Brussels, 19/01/2016 (Agence Europe) - The message of the European Parliament's draft recommendations on the Trade in Services Agreement (TiSA), adopted by 33 votes in favour, 6 against and one abstention in the international trade committee on Monday 18 January, is that the TiSA must open up new markets for EU firms but protect EU consumers and public services.
The draft recommendations, compiled by Viviane Reding (EPP, Luxembourg), set out “blue lines” for the European Commission (which is to negotiate the TiSA on behalf of the EU) on what the Parliament wants in the agreement, and “red lines” on what it will refuse.
In their blue lines, the MEPs want more reciprocity from the EU's partners so as to guarantee EU firms access to third country markets that are as open as the EU's market is theirs. The TiSA should promote the opening up of public procurement, telecommunications sectors, transport, and financial and professional services, as well as the mobility of highly qualified professionals. The future agreement must also guarantee that restrictive practices are curbed (such as the forced data localisation - which requires service providers to create local servers - or caps on foreign equity), that red tape is cut and that information for SMEs is increased. The MEPs also want specific guarantees for consumers as regards roaming charges, commission on credit cards used abroad, junk mail and geolocalisation when online platforms are used.
Among the red lines, on the other hand, the MEPs want “clear and explicit' exclusions for sensitive EU sectors, including all public services (education, health, social services and social security systems) and audio-visual services. They also want respect of the fundamental right to data confidentiality and respect of the right of states to regulate in the public interest as regards public health, consumer safety and environmental protection.
In addition, the MEPs back China's request to join the TiSA negotiations, and they call for the multilateralisation of this agreement, which will initially be plurilateral.
“We are sending a strong message to negotiators about what TiSA we want and what TiSA we don't want. We want better international regulation, not lower domestic regulation. We want competition by the rules, not for the rules. We want a level playing field, not a global battlefield”, Reding said after the vote, delighted at wide support from across the political spectrum at the Parliament.
“TiSA is an opportunity to shape globalisation, ensure more reciprocity in terms of access to foreign markets and provide more rights to consumers. Yet our public services must be unequivocally excluded, our right to regulate fully preserved, and our fundamental rights and labour standards duly safeguarded”, the former European commissioner (1999-2014) added.
Reding's draft recommendations will be put to the vote at the Parliament's plenary session in early February.
Twenty-three parties - Australia, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Hong Kong, Iceland, Israel, Japan, Liechtenstein, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, Pakistan, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, South Korea, Switzerland, Taiwan, Turkey, the USA and the EU - have been involved in the TiSA negotiations since March 2013. Together these countries account for 70% of the world's trade in services. Fifteen rounds of negotiations have been held thus far (see EUROPE 11442).
The TiSA negotiations cover services sectors including ICT, logistics and transport services, financial services and business services. However, the goal of the future agreement beyond just opening up the services markets is to develop new rules on trade in services, like those that apply to public procurement for services, procedures for granting patents and access to communication networks. (Original version in French by Emmanuel Hagry)