On Wednesday 26 April, MEPs from the Committee on International Trade (INTA) and the Committee on Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCO) had an initial meeting regarding the report on the prohibition of forced labour products. The two co-rapporteurs on this dossier, Samira Rafaela (Renew Europe, Dutch) and Maria Manuel Leitão Marques (S&D, Portuguese), listed the different elements they would like to amend in the Commission’s proposal (see EUROPE 13021/17).
This starts with the reversal of the burden of proof, which is particularly dear to Ms Rafaela and many S&D, Greens/EFA and The Left MEPs. They believe that - unlike the authorities in the Member States - companies have sufficient tools to quickly prove that their products are not made with forced labour.
For Ms Leitão Marques, this reversal of the burden of proof should at least concern products from regions at risk, i.e. those where forced labour has already been documented.
On the other hand, the same group of elected representatives considers that the lack of a reparation mechanism for forced labourers is a flaw in the regulation, and the rapporteurs support this. However, this is likely to be a sticking point for the EPP group, the European Conservatives and Reformists and the Commission, who consider that this regulation is not appropriate to provide redress to victims.
A large number of elected representatives also stressed the importance and content of the database that the European Commission will make available to economic operators and authorities. Many want it to be as complete and accessible as possible, but some members of Renew Europe and the EPP want a minimum of confidentiality and certainty about the information it contains.
Finally, the EPP largely regretted the absence of an impact assessment upstream of the Commission’s proposal, which poses a credibility problem, according to the group. (Original version in French by Léa Marchal)