Federal Department of Economic Affairs, Education and Research EAER State Secretariat for Economic Affairs SECO OECD Workshop on Trade and International Regulatory Cooperation Christophe Perritaz 10 February, 2014 Non Tariff Measures

OECD Workshop on Trade and International Regulatory Cooperation SECO/AFNT – Christophe Perritaz 2 Technical Regulations and Conformity Assessment Procedures

OECD Workshop on Trade and International Regulatory Cooperation SECO/AFNT – Christophe Perritaz Requirements for Global Markets 3 < Réglages < Général < Informations < Mention légale < Certification

OECD Workshop on Trade and International Regulatory Cooperation SECO/AFNT – Christophe Perritaz Shallow vs Deep Integration “The differences between non-tariff measures and tariffs require a new set of institutional tools that go beyond shallow integration.” WTO World Trade Report Shallow integration National treatment Non violation Transparency Necessity test for technical regulations Deep’er’ integration Mutual recognition Harmonisation Regulatory cooperation The pragmatic approach

OECD Workshop on Trade and International Regulatory Cooperation SECO/AFNT – Christophe Perritaz Mutual Recognition 2-step approach technical regulations? (article 2.7 TBT Agreement) conformity assessment procedures? (article 6 TBT Agreement)  “traditional” MRA approach Downsides  Race to the bottom  Need a set of agreed “minimal” requirements  Might work as a complementary tool 5

OECD Workshop on Trade and International Regulatory Cooperation SECO/AFNT – Christophe Perritaz Harmonisation: Swiss-EU MRA Prerequisites Long-term political commitment (to ensure harmonisation in the future) Strong regulatory cooperation at the early stages Downsides  Works in technical area only  Even if they face similar challenges, regulators might address them in different ways and at a different pace (timber products)  Difficult to achieve at multilateral level 6

OECD Workshop on Trade and International Regulatory Cooperation SECO/AFNT – Christophe Perritaz Towards Harmonisation: International Standards non-complex products IEC standards & IECEE CB Scheme to ensure electrical safety International standards Deviations Acceptance of conformity assessment procedures based on IECEE CB Scheme 7

OECD Workshop on Trade and International Regulatory Cooperation SECO/AFNT – Christophe Perritaz Towards Harmonisation: International Standards (II) 8 complex products responsibility can hardly be delegated to private sector MAD System for chemical testing  testing GLP  joint assessments of labs  capacity building  authorisation, registration not covered  OECD

OECD Workshop on Trade and International Regulatory Cooperation SECO/AFNT – Christophe Perritaz Towards Harmonisation: Regulatory Cooperation Non-binding exhange of information and experience  building confidence  capacity building  better understanding  pooling of resources  resource intensive  non binding 9

OECD Workshop on Trade and International Regulatory Cooperation SECO/AFNT – Christophe Perritaz The Pragmatic Approach Labelling of Textiles If a Party has mandatory permanent labelling requirements for textiles and clothing, it shall observe the following requirements: information requirements shall be limited to size, fiber content and care instructions; Relevant ISO standards shall be accepted for textiles' care labelling instructions; and The Party shall notify the other Party, in English, any additional requirement to those set out under paragraph a) and b) above. The notification shall in particular explain how such requirements are not more trade restrictive than necessary to fulfil a legitimate objective in accordance with Article 2.2 of the TBT Agreement. 10 common set of requirements transparency

OECD Workshop on Trade and International Regulatory Cooperation SECO/AFNT – Christophe Perritaz Deepening integration Mutual Recognition… Harmonisation… Towards Harmonisation The pragmatic approach has shown its limits Requires a long-term political commitment Identifying the right fora Regulatory cooperation Identifying sectors with already converging regualtions 11

OECD Workshop on Trade and International Regulatory Cooperation SECO/AFNT – Christophe Perritaz 12 The End