CETA amounts to a full frontal attack on Parliamentary democracy and any concept of national sovereignty and makes a complete mockery of the Government’s oft-stated objective of ‘bringing back control’ says Union.
GMB, Britain’s general union, has criticised a Government plan to sign away UK sovereignty in a mega trade deal without MPs having their say in Parliament.
On June 26, the House of Commons will be asked to ratify the 2,255 page Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) between the EU and Canada without being able to debate its contents or amend any part of it, even though it contains provisions that will potentially affect every man, woman and child in the UK.
The deal will also restrict present or future British governments from legislating in the public interest. Ceta represents a perfect model of corporate-led trade. It’s not about conventional “free trade”, that’s to say, reducing tariffs.
Rather, the whole purpose is reducing regulation on business, that could include food safety, workers’ rights and environmental regulation.
It constitutes a direct attack on national sovereignty and makes a mockery of Conservative claims that Brexit is about bringing back control.
Bert Schouwenburg, GMB International Officer, said: “Across Europe, there has been massive public opposition to this dreadful treaty but the European Parliament approved it anyway in February 2017.
“For the Conservative Government to subsequently impose it on the British people without discussion or debate is a disgrace – though it does serve to illustrate what we can expect after Brexit when they will be free to negotiate their own trade deals that will doubtless be in nobody’s interests except for the transnational business community.
“Moreover, it is effectively a treaty with the USA via the back door as 80% of American corporations have Canadian subsidiaries – this is TTIP through the backdoor.
“What CETA amounts to is a full frontal attack on Parliamentary democracy and any concept of national sovereignty, and makes a complete mockery of the Government’s oft stated objective of ‘bringing back control’.”
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