We need to be very clear today that any granting of GSP+ to Sri Lanka should not be seen as a reward but as a mutual commitment: the EU offers certain trade benefits designed to help the country’s development, in exchange, the Government of Sri Lanka undertakes to improve implementation of the 27 International Conventions it has ratified in the areas of labour rights, environmental protection, human and civil rights – these are international norms which will do much to improve the daily lives of all living in Sri Lanka, not least through the improvement of the justice system.
After much consideration, I have voted against today’s proposal for rejection of GSP+. This is not because I believe all is well in the country – I know it is not: much needs to be done in terms of reconciliation and a post-conflict political settlement, among other changes. But I do want an ongoing process designed to ensure the delivery of genuine implementation because I am not naive about Government promises. GSP+ gives us a framework where, if one party does not deliver, the other can call time on the deal – as Sri Lanka understands.