CETA and TTIP could be the biggest threats for the European consumer
Importance of European Union (EU) Treaties
As defined, the European Union (EU) is based on the rule of law founded on the base of treaties – a binding agreement – that have been approved voluntarily and democratically by all EU member countries.
The Treaty on European Union (TEU) (2007) and the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) are the primary treaties of the European Union (see European Union, n.d., n.p.). Consumer protection and law come under TFEU under the Title XV “consumer protection” article 169 (see European Union, Vol. 59, 2016, p. 124).
Moreover, the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement, or CETA, is a trade agreement between the EU and Canada. It has some of the strongest commitments ever included in a trade deal to promote labour rights, environmental protection and sustainable development. CETA integrates the EU’s and Canada’s commitments to apply international rules on workers’ rights, environmental protection and climate action. And these obligations are binding (see European Union, 2017, n.p.).
The EU-Canada Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA)
The European Commission proposed the signature of the EU-Canada Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) to the Council of the EU in July 2016. The Council approved the agreement in October 2016 and the European Parliament voted in favour of it on 15 February 2017. CETA entered into force provisionally on 21 September 2017.
The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP)
National parliaments in EU countries have still to approve it before it can take full effect (see European Union, 2017, n.p.). Likewise, the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, or TTIP and still according to the European Union, is a trade and investment agreement, which the European Union (EU) is negotiating with the United States – our biggest export market.
Customs duties, red tape and restrictions on investment on each side of the Atlantic can make it difficult to buy and sell goods and services on the other. Getting rid of these barriers to trade between the EU and the US would boost our economy, create jobs and widen choice and lower prices for consumers (see European Union, 2016, n.p.). However, a lot of concerns have been raised about CETA and TTIP. Concerns which threaten the EU’s precautionary principle such as regulatory cooperation, consumer protection, rules on domestic regulations, data flows or substantive intellectual property rights protections (see BEUC, 20/09/2017).
According to the Independent newspaper, these concerns become more serious and scary to the public especially that TTIP negotiations being carried out mostly in secret between the EU and US, stating that the process has been secretive and undemocratic, and this secrecy is on-going, with nearly all information on negotiations coming from leaked documents and Freedom of Information requests.
After all, the impact will highly affect the European consumer and will impact essential sectors and areas including the National Health Service (NHS), food and environmental safety, banking regulations, privacy, jobs and democracy (see Williams, 2015).
Sources:
BEUC (Beyond Trade, 2017): BEYOND TRADE: EU CONSUMERS IN GLOBAL MARKETS (2017-09-20), BEUC-X-2017-097 – Brussels: The Consumer Voice in Europe, 20/09/2017
Union (Official Journal, 2016): Official Journal of the European Union (2016-06-07), European Union, Vol. 59, 2016/C 202/01
European Union (Treaties, n.d.): EU treaties, https://europa.eu/european-union/law/treaties_en, (access on 2018-01-15 12:30 CET)
European Union (CETA, 2017): CETA explained, http://ec.europa.eu/trade/policy/in-focus/ceta/ceta-explained (2017-09-21), (access on 2018-01-15 12:30 CET)
European Union (Canada, 2017): Countries and regions, Canada, http://ec.europa.eu/ (2017-09-21), (access on 2018-01-15 12:30 CET)
European Union (TTIP, 2016): About TTIP – basics, benefits, concerns, http://ec.europa.eu (2016-09-06), (access on 2018-01-15 12:30 CET)
Williams, Lee (reasons, 2015): What is TTIP? And six reasons why the answer should scare you (2015-10-06), http://www.independent.co.uk/, (access on 2018-01-15 12:30 CET)
Comments are closed