Agreement-TTIPLast Monday all members of the European Parliament received this letter (available in multiple languages), signed by the 'Stop-TTIP Alliance' in each Member State.

A few days before the European Parliament votes again on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Agreement initiative (TTIP), 483 civil society organizations across Europe, including the ‘Stop-TTIP Alliance’, have requested in an open letter to the members of the European Parliament their vote against the Treaty.

The European Parliament was expected to vote last 10 June, but the debate and vote were postponed after the presentation of more than 200 amendments to the agreement. The European Parliament, will vote, Therefore, the resolution this week.

The 'Stop-TTIP Alliance' expresses different points of view of civil society: today 2,3 millions of people demand to stop TTIP negotiations. Según Slow Food, the only solution would be a complete rejection of TTIP (Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership).

The TTIP resolution also contemplates the inclusion of a Private Dispute Arbitration System (ISDS in its acronym in English). The European Parliament should take a clear stance against ISDS.

In fact, This would allow multinationals to sue governments in private courts for the actions of a State that interfered with investments and reduced expected profits., a practice that would undermine the rule of law and democratic principles.

The approval.

The European Parliament approved this Wednesday, 8 of July, the report on which there was no agreement a month ago, when President Martin Schulz decided to postpone the vote on the trade agreement with the US at the last minute (TTIP, for its acronym in English) due to lack of consensus.

The resolution, which includes the recommendations of the European Parliament to the European Commission (CE) for the TTIP negotiation, has moved forward with the majority support of the popular (PPE), socialdemocrats (S&D) and liberals (AWAY) thanks to a compromise on the most controversial issue for the European Parliament, the arbitration system for investors.

Inside the S&D there were dissenting votes from the Labor and Belgian Socialist ranks, French and Austrian. The PSOE MEPs voted in favor of the resolution and the report was finally approved by 436 votes in favor, 241 against and 32 abstentions

The MEPs have used ambiguous language and have demanded from the Commission a system “non-discriminatory” with local or foreign companies of which they are part “independent judges” So what “do not put private interests before public interests”.

In Spain, Already last April the Union of Small Farmers and Ranchers, UPA, joined the mobilizations promoted against the Agreement, arguing that “as the negotiation process was being proposed, it could bring many more problems than opportunities to the Spanish primary sector.”.

From the agricultural and livestock organization they defend the European production model, with all the guarantees it has for the consumer, based on family farming, that would be at risk if this treaty is approved.

Among the concerns expressed at the time by Spanish farmers and ranchers were:

GM. It is one of the main demands of the United States in the negotiations. Last year, the 88% of corn, the 93% of soybeans and 95% of beets grown in the United States were grown from genetically modified seeds, a scenario very far from the situation in Europe, with only one authorized transgenic corn variety and radically opposite consumer acceptance.

Use of hormones. American organizations are pushing for products such as beef and pork that use hormones for greater production., can access the European market without any restrictions. Today, Under European regulations these substances cannot be used by European producers, However, If under the agreement these products manage to access the European market this would represent a competitive disadvantage for European livestock farmers..

Pesticides and additives. As with hormones, United States agriculture uses certain pesticides and additives that are not allowed in the European Union.. Product access, especially fruit, to the European market could be a disadvantage for European agriculture.

Different level of support. Some sectors of the US maintain that a reduction in agricultural aid by the EU is necessary. For these groups, aid should be regulated by the TTIP in order to avoid unequal competition between farmers from both blocks..