Accountability and Legitimacy in Global Health and Safety Governance: The World Trade Organization, the SPS Committee, and International Standard-Setting Organizations

Abstract

Following the creation of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the application of the WTO’s Sanitary and Phytosanitary Agreement (hereinafter ‘SPS Agreement), concerns over health and safety have become increasingly predominant in the international trade regime. While rulings under the WTO dispute settlement procedure, as in the case of European Communities – Measures Concerning Meat and Meat Products (Hormones) (hereinafter ‘EC-Hormones’) and European Communities – Measures Affecting the Approval and Marketing of Biotech Products (hereinafter ‘EC-Biotech(GMOs)’), have received most of the attention, these rulings based upon the SPS Agreement are not the only governance arrangements available in the WTO. The SPS Agreement also provides a forum – the SPS Committee – for debate over the health and safety concerns among Member States. This article reviews how the work of the SPS Committee fits into the recent WTO accountability debate. It examines how the SPS Committee provides for an accountability mechanism between Member States, thereby facilitating participation and promoting transparency. Furthermore, it focuses on the role of international standards, established by international standard-setting organizations, and addresses debates over the legitimacy of international standard-setting processes. This article also examines how ‘international regime complexity’ (or ‘regime interactions’) between the WTO and international standard-setting organizations relates to the questions of legitimacy and accountability. Finally, it concludes with a look at the question of the accountability of the SPS Committee itself.