The WTO has worked well for big business, much less so for the global poor, writes Nick Dearden. Argentina´s clampdown on British NGOs is a violation of democracy, writes Dr Daniel OzarowLiam Fox is fulsome in his praise of the benefits of free trade (Britain must champion the poverty-busting power of trade, 11 December). But we have learnt in recent decades that trade doesn´t always benefit everyone, particularly when institutions like the World Trade Organisation force countries to give up powers they could use to regulate big business. The WTO has worked well for big business, much less so for the global poor.This week Britain could speak up for different WTO rules that, for instance, would allow countries like India to provide subsidised food to address poverty. Instead, Fox will champion a whole set of `new issues` being included in WTO rules, like e-commerce, which in reality is a charter for big tech companies like Google and Amazon to use and abuse our data at will. Trade rules must change if they´re to survive the age of Trump-style nationalism. The first step is democracy and accountability. But here, Fox falls short. He has not spoken out about the banning of some British citizens (including myself) from Argentina for the WTO summit. Neither does his trade bill currently in parliament give any scope for the public or parliament to shape the trade deals we do post-Brexit.Nick DeardenDirector, Global Justice Now Continue reading...
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