Negotiations on an EU-US Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership treaty (TTIP) are experiencing difficulties over whether similar standards of protection involving food production, the labour market and the environment should apply on both sides of the Atlantic.
United States’ negotiators are pressing for the inclusion of an Investor-States Dispute Settlement (ISDS) process under the deal. This would allow US corporations to challenge existing EU consumer and other protections through a panel of judges, without subsequent appeal.
Irish farming organisations have been particularly concerned that an agreement could lead to the importation of hormone-treated beef that is currently banned for human consumption in Europe. Such beef is cheaper to produce and can have a negative impact on human health. An analysis by Copenhagen Economics suggested the Irish beef sector could lose up to €45 million under a TTIP deal while the dairying sector may gain an estimated €90 million.
Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation Richard Bruton has defended the negotiations on the grounds that food standards will be upheld and that, overall, Ireland will benefit from a trade deal.
That may be the case if the right of governments to regulate their industries and protect their citizens is maintained. However, the power of big business could trump the democratic process under ISDS and the ban on hormone-produced beef might be the first to go.
The European Parliament is opposed to an ISDS process. Criticism has also come from the Nevin Economic Research Institute on the grounds that international litigation could lower wages on both sides of the Atlantic and cost jobs in Europe.
The Institute acknowledged that additional, export-related jobs in dairying and processed foods were likely to be created in Ireland. Because of EU regulations, Ireland operates very high standards in food production and has improved environmental practices. The clock should not be turned back in pursuit of short-term, possibly transitory, gains.