Text tabled : A7-0234/2012

  Tokia Saïfi (PPE), in writing. – (FR) I voted in favour of this report, as it goes some way towards restoring the balance between the proposals of the European Commission and the reality on the ground. In particular, it highlights the lack of dialogue and the lack of consistency between the different branches of the EU’s external action, leading to a decrease in the efficiency of the funds allocated and the actions undertaken in the field of development.

I therefore supported paragraph 51, which states that ‘aid for trade and trade facilitation instruments (…) need to change in order to facilitate trade for local and regional markets’. Indeed, these markets are a necessary precondition to integration in the global market.

I also supported paragraph 61, which calls for European businesses operating in third countries to be subject to sanctions in their country of origin if they violate basic international labour standards. I had proposed this option in an opinion drafted for the Committee on International Trade last year and it seems to me to be just as relevant today, in view of the growing interdependency of national economies.