ALDE (Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe)

12-01-2012 Preference erosion in ACP countries questioned by MEPs

In order to promote and facilitate socioeconomic development in developing countries through sustainable economic growth, the European Union grants tariff preferences to trading partners in African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries. The Generalised System of Preference (GSP) allows such preferential treatment of developing countries as an exemption of WTO rules that aim for equal treatment of imports from all WTO member countries. Read more »

11-01-2012 Two-tier trade agreements questioned by MEP Bearder

In a written question to the Commission, MEP Catherine Bearder (ALDE) addresses the issue of the two-tier trade system in recently signed free trade agreements (FTAs). Referring to the Lisobn Treaty, she criticises the fact that environmental and human rights provisions are not part of the main body of the FTAs. This means that there is no real enforcement mechanism nor subject to dispute-settlement machinery and that it seems less important than the commercial chapters. Read more »

11-01-2012 MEP Bearder asks for extension of TRIPS waiver for LDCs

People in the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) have limited or no access to basic services. One of the reasons they do have to some extent access to generic medicines is beacause of the TRIPS waiver. The TRIPS (Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property) agreement is meant to protect intellectual property and encourage innovation. Read more »

11-01-2012 MEP Aylward asks about sustainable trade and development

The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) stated that a new international development architecture is needed to assist developing countries with their development of sustainable trade and development and to reverse their marginalisation. In our case study on the Raw Materials Initiative (RMI) we have shown that indeed trade in raw materials is often unfair and incoherent with development policies. Read more »

28-11-2011 INTA adopts report on Trade and Investment Barriers

The committee on international trade (INTA) of the European Parliament has adopted a report on Trade and Investment Barriers, drafted by rapporteur Robert Sturdy (EPP). The main point made in the report is that removing or reducing non tariff barriers (NTBs) should be one of the key regulatory priorities of the new EU trade policy under the Europe 2020 strategy. Although in the draft report there is not much attention paid to development, several amendments have been written that take development into account. Read more »

10-10-2011 MEPs ask questions on the humanitarian emergency in the Mediterranean Sea

In the aftermath of the unrest in North-Africa, thousands of people have tried to flee to Europe by boats. Hundreds of them got shipwrecked in the Mediterranean Sea and are now dead or missing. Read more »

10-10-2011 DEVE report: Assisting developing countries in addressing food security

On behalf of the DEVE committee, Gabriele Zimmer (GUE/NL), wrote the report: EU policy framework to assist developing countries in addressing food security. The achievements towards the MDG hunger target have shown to be insufficient. The number of hungry people, estimated by the FAO, has decreased after 2009, but is still greater than in 2008; food prices have been indicated as a factor leading to food insecurity. In this report some important calls are made, some of which are listed here: Read more »

28-06-2011 Raw Materials discussed thoroughly in the European Parliament!

On behalf of the ITRE committee, Reinhard Bütikofer (Greens/EFA) wrote 'an effective raw materials strategy for Europe' as the European industry is facing an increasingly difficult situation with regards to the supply of raw materials. This is particularly the case for the 14 critical raw materials, which the European Commission identified. Increasing global demand coupled with a lack of supplies due to long lead-times in the mining industry and the increased use of export restrictions by resource-rich countries, are not only pushing prices to record heights, as is the case with copper, but are also leading to potential supply shortages. Read more »

01-06-2011 MEPs request for a moratorium of the European financing for mining projects

In an open letter to the Hungarian Presidency, the President of the European Council and the European Commission on EU public funding for mining 50 MEPs from 4 different groups (S&D, ALDE, the Greens/EFA and GUE/NL). request for a moratorium of the European financing for mining projects for as long as there are no bound rules and regulations. Read more »

01-06-2011 ALDE group questions the Council on the Arms Trade Treaty

Trade in arms is an issue in which many EU member states are involved. EU member states export arms to so referred to friendly-nations which on their turn export these arms to countries with often instable governments. This is not intended by the member states and clearly undermines the development aspect of the member states and that of the EU. Currently, the UN is in a process of preparing a global Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) in which amongst other is stated that member states are themselves responsible that these arms will not be used in battles which are in serious violations of international human rights or humanitarian law, or acts of genocide or crimes against humanity. Transparency should be one of the main pillars in the ATT. Read more »

31-05-2011 Don't forget TRIPS on generic medicines when tackling counterfeit medicines.

