On the road to Liberty

Liberty Institute Briefing Paper on Trade and Development "International Trade and Child Labour: The role of the market" was published in November 1999. Social and labour conditions have become a highly charged subject, particularly after attempts to link trade and social conditions under the auspices of the WTO. On the one hand, lower labour conditions, including the use of child labour is said to give economic advantage to some countries, and therefore there is a demand for protection in some other countries. On the other hand, these poor labour conditions are said to be the fallout of market reforms and free trade, and therefore there is a demand for restricting trade. No doubt child labour provides an emotive shield for a range of other agendas. However, rather than a restrictive linkage between trade and child labour, historical experience clearly shows that an open market and free trade are the best instruments for improving the labour conditions, including elimination ...