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Brussels - The European Union will seek public input on a controversial aspect of a free trade deal being negotiated with the United States, the bloc's executive said Tuesday, in an unusual move that it insisted would not delay the landmark deal.
The Transatlantic Trade & Investment Partnership (TTIP) would create the world's largest free-trade area and is expected to bring about much-needed growth and jobs.
But it has also drawn criticism from EU and US consumer groups who worry about clauses that would allow courts to rule on complaints by an investor on one side of the Atlantic against a government on the other side.
Consumer groups argue that such clauses could be abused by corporations.
The European consumer organization BEUC has been among those arguing against the inclusion of investor-to-state dispute settlements (ISDS), warning recently that it would be dangerous for the EU to "hand over the reins of power to private courts."
"Accepting the ISDS would mean opening the door for big corporations to enforce their interests against EU legislation," Socialist EU parliamentarian Bernd Lange also argued on Tuesday. The European Parliament has to approve any deal struck with the US.
EU Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht acknowledged that there have been problems under existing ISDS systems, with companies exploiting "loopholes," but argued that including them in the TTIP would help address this.
He also noted that governments need to "treat investors fairly, so they can attract investment." In a letter last week to German Economics Minister Sigmar Gabriel, De Gucht expressed his "growing concern over the increasingly negative tone of the public discussion on ISDS."
"Many non-governmental organizations, but also members of parliaments in a number of member states have begun to attack the very idea that a private investor has the right to bring investment claims to international arbitration," says the letter, which was seen by dpa.
But European companies are "among the most active in the world availing themselves of their rights under ISDS," he noted.
The European Commission, the EU's executive, will now publish the proposed text for the TTIP investment provisions and then accept public feedback from March to June.
During that time, negotiations on those clauses will be paused, but talks will continue on other aspects.
The overall timetable for the TTIP negotiations is not expected to be affected, EU sources said, with the next round of talks due to be held in March.
The Transatlantic Trade & Investment Partnership (TTIP) would create the world's largest free-trade area and is expected to bring about much-needed growth and jobs.
But it has also drawn criticism from EU and US consumer groups who worry about clauses that would allow courts to rule on complaints by an investor on one side of the Atlantic against a government on the other side.
Consumer groups argue that such clauses could be abused by corporations.
The European consumer organization BEUC has been among those arguing against the inclusion of investor-to-state dispute settlements (ISDS), warning recently that it would be dangerous for the EU to "hand over the reins of power to private courts."
"Accepting the ISDS would mean opening the door for big corporations to enforce their interests against EU legislation," Socialist EU parliamentarian Bernd Lange also argued on Tuesday. The European Parliament has to approve any deal struck with the US.
EU Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht acknowledged that there have been problems under existing ISDS systems, with companies exploiting "loopholes," but argued that including them in the TTIP would help address this.
He also noted that governments need to "treat investors fairly, so they can attract investment." In a letter last week to German Economics Minister Sigmar Gabriel, De Gucht expressed his "growing concern over the increasingly negative tone of the public discussion on ISDS."
"Many non-governmental organizations, but also members of parliaments in a number of member states have begun to attack the very idea that a private investor has the right to bring investment claims to international arbitration," says the letter, which was seen by dpa.
But European companies are "among the most active in the world availing themselves of their rights under ISDS," he noted.
The European Commission, the EU's executive, will now publish the proposed text for the TTIP investment provisions and then accept public feedback from March to June.
During that time, negotiations on those clauses will be paused, but talks will continue on other aspects.
The overall timetable for the TTIP negotiations is not expected to be affected, EU sources said, with the next round of talks due to be held in March.
