Second Referendum is our only hope

The WTO has opened the accreditation process for non-governmental organizations (NGOs) wishing to attend the 12th Ministerial Conference, which will be held in Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan, from 8 to 11 June 2020.

Addressing a group of agriculture ministers at the 12th Global Forum for Food and Agriculture in Berlin on 18 January, Deputy Director-General Alan Wolff highlighted the need to harness the power of multilateral trade agreements to meet the complex challenges facing the agricultural sector. In the run-up to the 12th Ministerial Conference in June, ministers […]

A WTO Secretariat briefing session for new WTO delegates on the work and mission of the Council for Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) will be held on 28 January. The aim of the briefing is helping delegates prepare for TRIPS Council meetings and become familiarized with the various online tools available to receive, […]

An updated version of the Services Trade Policy Database, jointly developed by the WTO and the World Bank, was presented at the WTO on 16 January. The database now contains new information on the services trade policies and regulations applied by 68 economies and incorporates data on 23 sub-sectors, including financial services, telecommunications, distribution, transport […]

On 18 December the United States, under Article 16 of the Dispute Settlement Understanding, notified the Dispute Settlement Body of its decision to appeal issues of law and legal interpretations developed by the WTO compliance panel in its report in the case brought by India in “United States — Countervailing Measures on Certain Hot-Rolled Carbon […]

Austria is donating EUR 200,000 (approximately CHF 220,000) to the WTO’s DDA Global Trust Fund in 2020 to help developing countries and least-developed countries (LDCs) implement WTO agreements and to increase their trade negotiating skills.

In a speech to Chinese university students visiting the WTO on 13 January, Deputy Director-General Alan Wolff underlined that China’s accession to the WTO accelerated the country’s process of internal economic reform. He said that the multilateral trading system provides the essential international legal structure to assure China’s economic future through trade and encouraged China […]

The WTO Secretariat has circulated a meeting notice and list of items proposed for the next meeting, on 13 January 2020, of the Dispute Settlement Body, which consists of all WTO members and oversees legal disputes among them. The meeting notice is circulated in the form of a document officially called an “airgram”.

At a meeting of the Dispute Settlement Body (DSB) on 8 January, WTO members formally adopted the panel and Appellate Body reports in a case brought by Turkey regarding anti-dumping measures imposed by Morocco on imports of certain hot-rolled steel products from Turkey.

The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and the WTO will hold the 12th annual Advanced Course on Intellectual Property for government officials from 16 to 27 March 2020. The deadline to submit applications is 17 January 2020.

Open Europe's Anthony Egan takes a look at what has been said on the structure of UK-EU future relationship talks after Johnson and von der Leyen's meet for the first time since the UK election result.The post Weekly Briefing: Attention turns to the structure of next phase Brexit talks appeared first on Open Europe.

Appearing on BBC News, Open Europe's Dominic Walsh discusses Prime Minister Boris Johnson's decision to rule out extending the transition period, alongside the Daily Telegraph's Dia Chakravarty.The post What does Johnson’s promise not to extend the transition period signify? appeared first on Open Europe.

Open Europe's Dominic Walsh and Stephen Booth consider what today's election outcome means for Brexit.The post What does the Conservative election victory mean for Brexit? appeared first on Open Europe.

Open Europe's Anthony Egan takes a look at what both major parties have said about immigration and the questions that remain.The post Weekly Briefing: Post-Brexit immigration policy remains an open question appeared first on Open Europe.

Open Europe’s Anthony Egan explains how free trade agreements constrain the immigration policies of contracting countries, the unilateral measures governments have at their disposal, and the implications of this for the next UK Government.The post How do trade agreements affect immigration policy? appeared first on Open Europe.

As the general election campaign enters its final two weeks, Open Europe's Dominic Walsh examines the commitments on trade deals in the parties' manifestos.The post Weekly Briefing: Spotlight on trade deals as manifestos published appeared first on Open Europe.

Most of the main UK political parties have now published their manifestos for the general election on 12 December. Open Europe’s Dominic Walsh examines each party’s Brexit policies and the key issues and questions that arise from them.The post What do the parties’ election manifestos say about Brexit? appeared first on Open Europe.

The Government’s Brexit deal leaves open the possibility of ‘No Deal’ after the transition period. Open Europe’s Dominic Walsh explains how this could come about, and points out that this would be a different type of ‘No Deal’ to one with no Withdrawal Agreement in place.The post What would a ‘No Deal’ after the transition […]

Open Europe's David Shiels looks at each party's Brexit policies as the election campaign moves into a new phase.The post Weekly Briefing: Party leaders defend Brexit policies as campaign enters new phase appeared first on Open Europe.

Open Europe's Stephen Booth and Anthony Egan explore how the UK party electoral alliances are starting to take shape.The post Weekly Briefing: Pro- and anti-Brexit electoral alliances start to take shape appeared first on Open Europe.