Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2006-03-14-Speech-2-171"
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"en.20060314.24.2-171"2
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".
Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, the footwear industry is an important economic sector in the European Community, known throughout the world for the excellence of its products.
In conclusion, I can tell you, Commissioner, that the European Parliament’s Committee on International Trade is going to follow the whole of this process very closely, because we believe that the step taken by the Commission is a first step and that it must be accompanied by an attitude in favour of China and other countries, such as Vietnam, having greater opportunities within international trade while jointly respecting the rules we have laid down.
This sector is largely made up of small and medium-sized businesses, located in many cases in regions where they are the main source of employment. In 2005 there were more than 11 000 companies, employing more than 500 000 workers directly or indirectly and producing around 700 million shoes, representing 10% of world production. I should also point out that, in response to the opening-up process, the footwear industry has been extensively restructured and now concentrates its production on the higher price range in particular. I would say that Europe’s most obvious speciality is the leather industry.
Just as in the case of textiles, the impact of the liberalisation process has been important in terms of putting an end to the quota system. The monitoring system introduced by the Commission clearly demonstrates that imports, from China in particular – but not just from China – have seen a spectacular increase. Last year, the average increase in imports in terms of value and quantity exceeded 450% and, in some cases, it was as high as 900%.
The average price of imported footwear has fallen significantly, but the retail price of products has not. This does not support the thesis – a thesis that we all believe should be defended – that the true beneficiaries of the process of trade liberalisation should be the consumers.
A year ago, the European Confederation of the Footwear Industry presented a complaint about dumping practices in the leather footwear sector. This is one of the biggest cases to have arisen in the European Union, and it affects many industries to the tune of more than EUR 800 million.
On 23 February, Commissioner Mandelson announced to the media that the Commission was going to recommend an increase in tariffs of 19.4% for China and 16.8% for Vietnam. Children’s and other footwear, which represent a very significant proportion, were not subject to this kind of measure. The fact is that the Commission adopted an unprecedented decision, introducing provisional tariffs for a period of five months by way of an antidumping measure. It should be pointed out that, given the unit value of the products, this measure cannot be seen as extreme. It is a relatively small percentage.
I am not going to say anything more about dumping. In my capacity as Chairman of the Committee on International Trade, however, I would like to make a few comments on the basis of an initial premise, and that is the need to respect the rules that we have laid down within the framework of the WTO, both inside and outside the Community. I am aware that this is rather more than a simple case of dumping. In some cases, we are talking about the survival of the sector in Europe and also about the possibility of relocation as an appropriate response to developments. As you know, everybody has their arguments in these cases; however, it is inconceivable that the entire European industry should move out.
At the same time, it should be pointed out that China is trying to achieve market economy status within the WTO. Certain aspects of the Community’s investigations indicate that, in this case, China has clearly not complied with WTO obligations, either in the field of subsidies, whether hidden or not, or in the field of counterfeits. This is therefore an opportunity, Commissioner, to demonstrate to the citizens that the Commission is going to do everything in its power to ensure that the trade rules are respected, including, if necessary, having recourse to the WTO’s dispute settlement body.
These distortions of the market are not restricted to the footwear sector. There are well-founded suspicions that certain forms of illegal support for Chinese exporting companies are offered regularly. Commissioner, in view of the expectations of the industry in question and the sensitivity of European public opinion, I would like to know what actions the Commission will take to ensure that that country respects WTO rules. Political considerations must not take precedence over technical conclusions where antidumping is concerned. The measures that you have proposed are controversial. The European industry and certain Member States are not satisfied with your proposal. Public objections have been expressed to the 'creativity' demonstrated by the Commission in its application of the well-established rules and practices in the field of antidumping. I do not know whether these allegations are true. What I do know is that antidumping investigations are based on laws that must be applied fully without any kind of parallel consideration."@en1
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