While French and Dutch trade policy priorities do not often converge, France and the Netherlands are faced with growing public scepticism about the European Union’s trade policy.
No doubt sharing the feeling that this emblematic policy of the Union needs to be reformed, the two countries published a joint non-paper on Tuesday 5 May on the future of European trade policy (see EUROPE 12468/15).
The two States recall the need to not bury pre-Covid-19 priorities. Sustainable development and, more specifically, the fight against global warming “need mainstreaming in all EU external and internal public policies”, they believe. Only then will the EU be able to keep its external borders open after the pandemic.
First proposal: Strengthen the ambition and implementation of the sustainable development chapters of recent EU free trade agreements (FTAs). However, The Hague and Paris prefer the carrot to the stick. Rather than sanctioning non-Member States in breach, the EU could instead reward partner countries that meet these commitments.
In order to improve the socio-economic impact of trade agreements, the Commission should provide more detailed sectoral and geographical analyses, the document also states.
Both countries also advocate the development of a European Action Plan for Responsible Business Conduct, an idea already put forward by The Hague in late 2019 (see EUROPE 12380/15). This plan would include an appropriate mix of mandatory and voluntary measures and would combine all means by which the EU promotes responsible management of value chains, ensuring a level playing field within the Single Market (se EUROPE 12471/7, 12476/14).
Both States also call for a border carbon adjustment mechanism that would combine the EU’s climate objectives with the international competitiveness of EU companies (see EUROPE 12388/6).
This reflection will feed into the review of trade policy, which should be launched in 2020 (see EUROPE 12471/7, 12476/14).
Consult the document: https://bit.ly/2yuQ3pD (Original version in French by Hermine Donceel)