After months of strong pressure on the Commission, the Socialists and Democrats in the European Parliament today welcomed the new tool for investment protection proposed by Commissioner Cecilia Malmström following our demands.
The S&D Group in the European Parliament led a strong campaign to eliminate the existing Investor-Statement Dispute Settlement (ISDS) mechanism from the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) agreement and replace it with a new public and transparent system in which private interests cannot undermine public policy and which is subject to public law.
Bernd Lange, who is the chairman of the trade committee in the European Parliament and the author of the parliamentary report on TTIP said:
"The Commission's proposal is the only way forward for the EU's trade policy and the last nail in the coffin for ISDS. It is a great success that the demands of the Social Democrats shaped the new proposal."
“The Court proposed by the Commission represents a radical change of course in the EU's trade policy, driven by the strong pressure of citizens and the European Parliament.
“This new instrument must be introduced in all existing and future EU trade and investment agreements.”
S&D spokesperson on trade, David Martin MEP, said:
“What we started with five years ago was a proposal for secret arbitration behind closed doors, led by corporate lawyers able to challenge legitimate public policy measures with no means of redress. It was simply not acceptable for S&D MEPs.
"What we have today is a proposal from the Commission for qualified judges presiding over public hearings with the right of governments to regulate clearly enshrined.
“We still have to analyse the details of the proposal and give our feedback on the blueprint but we acknowledge the great leaps the Commission has taken to reform investment protection in line with our demands, which the United States must now take on board."
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