Consumer rights in trade agreements: a missing element?
In the past years, consumer organisations have worked intensively on the EU’s trade agreements with the US (TTIP) and Canada (CETA). We’ve stressed the advantages and challenges of these agreements and demanded that consumers benefit from them. For better or...
Let’s Move Away from a Fossilised Vision of the Consumer Benefits of Trade
Last week, US and EU consumer groups joined in the Transatlantic Consumer Dialogue met in Washington DC for their annual meeting. In this guest blog, Susan Grant, Director of Consumer Protection and Privacy, Consumer Federation of America, shares her impressions....
The new EU proposal on cosmetics: Finally beyond lip service?
Last week, the Commission discretely[1] published on its trade website a new version of its position paper on cosmetics within The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP). The main difference with the previous paper is that it no longer contains...
New year, new TTIP?
January kicked-off with three exciting developments on TTIP. It seems that in the wake of the 8th negotiating round of February TTIP has finally left its extended winter sleep. European Commission transparency “offensive” It started last week Wednesday when Commissioner...
Take aways from the ‘Investor-State Dispute Settlement: the TTIP Achilles heel?’ conference
9 December 2014, Renaissance Hotel
The Micula case: When ISDS messes with EU law
The mooted Investor-State Arbitration System (ISDS) is one of the most controversial elements of the ongoing TTIP negotiations. Much to the surprise of negotiators, ISDS is one of the driving forces behind recent major public protests throughout Europe against TTIP....
How TTIP will affect consumers in the EU’s neighbouring countries
Much has been written about the potential impact of TTIP on consumers in the European Union. Beyond that, one cannot help but wonder how TTIP will affect the EU’s neighbouring countries and citizens. Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway are three countries...
How will TTIP affect the health of Europeans?
The ongoing public discussion in the UK as to whether their National Health Service will be affected by TTIP is a sign Europeans are increasingly worried about the extent to which their lives could be affected by this transatlantic deal....
Cosmetic products: What TTIP will not make up
On 16/04/2015 this blog post was updated to reflect the change in the number of banned substances used in cosmetics in EU from 1,328 to 1,377. Cosmetic products have become an indispensable part of our daily routine – from toothpaste to...
What the recent ECJ ruling means for transparency in the TTIP negotiations
By BEUC’s Senior Legal Officer, Kostas Rossoglou Last week in Brussels, scores of EU and US officials held the 6th negotiating round of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership deal. Despite press conferences and civil society briefings the real substance...