The trade in counterfeit medicines is a criminal act as there is no control on what ingredients are actually in the medicines, either too few or too many, or even toxic substances. This fraudulent trade seriously harms the poorest members of society, mainly in ACP countries where markets are not well organised and regulatory legislation is still at a drafting stage. The EU has amended a resolution in order to combat the entry of falsified medicinal products into the European legal supply chain. This EU resolution together with the resolution adopted by a group of ACP states to combat trade in conterfeit medicines is very good. Read more »

12-05-2011 Raw Materials and transparency hot topic among various MEPs

The Raw Materials Initiative set up in 2008 leads to many discussion and questions among MEPs. In the first place this initiative could lock resource-rich developing countries in a situation where they have no choice but to remain net exporters of raw materials, instead of being given the chance to develop their own downstream industries and move up the value chain. This outcome conflicts sharply with EU developments objectives, as to better integrate developing countries on the world market. In the second place, the raw material industry is subject to many financial scandals. Read more »

12-05-2011 MEP Watson questions sustainability of Renewable Energy Directive

Since 2009 the EU has a Renewable Energy Directive (shortly RED) in which is stated that in 2020 20% of all energy should come from renewable energy sources, and 10% of transport energy should be renewable. This target is leading to an increase of biofuel plantation, of which many are in developing countries. Currently, a strong debate is going on in which it is questioned if renewable energy sources like biofuels are indeed sustainable. Read more »

17-03-2011 ALDE group questions Commission on Rare Earth Elements

In the last weeks and months, many questions have been asked to the Council and the Commission on Rare Earth Elements (REE). Most of the questions were however about, how Europe will safeguard its position next to China. As currently, China controls 97% of the world production of REE imports, the EU is dependent on China, which announced significant export restrictions as a reply to the global demand for REE. Read more »

24-01-2011 MEPs worry about implementation of FLEGT

The European Parliament has been discussing two new Voluntary Partnership Agreements (VPAs) with Cameroon and the Congo Brazzaville under the Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) Action Plan. MEPs Yannick Jadot on behalf of Greens/EFA, Catherine Bearder on behalf of ALDE, David Martin on behalf of S&D, Joe Higgins on behalf of GUE/NGL, and Daniel Caspary on behalf of EPP have expressed concerns about the implementation of the FLEGT. Also they wonder how the Commission is going to ensure the rights of local populations and how the EU is going to finance these schemes in the upcoming year. Lastly the MEPs want to know if the Commission will create more legislation to end deforestation. Read more »

24-01-2011 MEP Michel wants a European Dodd-Frank Act

Fair Politics has already referred to the American Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act in previous news items, because MEPs continue to pay attention to this topic. This time Louis Michel (ALDE) asked the European Commission why the European Union (EU) has not yet introduced similar legislation. The significance of the Dodd-Frank Act is not just about reforming Wall Street. More important is the legal obligation for extractive companies to disclose information on the origins of the raw materials and whether their payments are used to fund conflicts in developing countries. Michel provides the example of the DRC as a clear case where this has happened in the past. Read more »

24-01-2011 The Commission must decouple cotton subsidies, according to MEP Michel

The debate about the reform of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), which is due in 2013, has started in Brussels. MEP Louis Michel (ALDE) urges the Commission to include the cotton subsidies in the reform. In West-Africa 15 million people are directly dependent on cotton production. Today cotton has only been decoupled for 65%, which means that 35% of the subsidies are calculated based on production. Most other agricultural products have been decoupled for 90%. The subsidies for European cotton farmers are causing  market distorting effects, which are negatively affecting the African cotton farmers. Read more »

12-01-2011 ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly calls for PCD

Between November 30th and December 4th Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) met with parliamentarians form African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries. Resolutions on free and independent media, on technology transfer, new technologies and technical capacity building with regard to climate change, on achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), on food security, and on the security problem in the Sahel-Saharan region were adopted in the 20th session. Read more »

12-01-2011 Biofuels under attack from MEPs

A decade ago, biofuels were seen as the answer to scarce and polluting fossil fuel sources. The European Union (EU) jumped on board of this idea, aiming at a 10% share of renewable energies in transport fuels by 2020. Biofuels were to provide at least half of the share, and therefore the EU provided subsidises to increase production. However it soon became clear that the benefits of biofuels were smaller than the damage it was causing. In general, biofuels are not sustainable since they do not produce less CO2 than fossil fuels. In November 2010 the Institute for European Environmental Policy (IEEP) published a report about this, called Anticipated Indirect Land Use Change Associated with Expanded Use of Biofuels and Bioliquids in the EU An Analysis of the National Renewable Energy Action Plans. Read more »

25-11-2010 A coalition on Country-By-Country reporting between Greens and ALDE?

