On Thursday 27 April, the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union held their fourth negotiating session on the regulation renewing the EU’s Generalised Scheme of Preferences (GSP). The two sides have still not reached an agreement, mainly because of a major point in the text: the link between the tariff preferences granted and the readmission of nationals unlawfully present in the EU.
The GSP removes tariffs on exports to the EU from the most vulnerable countries, and the current framework expires at the end of 2023 (see EUROPE 12796/1).
In line with the European Commission’s proposal, the Council wants to maintain the link between readmissions and the benefits granted to third countries. However, the European Parliament is strongly opposed to this (see EUROPE 12944/25).
“I urge the Council to reassess its approach and not make readmission a condition for receiving trade benefits”, said Bernd Lange (S&D, German), chair of the European Parliament’s Committee on International Trade, on Friday 28 April, in a statement with the text’s rapporteur, Heidi Hautala (Greens/EFA, Finnish), reiterating Parliament’s firm position on this issue. (Original version in French by Léa Marchal)