN Conference on Trade and development), There is a need in many constituencies around the world to have a proper discussion on what is the role of trade, from a political point of view. In the view of the UN, the big question is how do you place trade policy and trade politics, into the broader societal deal around where you want to go as a society. Meaning you have to integrate it with education policy, social protection schemes, support for those dislocated by increased openness and competition. And I think that is what you see now today, is an increasing number of the general public is demanding a discussion on trade linked in a broader response by politicians on where they want to go with their entire economy and their entire society.