WT/MIN(17)/ST/63  
 
15 December 2017  
(17-6997) Page: 1/1 
Ministerial Conference  
Eleventh Session  
Buenos Aires, 10 -13 December 2017  Original: English  
 
STATEMENT BY H.E. DR . LIAM FOX  
SECRETARY OF STATE F OR INTERNATION TRADE  
UNITED KINGDOM  
This year marks the seventieth anniversary of the signing of the GATT.  We have made many 
changes and great strides since then but we face constant challenges in keeping the multilateral 
system relevant.  
 
What hasn’t changed over the decades is the United Kingdom’s unwavering support for free trade, 
for the multilateral tradi ng system and for seeking continuous improvement in how we conduct 
global commerce.  I look forward to the UK taking a more prominent role in the WTO as we leave 
the European Union. And I pledge here to respect our existing WTO commitments and obligations 
to the WTO Membership as we leave the EU.  
 
I see three priorities for us here in Buenos Aires.    
 
First, we need to continue to promote trade as the main tool of development.  As the world’s 
developing and emerging economies have liberalised their trade pra ctices, prosperity has spread 
across the globe, bringing growth, opportunity and stability where once there was only poverty.  In 
this regard, I strongly welcome the entry into force of the Trade Facilitation Agreement earlier this 
year. The UK has programm ed £180 million in supporting developing countries implement the TFA, 
between 2013 and 2022.  
 
Second, I welcome the focus on digital trade here at MC11. I believe that WTO Members must 
address digital trade issues, including through new rules. We should n ot wait any longer for 
ignoring the fast -changing digital landscape risks the credibility of this organisation. We need to 
set rules for digital trade that deliver for developing and developed Members alike. We need rules 
that offer the potential of greate r participation by women in global trade. And we need rules that 
support e -commerce as a driver for economic growth. E -commerce and digital trade offer 
enormous opportunities for countries large and small, developed and developing – an empowering 
tool for women and SMEs in particular.  
 
Our third priority should be regulation. As tariffs have come down and trade in services has 
increased, non -tariff measures are increasingly the main source of frustration for companies 
wanting to do business in other jurisdi ctions. Predictability and access based on regulatory 
outcomes are what matter for businesses and consumers. There is much useful work we could be 
doing in this area, such as in domestic regulation on services.  
 
Finally, to support us in this work, we nee d much better data on trade – data which truly reflects 
what is happening in the global economy where supply chains are increasingly complex. I strongly 
support the joint work of the OECD and the WTO in the area of Trade in Value Added. The UK has 
been and  will continue to be a leading voice on this issue.  
 
I am hopeful we will look back at the time we have spent in this beautiful city as the moment 
when we acknowledged the need for increased urgency in our work. I am hopeful that this urgency 
will, in tur n, lead to a new dynamism in our collective endeavour to update and strengthen the 
multilateral trading system upon which we all rely.  
 
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