[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 217 Introduced in House (IH)]







109th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. CON. RES. 217

Expressing the sense of the Congress that the President should seek to 
       enter into a free trade agreement with the United Kingdom.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 22, 2005

    Mr. Souder (for himself, Mr. Feeney, Mr. Flake, and Mr. Terry) 
 submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was referred to 
                    the Committee on Ways and Means

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION


 
Expressing the sense of the Congress that the President should seek to 
       enter into a free trade agreement with the United Kingdom.

Whereas a close, unique economic, cultural, and strategic relationship exists 
        between the United States and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and 
        Northern Ireland;
Whereas law, language, literature, common conceptions of what is right and 
        decent, a marked regard for fair play, especially to the weak and poor, 
        a stern sentiment of impartial justice, and above all the love of 
        personal freedom are common conceptions in the Anglosphere that is our 
        English-speaking nations;
Whereas the Anglo-American economies are based on promarket principles such as 
        private property rights, low government regulation, entrepreneurship, 
        and innovation;
Whereas these principles allow the United States and the United Kingdom to 
        maintain strong vibrant economies that are able to adapt to changing 
        global economic conditions;
Whereas the United Kingdom has long pioneered and championed free trade around 
        the world, an example embraced by the United States;
Whereas the United States and the United Kingdom have the largest and the fourth 
        largest economies in the world, respectively;
Whereas direct foreign investment flowing between the United States and the 
        United Kingdom totals nearly $400,000,000,000; this relationship, the 
        largest in the world, helps to sustain more than a million American 
        jobs;
Whereas the United States dollar and the British pound sterling remain the chief 
        currencies for businesses around the world;
Whereas American investment in Britain is almost double the amount that Germany, 
        France, and Italy combined invest in Britain; and Britain also invests 
        double the amount in the United States than it does in Germany, France, 
        and Italy;
Whereas in an opinion poll conducted in the United Kingdom between September 16 
        and 20, 2004, by ICM Research Limited, 58 percent of respondents 
        answered that ``We should take back powers from the EU and develop a new 
        global trade and defence alliance with America, some in Europe, and 
        other countries across the world'';
Whereas economic growth in the United States has been considerably enhanced by 
        bilateral agreements to lower barriers for United States exports; a 
        report by the International Trade Commission estimates that the 
        elimination of tariffs between the United States and the United Kingdom 
        would result in an 11 to 16 percent increase in exports from the United 
        States to the United Kingdom;
Whereas the purpose of a free trade area should be to facilitate trade between 
        constituent territories and not to raise trade barriers against others; 
        trade barriers, by increasing the final price of imported goods to 
        consumers or limiting their availability in other ways, can directly 
        inhibit consumer freedom and reduce consumer welfare;
Whereas countries that open their domestic markets, remove barriers to foreign 
        direct investment, and promote free enterprise empower their citizens to 
        alleviate poverty;
Whereas the nations of the Anglosphere have sought to expand the idea of free 
        trade through bilateral and multilateral agreements and international 
        organizations;
Whereas the United States and the United Kingdom are both members of the World 
        Trade Organization (WTO), and its predecessor the General Agreement on 
        Tariffs and Trade (GATT), which guarantee the right of countries to 
        enter into free trade agreements with other countries;
Whereas on August 6, 2002, the President signed into law the Trade Act of 2002 
        (Public Law 107-210), which provides for an expedited procedure for 
        congressional consideration of international trade agreements; and
Whereas the United States Senate has expressed its support for a free trade 
        agreement with the United Kingdom: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), 
That it is the sense of the Congress that the President should take the 
necessary steps to conclude a free trade agreement between the United 
States and the United Kingdom.
                                 <all>