Grammar in Speech

10. Supply the correct form of the verbs given in brackets and perform the role play given below. Eu Revives Row over Hormone Beef Ban

The European Commission reopened one of the most damaging recent disputes with the US when it (1) _______________ (to insist) that North American hormone-treated beef (2) _______________ (to be) dangerous to human health and will continue (3) _______________ (to ban).

America and Canada (4) _______________ (to try) to make the EU (5) _______________ (to drop) an import ban for years and appeared (6) _______________ (to have) right on their side. In 1998 the World Trade Organization (WTO) ruled the ban illegal because the grounds for (7) _______________ (to refuse) the meat (8) _______________ (to be) too general and its scientific evidence did not specifically look at the dangers of (9) _______________ (to put) growth-promoting hormones into meat.

Brussels (10) _______________ (to oppose) the ruling ever since (11) _______________ (to argue) that the meat may cause cancer and harm unborn babies. In 1999 the US lost patience and slapped retaliatory sanctions on EU goods worth $116 million a year.

The sanctions (12) _______________ (to target) European delicacies such as Roquefort cheese, Danish ham, German chocolate and French mustard. European producers were so furious that many (13) _______________ (to throw) themselves into anti-American, anti-globalization movement which is known (14) _______________ (to trash) several McDonald’s restaurants in France.

Canada, which treats its beef in the same way as the US, is reported (15) _______________ (to hit) the EU with sanctions worth C$11 million a year.

The sanctions appear (16) _______________ (to have) no effect. Brussels signaled that it (17) _______________ (to have) no intention of (18) _______________ (to lift) its ban and said it (19) _______________ (to amass) fresh and compelling evidence that (20) _______________ (to prove) North American beef (21) ___________ (to be) unsafe.

The commission said it (22) _______________ (to strengthen) the ban. “Today’s move shows that we are fully committed to (23) _______________ (to abide) by our WTO obligations,” said Pascal Lamy, EU trade commissioner. “We (24) _______________ (to work) hard to get this new legislation in place and I now call on the US and Canada to lift their trade sanctions against the EU.”

Canadian trade minister said he (25) _______________ (to see) no reason for Canada (26) _______________ (to change) track. “Bring me the science and I will look at it, but we are known (27) _______________ (to win) a WTO panel that was in my view quite clear.”

(From ‘The Guardian’, abridged)

Role Play

You are managers of a trade firm in Russia dealing mostly with food stuffs. Of late your business has been declining because of tougher competition on the market, so you need to cut down prices. Due to the situation described in the article given above, you can obtain a contract with an American company selling beef. Predictably, you can get the product quite cheap. Now you are in conference with your possible American partners. You must decide in principle whether you’ll make a deal or not.

Role 1. You are (your own name). You are greatly interested in the deal as you think it is the only way to keep your business from bankruptcy. At the same time you have doubts if it will go down well with your customers.

Role 2. You are (your own name). You are reluctant to conclude the deal because you think the beef can affect people’s health and you don’t want to have it on your conscience.

Role 3. You are (your own name). You are in two minds. You are aware of the danger, but money matters trouble you a lot, too.

Role 4. You are Reagan Ronald, a representative of ‘Ronald Foods, Ltd.’ You need the contract badly since the rejection of your products in Europe put you on the verge of bankruptcy.

Role 5. You are Rachel Clarency, a representative of a US health care branch which studies the effect of hormone-treated beef on human health. R. Ronald (see Role 4) asked you to participate in the discussion to support his ideas. However, you, personally, think … (your own ideas).