Four years after the publication of the European Commission’s proposal on the revision of the Generalised Scheme of Preferences (GSP) (see EUROPE 12796/1), the European Parliament and the EU Council could finally reach an agreement on Monday 1 December. Negotiations between the two institutions have been stalled for a long time. So much so that the European Commission has had to extend the validity of the previous regulation so that countries benefiting from tariff preferences can continue to rely on it (see EUROPE 13215/17). The GSP removes tariffs on exports to the EU from developing and least developed countries.
In recent months, negotiators have finally reached agreement on the first controversial point, after the European Parliament agreed to make GSP aid conditional on the readmission of migrants.
This left the issue of the safeguard clause for rice, an issue dear to the hearts of several Member States. Negotiators have agreed in recent weeks on the details of the safeguard mechanism (see EUROPE 13714/15). They are now finalising the volumes that will make up the import quotas. According to several sources, an agreement could be reached on Monday on this issue.
On Friday 28 November, the Member States’ permanent representatives to the EU will be briefed on the latest developments in the dossier, ahead of Monday’s trilogue. (Original version in French by Léa Marchal)