PHM-Exch> [PHM News] Statement presented to WHO Executive Board on Non-Comm Diseases

[Claudio Schuftan]

From: David Legge <D.Legge at latrobe.edu.au>


 *Statement presented, on behalf of PHM and MMI to the WHO Executive Board
on agenda item 7.1 dealing with a range of issues around NCDs *

This is a complex agenda item but because of limited time I shall focus on
one issue only; namely the terms of reference of the UN Inter Agency
Taskforce on NCDs as presented in Annex 3 to EB134/14.

We highlight, in particular, the absence of any reference, in the proposed
‘objectives’ for the Task Force, to the need to preserving policy space for
action on NCDs in the face of investor state dispute settlement provisions
in new trade agreements such as the Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement and
presumably also the proposed Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment
Partnership.

The action by Philip Morris Asia in opening a dispute under the Australia
Hong Kong BIT against Australia’s tobacco plain packaging laws illustrates
the potential of investor state dispute settlement provisions in new trade
and investment treaties. The threat of such disputes has the capacity to
deter countries from taking effective regulatory action in a relation to
NCDs and range of other public health issues. These provisions provide a
powerful weapon in the hands of transnational corporations to intimidate
governments, in particular the governments of smaller L&MICs.

Chair we urge that the provision of guidance on trade and investment rules
should be included in the terms of reference for the UN IA Task Force. This
would include advice on the negotiation of trade agreements that could
reduce public health regulatory policy space for NCDs and also the type of
language that should be incorporated in such treaty articles to protect
that policy space.

Thank you.

*Statement delivered by David Legge for MMI and PHM*
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