Brussels, 04/10/2004 (Agence Europe) - It was a Peter Mandelson in confident mood, clearly relaxed and playing on all his political experience who presented himself to the (enlarged) committee on external trade of the European Parliament for his hearing on Monday afternoon. The answers he gave over three hours of questioning seem to have broadly satisfied the members of the committee, who applauded him on several occasions- particularly when he reacted to the attacks from British Eurosceptics on his belief in Europe, and his future independence from his "friend" Tony Blair (see below). It is also worth noting that Mr Mandelson was not asked about the events which twice forced his resignation from the Blair government.
In his introduction (which started in French but soon slipped back into his native tongue, and stayed there), Mr Mandelson first of all gave a personal definition of himself. First as a "committed British European" who has "supported the idea of European integration all his life". "I am a real European, not only in the economic sense, but also in terms of social policy, the environment, the fight against international crime, etc (…). I do not share the 'half-in, half-out' approach which many Britons have towards Europe. There are people in the United Kingdom who feel that British interests are completely at odds with the interests of Europe. I reject this view entirely. I am convinced that the United Kingdom has its place in Europe", he said, adding later that he would take an active role in the British referendum campaign in support of the Constitutional Treaty, which is "excellent", but which should be explained to the citizens.
Then as defender of economic liberalism, but of a liberalism the aims of which must include creating more growth, jobs, sustainable development and social justice for all, especially in the poorest countries of the world. "I am not a simplistic liberal" who feels that liberalism is an end in itself. "No, I just think that through trade and market opening, we can create economic benefits and social justice for all, notably by reducing poverty in developing countries". Pursuing this policy under multilateral agreements is the best way of extending these benefits to all, said Mr Mandelson, who is to inherit "a range of coherent principles" and policies he intends to maintain from the current Commissioner, Pascal Lamy. World trade should be fair, which means that "if needs be, we will take measures to defend ourselves against unfair actions taken by others". "I will be prepared to act in such cases, but our goal must be to open up markets, not use the failures of the others as an excuse for protectionism", he said.
Against this backdrop, the Commissioner designate defined the following six priorities ("but this list is not exhaustive", he added): 1) completing the Doha round "to open up markets to industrial products, services, agricultural products, including between developing countries. Trade should be fair for all and include the objectives of development, which can help the very poorest countries". The Ministerial meeting in Hong Kong in December 2005 should lead to "a great step forward" towards ending the round (which will thus be completed around the beginning of 2006), said Mr Mandelson; 2) The ACP countries. "We must conclude economic partnership agreements with these countries, but ones which are properly balances"; 3) the trans-Atlantic agenda. Co-operation with the United States should be reinforced, especially in the regulatory field. "There is no more important partnership for the prosperity and security of the whole world than that between Europe and America". "I will do all in my power to resolve the inevitable trade disputes" which subsist (who feels that the 13 bilateral disputes currently being dealt with at the WTO were still "astonishingly low" given the volume of trade between the two blocs). Multilateralism is a good thing, but the world's biggest problems, the economy and security, can only be resolved if the Europeans and Americans work together; 4- EU/Mercosur. "I hope that Pascal Lamy will be able to complete the free-trade negotiations by 31 October, otherwise I am prepared to take over, even if this may take time to get the process back on track"), given that Mercosur has now put forward an "unacceptable" offer. In any case, the general rule in these negotiations will be that the substance will always take priority over the timetable, said Mr Mandelson, stressing that the principle also goes for negotiations underway with the Gulf Cooperation Council; 5- Russia's and Ukraine's accession to the WTO, "which is of vital importance for our new European Neighbour Policy"; 6) in Asia, the EU must consolidate its "strategic partnership" with China, and the EU must ensure that China fulfils all the commitments that it undertook in the context of WTO membership. "I think the Commission should now begin a detailed analysis of the considerable impact that economic growth in China will have on the international system - mainly on its growing impact on developing countries".
Mr Mandelson made friends in the external trade committee by announcing that he intended to "do still better" than the current Commissioner, Pascal Lamy (who already went over and beyond what the Treaty normally provides for) concerning the exchange of information on trade talks in progress. On a request by Harlem Désir (PES, France), the Commissioner-designate even announced that he would forward to MEPs the same documents that his Directorate General also regularly submits to Committee 133 for consulting Member States on trade issues (he did not, however, specify how long it would take for MEPs to be able to share the same information as Member States).
In answer to questions on his future relations with the British government and his attitude should the interests of his "friend" Tony Blair be in contradiction with those of the European Commission, Mr Mandelson said he would always remain a friend of Mr Blair and that the latter would always be able to count on his "political support" but that he would defend the European cause in complete impartiality and independence, having left the British political scene. "I have moved on", he said. Mr Mandelson was asked how he would help reform the Union after having reformed the British Labour Party by modernising it. The greatest challenge is to reconnect citizens with the Union, and the best way to do this, the Commissioner-designate said, is to show the connection that exists between economic growth and prosperity and what the EU can contribute to this.