Brussels, 29/10/2002 (Agence Europe) - At the annual meeting of the Transatlantic Consumer Dialogue (TACD) at the State Department in Washington on 29/30 October, Commissioner David Byrne expressed his support to EU and US consumer associations: "Bringing together non-governmental organisations form both sides of the Atlantic to discuss consumer policy issues enriches EU-US cooperation. The Transatlantic Consumer Dialogue provides a vital 'reality check'", said Byrne.
Priority issues to be discussed include WTO negotiations, in particular trade in services and access to medicines, genetically modified organisms, antibiotics in animal and food production, e-commerce and consumer protection, EU-US regulatory cooperation and transparency. The TACD will be producing a Report Card assessing the impact the dialogue is having on the policies of the Commission and the US government.