Maureen O'Sullivan (Dublin Central, Independent)
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192. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation his views on the ongoing negotiations on the transatlantic trade and investment partnership and the worries of many non-governmental organisations and trade unionists that it will provide further means for large corporations to abuse, intimidate and overlook small locally-based farmers, particularly in reference to Columbia. [45191/15]

Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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I am pleased to report that negotiations between the EU and the US on trade and investment have accelerated and solid progress has been made.

The 11th round in these negotiations took place in Miami from 19th – 23rd October, 2015.

During this round, negotiators discussed all three pillars of the proposed agreement namely market access for EU and US companies, regulatory cooperation and trade rules.

There was substantial progress on market access for EU and US companies in all three areas including tariffs, services and public procurement. A second tariff offer was exchanged and both sides have now arrived at a level of proposal in terms of tariff line coverage which will assist and benefit further negotiations. There was also discussion in relation to public procurement and it is envisaged that there will be an exchange of market access proposals on public procurement by February 2016.

The negotiations also provided an opportunity to clarify some of the main principles of regulatory cooperation. These included the fact that any cooperation is possible only if the level of protection for consumers stays the same or improves and any form of regulatory cooperation will not change or affect the EU regulatory and democratic process.

On the 12th November 2015, the EU Commission published and formally presented to the US its proposal for a new and more transparent system for resolving disputes between investors and states – the Investment Court System. This proposal is the outcome of a lengthy public consultation process with the Member States, the European Parliament, stakeholders and the public. The Commission’s proposal aims at safeguarding Government’s right to regulate and creates a new system composed of a first instance tribunal and an appeal mechanism based on clearly defined rules, with qualified judges and transparent proceedings.

The EU’s trade policy aims to ensure that increasing trade mutually supports economic growth, environmental protection and social development and that it does not come at the expense of the environment or labour rights. Coherence and mutual supportiveness among these elements are the basis for achieving sustainable development.

The EU offers easy access to its market for the poorest countries in the world. It is also the largest provider of aid for trade. By targeting EU support at projects that will boost the capacity for trade, it provides long-lasting development projects. The EU is also mindful of the impact of an EU-US trade agreement and other major bilateral agreements on other partners, especially developing and least-developed countries.

The Treaty of Lisbon enshrines sustainable development as a fundamental principle of the EU action and this informs and guides the EU policy-making process. Strong involvement of civil society and a high level of transparency of Government’s actions are core elements to the EU’s approach to Trade and Sustainable Development.

On the 6^thNovember 2015, the European Commission published its proposal for a chapter on trade and sustainable development, including labour and the environment, in the ongoing EU-US trade talks, which covers conservation, sustainable management of resources, wildlife, forestry and fisheries, as well as other substantive matters including opportunities for joint initiatives in third countries to further labour rights and environmental protection.

After entry into force of the EU-US agreement, the developing countries and the least developed countries will continue to have preferential access to the EU and US markets via the Generalised Scheme of Preferences. If successful, the agreement will have an impact in gradually eliminating the margin of preference in the competitive relation between developing country and least developed countries products and EU/US goods.

Studies have confirmed that the economic activity generated by trade liberalisation between the EU and US will create net benefits for developing countries.

A final impact assessment on sustainable development and the EU-US Trade Negotiations will be published early next year.

Colombia is not a party to the negotiations on a Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership.