Overcoming ‘Frankenfoods’ and ‘secret courts’: the resilience of EU trade policy. College of Europe Policy Brief #9.18

De Bièvre, Dirk and Gstöhl, Sieglinde and Van Ommeren, Emile (2018) Overcoming ‘Frankenfoods’ and ‘secret courts’: the resilience of EU trade policy. College of Europe Policy Brief #9.18. [Policy Paper]

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Abstract

Despite vocal contestation and fears of domestic institutional deadlock over its trade negotiations, the European Union has proven resilient in its trade policy, notably by concluding bilateral trade and investment agreements with important partners, including two across the North Atlantic, Canada and Mexico. > A professionally orchestrated NGO campaign against TTIP and CETA that fed scepticism in several EU member states was crowned with mixed success. Whereas TTIP negotiations were put on hold, CETA finally proceeded. The lack of a broad pan-European opposition and the strong consensual decision-making processes in the EU incentivised policy-makers to accommodate objections, tread carefully and craft compromise. > This process has been further facilitated by the May 2017 Singapore ruling of the Court of Justice of the EU which created room for trade agreements to be split according to exclusive and shared competences. As a result, new agreements such as those with Singapore or Japan now typically embrace three agreements in order to expedite ratification: trade, investment protection and political cooperation. > Separating trade and investment agreements makes it more difficult for special interests to hold free trade agreements hostage and locates parliamentary scrutiny at the European level, while investment agreements face additional ratification by member state parliaments – and a pending Court Opinion.

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