International

The European Parliament is not doing its job, and is thus risking undermining the rule of law in Europe. This was the SP’s response to the Parliament’s refusal to subject the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) with Canada to tests of its compatibility with European law. The arbitration system established by the treaty is particularly controversial.

Anne-Marie Mineur argues that the European Court of Justice should issue an official Opinion

SP Euro-MP Anne-Marie Mineur sees the Parliament’s decision as scandalous. “The advice of the European Union of Judges, the German Federation of Judges, and a hundred professors of law has been ignored,” she said. “We are running the risk of accepting a treaty that is in conflict with the European legal system. I find that unacceptable.”

In 2015 the European Commission held a public consultation on the special arbitration system for foreign investors, and received an extraordinary 150,000 reactions, 97% of them negative. European Commissioner Cecilia Malmström came up with a modernised variant, but that too was rejected by judges and academic legal experts. The European Parliament may possibly delay its decision on CETA for a month in order first of all to debate it with the European Council, which directly represents the member state governments.