Workshop on Transparency - afternoon session English Group 1

Actions by the Committee Concrete actions to enhance the use and usefulness of transparency provisions Actions by the Committee Revision of G/SPS/7/Rev.2 and G/SPS/33 Caveats of some Members on agreeing changes at this meeting Actions by the Secretariat Semi-annual implementation overviews (as per G/SPS/GEN/804) Consideration of additional factors: date of adoption, date of entry into force, deviation from international standard On-line submission of notifications to WTO IMS Secretariat background paper on benefits of transparency – and SPS as a whole.

Actions at national level Concrete actions to enhance the use and usefulness of transparency provisions Actions at national level Merits acknowledged of private sector consultation and national SPS Committee mechanisms But, no “one size fits all” solution Importance of using international standards as a point of departure for legislation and clear guidance on “significant impact on trade” Difficulties in identification of deviation from international standards and provision of scientific justification Suggestion to share Members’ experiences with systems to filter notifications e.g. e-mail alert systems etc Possible role that systems like IPFSAPH can play to assist national authorities filter information

Actions at bilateral/plurilateral level Concrete actions to enhance the use and usefulness of transparency provisions Actions at bilateral/plurilateral level Merits of a mentoring system recognized How transparent should the offers of transparency assistance be? Is TBT questionnaire G/TBT/16 a model? Actions at a regional level Advantages of using regional bodies e.g. regional PPOs Drawback: regional organizations not practitioners Actions by international standard setting bodies Noted the need for participation and mechanisms to facilitate e.g. Trust Funds Possible involvement by private sector in regional meetings on standards development by ISSBs