On Thursday 11 September in Strasbourg, the European Parliament approved by a show of hands the opening of interinstitutional negotiations on the proposal concerning the cross-border application of the directive on unfair commercial practices.
On the initiative of the EPP Group, Parliament voted on the Committee on Agriculture’s decision to enter into discussions with the Council of the EU on this issue.
The report (https://aeur.eu/f/if1 ) by Stefano Bonaccini (S&D, Italian) proposes extending the scope of the rules to protect producers from third country buyers (see EUROPE 13681/16). It also recommends that Member States should be able to intervene on their own initiative to put an end to such practices, even in the absence of a formal complaint from a producer. The Parliament Committee is also calling for the creation of an early warning system and a permanent information network so that any suspicion of unfair practices reported in one country is immediately communicated to all members of the network.
The trilogues are due to begin shortly, the Council of the EU having already adopted its position last April (see EUROPE 13616/12). (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)