State Secretary, a very warm welcome to you and your delegation both from Oslo and here from Geneva. Thank you for bringing the spark of the land of Midnight Sun, beautiful Fjords and magical Northern Lights.
Thank you to the WTO Secretariat, as ever, for their report. Thank you, Chair, for your introductory comments. Thank you to our distinguished discussant for his insightful comments. I thought your final point about the value shown by the Norwegian case, but obviously a much broader point about institutions, is a very worthwhile one.
Thank you, also, to the government of Norway for piloting the new Trade Policy Review portal. We were particularly pleased to see it come to life given that we have our own TPR coming up later this year so we may see it in use again.
Report Analysis
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Chair, the reports highlight Norway’s extraordinary economic resilience, keeping up its very high GDP per capita level despite the challenges of COVID-19 and the rest.
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Its transformation into a high-income, knowledge-based economy, for us, reflects the power of open trade and strategic investment. The World Bank says that international trade accounts for over 80% of its GDP, which is remarkable.
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Between 2018 and 2024, foreign trade rose steadily. Imports grew from over 700 billion Norwegian Krone to over one trillion Krone, and exports from just over one trillion Krone to almost two trillion Krone. Extraordinary figures. Excluding oil, gas, ships and drilling platforms, traditional goods trade rose by about 50% and services trade by 110%.
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Testimony, if I may say, State Secretary, to your commitment to open trade and investment, but also the rewards of that commitment.
Digitoll
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As noted in our Advance Written Questions, we’re particularly interested in the Digitoll customs declaration system, set for full rollout next year.
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We very much welcome its aim to automate customs proceedings and speed up clearances, especially given imports represent over 40% of Norway’s GDP.
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We look forward to further details and we wish you every success with that rollout.
Bilateral Relationship
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Bilaterally, Chair, our relationship with Norway is exceptionally close. So close, in fact, that the Norwegian Prime Minister described us as ‘best friends’ during our own Prime Minister’s visit in May. As somebody who has been around in the diplomatic service for a few years, I have never seen it so strong. And we have had several ministerial visits just in the last 12 months.
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And this relationship also extends to trade. In 2024, Norway was the UK’s 12th largest trading partner with total trade valued at over £38 billion.
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Our UK-EEA/EFTA Free Trade Agreement (FTA), signed in 2021, is one of the UK’s most modern and comprehensive. This FTA is not only a successful deal for businesses in both countries but also provides our governments with the opportunity for regular dialogue on trade, which we very much appreciate.
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Our Strategic Partnership, signed in December last year, adds further depth and breadth, particularly in priority sectors such as energy.
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In May, we welcomed our Green Industrial Partnership, which reflects our unique energy relationship across the North Sea. And just last week, in our newly published and elegant Trade Strategy, we committed to build on that bilateral partnership, underscoring its importance for our shared clean energy goals.
Gender
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Chair, our countries also share a commitment to gender equality in trade.
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We welcome Norway’s efforts, including through its board composition requirements for limited liability companies. As one of the three co-chairs of our Informal Working Group on Trade and Gender here, let me commend Norway’s participation in that group, and encourage it to continue sharing its valuable practices here at the WTO.
WTO Engagement
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Which brings me last, but by no means least, to Norway’s exemplary commitment to the multilateral trading system and to this organisation.
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Like others, I must start by paying tribute to my colleague, true friend of the system and multi-hatted Norwegian colleague, Petter Ølberg. DSB Chair, DS Reform Facilitator, General Council Chair; his personal commitment to this organisation is clear as is his track record of success.
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Petter, your leadership as GC Chair was genuinely inspiring. And we agree with your final message to all of us real dialogue and real reform are essential to the future of this organisation.
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So, we are thrilled that you have been appointed as Reform Facilitator. As outlined in our Trade Strategy we remain a staunch supporter of the multilateral trading system but we agree there is an urgent need for reform.
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And so we welcome Norway’s participation in key WTO plurilateral initiatives, including the JSIs on Services Domestic Regulation, Electronic Commerce, and Investment Facilitation for Development. I think they reflect your forward looking approach, State Secretary, to modernising global trade rules and are a key part of those reform efforts.
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We applaud your ratification of the Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies and encourage your continued leadership.
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And your leadership on trade and environment is particularly commendable, where you have consistently championed ambitious and constructive engagement.
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Like the UK, as you said at the beginning, State Secretary, our two countries see trade policy as an enabler of the vital move to net zero. Our new Trade Strategy supports this, as it underlines that we would like to go further with Norway and others to “go further and faster in the transition to net zero”.
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And finally, on trade and development, your leadership and advocacy for the interests of developing countries is appreciated right across this organisation. As fellow donors, we have worked closely together, and will continue to do so, including through our support for the Advisory Centre on WTO Law and as Board members of the Enhanced Integrated Framework, to help ensure the proper participation of developing countries in the multilateral trading system.
Conclusion
So, to conclude, State Secretary, keep up the good work! Keep up being an example to all of us.
As this is my last Trade Policy Review, let me say that it has been a real pleasure to end with such a close trading partner and genuine friend as well as a good neighbour. Trade Policy Reviews, Chair, are fundamental to transparency and the good working of this organisation. And I know my successor, Kumar Iyer, and our team, are looking forward to our own first TPR later this year.
‘Tusen takk’ to you, State Secretary, and your team for your full and transparent engagement with this TPR, yet another example of your continued commitment to this organisation. Thank you.
