The European Commission and Sri Lanka will meet next month when Colombo will be able to press its case further for a continuation of the GSP Plus trade concession.
The new European Trade Commissioner, Catherine Ashton, who succeeded Peter Mandelson after he joined the Gordon Brown cabinet, has agreed to meet a Sri Lanka delegation in late January to discuss the GSP Plus issue, EU sources said.
The meeting has been urged by Sri Lanka which is under investigation by the EU to determine whether it has effectively implemented 27 core-UN and ILO conventions on human and labour rights and other international conventions relating to the environment and governance principles.
It is understood that Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama will lead the delegation to Brussels to present further evidence to support Sri Lanka’s call for the continuation of the trade concession which has hugely benefited the garment industry as it allows duty free access, for a further three years.
Sri Lanka made strong representations for a continuation in a fresh application in October.
However, the EC said it would want to investigate Colombo’s strict compliance with the relevant conventions and intended to send a team to Colombo to do so.
The Sri Lanka Government said it would not entertain a team of investigators in Colombo but would assist the Brussels-based organization with necessary information that would help the investigators.
The EC launched its investigation in October. Meanwhile, earlier this month the EC decided to give 16 developing countries including Sri Lanka duty free access to 6,400 items to its markets until the end of 2011.
Whether Sri Lanka will be able to enjoy this three-year extension fully will, however, depend on the outcome of the investigation. Another country El Salvador is also under scrutiny. | 
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