O’Brien backs Libyan trade
The Minister for Trade and Industry has said he believes Libya is a valuable market for UK business.
Following Libya’s payment of compensation to the victims of the Lockerbie bombing, and renouncement of weapons of mass destruction, international restrictions on trade have been relaxed.
Many countries, among them Britain, are looking at the business opportunities of Libya’s largely unexploited natural resources.
In 2003 UK trade with Libya in visible goods was up 12 per cent to £241 million according to official figures.
Mike O’Brien recently led a delegation of UK businessmen to Libya in which he met with Libyan trade ministers and is now keen to promote avenues open to British business.
Speaking at a London seminar “Doing Business in Libya” Mr O’Brien said of the visit: “I was encouraged by their enthusiastic welcome and their readiness to discuss issues important to us such as economic reform.”
He highlighted the investment potential in Libya’s “abundant oil and gas reserves” and noted that in March Shell signed a Heads of Agreement for gas exploration with the Libyan goverment.
This Mr O’Brien said revealed the industrial trade links available to Britain, but he also argued that Libya’s “heritage, its talented and skilled people and its Mediterranean climate offer huge potential for the development of tourism.”
Turning to the conditions for British business inside Libya, Mr O’Brien said: “There are encouraging signs too that Libya is moving away from a state-controlled economy towards a free market.”
He cited in particular Libya’s decision to seek World Trade Organisation (WTO) membership
But he warned: “Libya will need to take tough political decisions to realise its full economic potential.”
“Relinquishing state control will not be easy. Opening up markets to competition can mean painful job losses. We have all had to face that. But competition leads to new enterprise and that means more jobs and more growth.”
“The UK is firmly committed to sustaining and broadening this open dialogue. Indeed we have pledged long-term financial support to help make this happen.”
The Minister said that the UK government are also pressing the Libyans to provide an “open and reliable business environment”.
This he defined as respecting contracts and agreements, ensuring tendering processes are transparent, that commercial law will be enforced and that companies are certain they will be paid.
To aid UK business, Mr O’Brien said the Goverment have reintroduced the Export Credit Guarantee (ECG) for Libyan projects.
The ECG is an insurance provided to exporters to help them guard against the risk of not being paid by overseas buyers after goods are exported.
