ActionAid is calling on the UK government to take urgent action to curb corporate influence at the WTO. Members must put the needs of poor people above those of multinational corporations, and the EU and US should stop pushing developing countries into opening their markets to foreign multinationals.

Recent ActionAid research exposed how corporate lobbyists have an undue influence on the current global trade talks in our report - 'Under the influence'.

'Under the influence' reveals a worldwide explosion of corporate lobbying which contributes to unfair trade rules that undermine the fight against poverty. The report highlights examples of privileged corporate access to, and excessive influence over the WTO policymaking process.

In the EU alone, there are 15,000 lobbyists based in Brussels - around one for every official in the European Commission. Annual corporate lobbying expenditure in Brussels is estimated at €750 million to €1 billion.

In the US, 17,000 lobbyists work in Washington DC – outnumbering US Congress lawmakers by 30 to one. Meanwhile, the pharmaceutical industry is reported to have spent over $1 billion lobbying in the US in 2004.

Corporate lobby group, the European Services Forum (ESF), which includes BT, Vodafone and Lloyds, has confirmed it has regular meetings with high-level EU trade officials to share strategies for WTO negotiations. The group pushes for developing countries to open its markets in telecoms, tourism and IT. The EU incorporated ESF’s position in its negotiations at the WTO meeting in Hong Kong last year.

Drug companies are also using WTO rules to safeguard their profits and hinder the fight against HIV & AIDS. In 2003, senior officials from Pfizer, the world’s biggest drug company, negotiated directly with the WTO’s director-general and its member states to block a proposal that would allow poor countries to import cheaper copies of patented drugs during health emergencies.