A broad coalition of civil society organisations – including the environmental NGO Friends of the Earth, the European Consumer Organisation (BEUC), the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC/CES), the European Public Services Union (EPSU), the European Anti-Poverty Network (EAPN), the Health and Environment Alliance (HEAL) and the CEE Bankwatch Network – urged EU trade ministers on Thursday 22 September to reject the EU-Canada free trade agreement (CETA) at their informal meeting in Bratislava, which is due to begin on Thursday evening and conclude on Friday 23 September.
In a press release published on Thursday 22 September, these organisations warned that "the agreement is highly controversial with more than 3 million Europeans signing a petition against CETA and its twin agreement TTIP, and more than 2,000 municipalities declaring themselves TTIP- and CETA-free. The groups argue that CETA threatens public policies through its investment dispute resolution mechanism, brings no benefits to Europe’s citizens, and endangers the delivery of high quality public services".
Friends of the Earth stated that "the investment provisions in CETA grant unjustified privileges to foreign investors, threatening policy-making in the public interest. Investment protections has been used in the past to undermine environmental regulations and biased, unaccountable tribunals have cost European tax payers billions already. The investment chapter in CETA would massively expand these investor privileges and is reason alone to reject the agreement".
The ETUC emphasised that "under CETA, workers are second class citizens compared to investors. Labour and environmental protection is not enforceable under CETA, whereas investors are given a special legal procedure to enforce their rights. CETA will do nothing to promote quality jobs and decent pay, while presenting a threat to the delivery of high-quality public services".
BEUC meanwhile warned that "CETA does not provide tangible benefits to consumers, and contains provisions that could undermine current and future levels of consumer protection. For instance, CETA will allow foreign investors to sue governments and get compensation when governments pass a law to protect consumers better". (Original version in French by Emmanuel Hagry)