Tax evasion is a large threat to development, because Multinational Corporations (MNCs) are not adequately paying their taxes, which local governments could use to enhance developent. A solution for this problem would be the introduction of Country by Country (CBC) reporting, which would oblige EU listed companies to disclose their financial reports. This would make tax evasion more difficult. MEPs of both the Greens (Pascal Canfin, Sven Giegold, Eva Joly, and Philippe Lamberts) and ALDE (Sharon Bowles and Louis Michel) asked questions about CBC. Read more »

10-11-2010 EP recognises tax evasion as threat to development

On behalf of the Development Committee, MEP Eva Joly (Greens/EFA) wrote an own-initiative draft report on Tax and Development Cooperation with Developing Countries on Promoting Good Governance in Tax Matters. Fair Politics is pleased to see this report, since we are planning to launch our own policy case study on Fair Taxes soon. Read more »

22-09-2010 MEP Liam Aylward asks Commission about child labour in small and medium size enterprises

Many European enterprises buy or have their goods manufactured in developing countries. Unfortunately, there are still factories there which use children as cheap labour. The European enterprises do either business with local factories themselves or there is a middleman involved. Sometimes these companies do not know under which working conditions their products are being made. However, sometimes they do know. MEP Liam Aylward (ALDE) asked the Commission what they are doing to ensure small and medium size enterprises do not get involved with forced child labour. Protecting childrens rights is a key goal of the EUs  external policy. If the Commission is lacking to act against companies using child labour, this would be an incoherence of European policy.   Read more »

21-09-2010 MEP Pat the Cope Gallagher asks question about EU patent and its effects on development

Intellectual Property Rights are considered to be beneficial for producers, but when it comes to development, they often have a negative impact. One of the best examples is the availability of medicines in developing countries. For most diseases the cure is out there, but the patient simply cannot afford them, due to the patents on these medicines. There is little coherence in policies when the EUs development policy prioritises access to affordable medicines for developing countries, while at the same time, the EUs industrial and trade policy delays or complicates the access to developing countries markets of affordable medicines. Read more »

31-05-2010 MEPs Concerned about Unfair Migration Policies

At the heart of both migration and development are human beings who are entitled to human rights. The right to emigrate is a fundamental right embedded in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. MEPs Helene Flautre (Greens/EFA) Ana Gomes (S&D) Rui Tavares (GUE/NGL) Gabriele Zimmer (GUE/NGL) and Sonia Alfano (ALDE) are concerned for the human rights of migrants that are violated by and in Europe. Read more »

09-03-2010 MEPs Submit Amendments to INTA Opinion on PCD

On the 2nd of February the amendments on the INTA Draft Opinion on EU Policy Coherence for Development and the Official Development Assistance plus concept by Joe Higgins were due. On the 23rd of February, these amendments were voted on. All in all the amendments were a reflection of the never ending debate on neoliberalism and the international capitalist system within the committee on international trade; the EPP and the ECR versus the Greens and S&D. Some really good amendments were written, with references to incoherences that Fair Politics has also tackled like TRIPS and access to medicines, biofuels, agricultural subsidies, migration issues and partnership agreements with ACP countries. Despite this, some of these amendments were not adopted and amendments that were less progressive towards PCD, were. Read more »

01-03-2010 MEP Guerrero Salom Drafts Report on the Effects of the Financial Crisis

Developing countries are not the root or cause of the financial crisis, yet the effects of it have shown to be devastating for the poorer countries. It has become an economic, social, development and humanitarian crisis. Every field of activity has been effected. Unemployment levels have increased, there has been more migration and therefore brain drain, drop in prices of raw materials, decrease in development finance, greater debts and especially a drop in trade. The EU has increased its trade restrictions to protect its own market and has cut back on all development efforts. Within the Development Committee (DEVE) of the European Parliament, an own initiative report was taken up on this subject, with Enrique Guerrero Salom as rapporteur. Read more »

14-12-2009 The Second Revision of the Cotonou Agreement

The Cotonou Agreement which was signed in June 2000, between the African, Carribean and Pacific (ACP) Countries (most of them former colonies of Europe) introduced some radical changes in the past ACP-EU cooperation. The Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) were one of those changes. Within these partnership agreements there are incoherencies with the EU development policy that are harming the development process of third countries (see case study). Article 95 of the Agreements states that the agreements itself needs to be reviewed every five years. Therefore the European institutions, including the parliament have been giving their opinions on the matter. Member of the European Parliament (MEP), Eva Joly, chairwoman of the Development Committee (DEVE), was responsible for drafting the report titled "the second revision of the Partnership Agreement ACP-EU." Read more »

29-07-2009 MEPs concerned about Uzbeki children

Different MEPs from parties such as the ECR, ALDE and S&D have raised the issue of forced child labour that is used by the Uzbeki government in order to provide for harvest of their cotton each year. While this led to a call for boycott by the World Fair Trade Organisation, the EU the biggest single destination for Uzbek cotton continued importing the product under the preferential system. Graham Watson (ALDE) particularly highlights the incoherence of this by referring to the commitments the Commission made to eradicating child labour at a global level. We would like to thank Bill Newton Dunn (ALDE), Roger Helmer (ECR), Graham Watson (ALDE), Claude Moraes (S&D) and Charles Tannock (ECR) for raising this issue. Read more »