EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT POSTPONES DEBATE AND VOTE ON EU-US TRADE TALKS
The European Parliament has postponed a critical debate and vote on the EU-US trade talks known as TTIP.
The MEPs were supposed to vote today on the EU’s negotiating position on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership talks.
But divisions among MEPs within the Parliament’s second-biggest block led to the postponement.
There is disquiet in Europe over a controversial investor protection clause being negotiated.
Sinn Fein MEP Matt Carthy is against a TTIP deal.
“The primary issue for me is an inclusion of an ISDS mechanism – that’s a mechanism that will allow a tribunal-type court to make decisions over and above decisions that are made by national and European courts” he said.
“So in my view that’s a huge issue in terms of the democracy, and also in terms of accountability – and it will undermine the power of democratically elected governments to put in place measures or regulations that are aimed at protecting citizens rights” he added.
