Democracy and CETA

16.3.2017

Question for written answer E-001782-17
to the Commission
Rule 130
Dominique Martin (ENF)

In response to the reservations about ratifying a treaty such as CETA (the EU-Canada Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement) voiced in some political quarters nationally, the EU institutions flouted the democratic process at several levels, both national and European. Civil society has legitimate concerns not only about the damage this type of free-trade agreement can do to jobs and to provisions for protecting workers, but also about the establishment of arbitration courts.

In order to speed up the adoption of the draft agreement and favour the interests of large groups, it was simply not tabled for debate in a number of national parliaments, and certain relevant EP committees were not even consulted. This failure to consult a large number of democratically-elected MPs is a serious attack on democracy.

The transparency of the different negotiating phases, held up by the Commission as a model, seems to justify all other shortcomings.

How does the Commission intend to explain to Europe’s citizens, its evident desire to short-circuit debate about the agreement?