Two years after the 1987resolutions, the European Parliament returned to an argument that was crucial to North-South relations and that affected many interests both in the developing countries and in the Member States: the impact of the common agricultural policy on the developing world. In a new resolution404 Parliament dealt with two
interconnected aspects, the negotiations on agricultural products within the framework of the GATT agreements and the ongoing reform of the common agricultural policy, in an attempt to prioritise the interests of the developing countries. The resolution took as its starting point the principles agreed under the Punta del Este Declaration of the Uruguay Round: liberalisation of world trade in favour of the developing countries and their inclusion, in a differentiated and preferential manner, in the final agreements, in addition to improved access and enhanced subsidy rules specifically for agricultural markets. The Community was asked to support these objectives and make them the basis for its reform of the common agricultural policy.
In terms of the negotiations themselves, this meant that strict agreements had to be concluded for the reduction of subsidies and that the needs of the developing countries had to be taken into account in every phase of the negotiating process.
403 EP resolution of 16 January 1998 on improving the effectiveness of Community aid, OJ 34, 17.3.97, p. 192 following on from Doc.
A4-387/97. Rap: Goerens.
404 EP resolution on the common agricultural policy and the developing countries, OJ C 69, 20.3.89, p. 204. following on from the
As far as the common agricultural policy was concerned, the Punta del Este principles involved a reduction in beef subsidies and a restriction on intervention buying, with a continuation of the system supporting imports of cereal substitutes in animal feed, since some developing countries had made considerable investments in this area.
As the entry into force of the single market approached, not just the ACP countries, which frequently referred the matter to the Joint Assembly, but all developing countries with any form of relationship with the Community made their concerns clear. The European Parliament dealt with three aspects of the issue: trade, financial issues and the situation of migrants.
Trade was of obvious concern to the developing countries since they feared that existing difficulties with exports to the 12 national markets of the Member States would be exacerbated. The relevant European Parliament resolution405 considered it vital that the
completion of the EEC single market should not lead to measures that conflicted with the Community’s prior commitments to the developing countries. The latter were already affected by the profound changes that had come about in Europe with the fall of the Soviet Bloc, by alterations in world trade patterns in the wake of the GATT agreements – which reduced the developing countries’ ability to protect their own economies – and by increasing integration at regional level that would significantly modify traditional trade patterns. The relevant report, which provided a synopsis of the completion of the single market, showed that the market was not in itself a danger for the developing economies, rather that the core problem was their structural weakness, an idea that was clearly expressed in paragraph 9 of the resolution:
…the level of development of the developing countries (and the tendency of their economies to look outwards to the detriment of local needs) is the decisive factor that will determine their capacity to respond to the dynamic created by the single market...
In spite of this consideration, it was still deemed necessary to examine the difficulties directly linked to the single market and any remedies that might be adopted. In the first instance, it was stated that the Commission should establish an effective mechanism to monitor the trade diversion effects of the establishment of the single market on the less developed countries; it should then counteract these effects by providing the developing countries with any information of use to them, particularly with a view to identifying the most promising economic sectors, and by helping them to develop such sectors. Another important factor that could have had a negative impact on the developing countries was the harmonisation and consequent raising of standards at Community level. These problems needed to be resolved in cooperation with trading partners among the developing countries, by providing them with the means to adapt.
Also important were the products already covered by conventions, such as textiles and bananas, which the resolution cited by way of example. In the case of bananas, the repeal of Article 115 of the EC Treaty allowing the Member States to halt the free movement
405 EP resolution of 14 May 1992 on the commercial impact of the single market on the developing countries, OJ C 150, 15.6.92, p. 256
following on from the report of the Committee on Development and Cooperation with the same title. Doc. A3-40/92. Rap: Pons Grau.
of Community goods that exceeded established quotas would have a negative impact on small producers in the developing countries while benefiting the large American companies.
Meanwhile, the generalised system of preferences had not produced the desired effects on exports from the developing countries and was coming into conflict with the most favoured nation concept that had emerged within the framework of the GATT negotiations; and of course the problem of access for goods from the developing countries to the markets of the industrialised nations was mainly dealt with within this framework.
The question of a possible reduction in investment in the developing countries was at the centre of the resolution on financial aspects406. The relevant report dealt with the problem
in more depth, underlining that in international markets there was not a lack of investment capital, but that high interest rates had a negative impact on investment in the developing countries. There had, however, been an overall rise in investment, even if levels differed greatly from region to region, with significant increases recorded in Asia in particular. The restructuring of the production system within the Community in the run-up to the single market involved capital investment that would not have a negative effect on the beneficiaries of EEC development cooperation. The real problem affecting these countries was indebtedness, since repayments and servicing of debt reversed net financial flows. For this precise reason, the resolution consisted primarily of a call for a debt amnesty in the case of the poorest countries and a deduction of interest already paid in the case of the remaining developing countries.
The question of migrant workers from developing countries was also dealt with in relation to the single market407. The European Parliament felt that the relevant policies should
enshrine migrants’ rights and obligations with regard to the free movement of people, goods and services. The naturalisation criteria should also be harmonised through an intergovernmental agreement and the administrative management of migrants should comply with Community standards, rejecting racism, xenophobia and anti-Semitism.
406 EP resolution of 14 May 1992 on the financial impact of completion of the single market on the developing countries, OJ C 150,
15.6.92, p. 259 following on from the report of the Committee on Development and Cooperation with the same title. Doc. A3-21/92. Rap: Daly.
407 EP resolution of 14 May 1992 on the repercussions of the completion of the single market of 1992 for migrant workers from
developing countries, OJ C 150, 15.6.92, p. 261 following on from the report of the Committee on Development and Cooperation with the same title. Doc. A3-393/91. Rap: Mendes Bota.