Bill English Leader of the Opposition

15 November 2001

Praise for WTO Head Mike Moore

Opposition Leader Bill English today praised former Prime Minister Mike Moore for his outstanding achievement in winning an historic agreement from the World Trade Organisation, which he now heads.

"A successful trade round would make a big difference to the future of the New Zealand economy.

"It's particularly heartening to see that the round will contribute to the needs of agriculture where the biggest benefits lie for New Zealand.

"Mike Moore has done a tremendous job in pulling together such diverse nations to get the talks going.

"After the last failure at the Seattle talks Mike Moore took on the near impossible task of getting 142 nations to reach agreement.

"The fact that he has done so in just 2 years as the WTO Director General is a huge personal credit for him and New Zealand.

"New Zealand has always been determined to achieve progress on trade development and Mike Moore has shown drive and determination to give us the best shot at it.

"I would like to congratulate Mike Moore on his achievement not only for us but for the difference the agreement will make to the whole global economy," says Mr English.

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