On a very telling choice of website, Jim Sheridan writes:
It’s a question that has grown in
importance as we see multinational corporations casting their net across the
globe. Who, in reality, makes the rules we live by?
Big business is often at the heart of some lobbying scandal or conspiracy theories about who is at the top of the chain.
But we are currently seeing a real-life attempt by companies to wield excessive influence over national governments.
The transatlantic trade and investment partnership agreement (also known as TTIP) is being negotiated in secret between the EU and US.
Those in favour of the agreement say it will bring jobs and growth to both sides of the Atlantic.
TTIP will set up secret courts which will allow multinational corporations to sue governments if they think a law might harm their profits.
This is a feature of many trade agreements, but when the US and EU states all have robust judicial systems in place, we must question why such courts are needed.
Negotiators insist that these courts are precautions, that it would not affect governments’ ability to govern. But we are already seeing these courts in action in other trade agreements.
When Germany began its nuclear phase-out, Swedish energy company Vattenfall announced that it was suing the government for 3.7 billion euros.
Just two of Labour’s key policies, a reversal of NHS privatisation and an energy price freeze, could cost the government billions in a world with TTIP.
Even UK companies could set up subsidiaries in the States to sue their own governments for decisions such as these.
This is just one of the concerns I have about these negotiations, and the reason I have tabled almost fifty questions to ministers for them to answer over the recess.
We now need the public and members of EU parliaments to scrutinise this agreement in detail.
Whatever the outcome of these negotiations, it is important we respect our democracies, and leave governments free to make the best laws for their citizens.
Big business is often at the heart of some lobbying scandal or conspiracy theories about who is at the top of the chain.
But we are currently seeing a real-life attempt by companies to wield excessive influence over national governments.
The transatlantic trade and investment partnership agreement (also known as TTIP) is being negotiated in secret between the EU and US.
Those in favour of the agreement say it will bring jobs and growth to both sides of the Atlantic.
TTIP will set up secret courts which will allow multinational corporations to sue governments if they think a law might harm their profits.
This is a feature of many trade agreements, but when the US and EU states all have robust judicial systems in place, we must question why such courts are needed.
Negotiators insist that these courts are precautions, that it would not affect governments’ ability to govern. But we are already seeing these courts in action in other trade agreements.
When Germany began its nuclear phase-out, Swedish energy company Vattenfall announced that it was suing the government for 3.7 billion euros.
Just two of Labour’s key policies, a reversal of NHS privatisation and an energy price freeze, could cost the government billions in a world with TTIP.
Even UK companies could set up subsidiaries in the States to sue their own governments for decisions such as these.
This is just one of the concerns I have about these negotiations, and the reason I have tabled almost fifty questions to ministers for them to answer over the recess.
We now need the public and members of EU parliaments to scrutinise this agreement in detail.
Whatever the outcome of these negotiations, it is important we respect our democracies, and leave governments free to make the best laws for their citizens.
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