GUE/NGL | Brussels 15/10/14

Access Denied: MEPs stage TTIP reading room demonstration

Transparency and full public participation in talks needed!

GUE/NGL MEPs — along with other MEPs from the Greens, the S&D, and the EFDD — will at 2pm today stage a peaceful demonstration in front of the TTIP Reading Room in the European Parliament, in a bid to highlight the lack of transparency surrounding the EU-US trade talks.

Access to consolidated TTIP texts is highly restricted: only some members of Parliament’s Trade committee (the chairperson, coordinators, and the rapporteur) may request a watermarked copy of documents containing the EU offers.

And only those MEPs, the chairs of 11 parliamentary committees, and TTIP rapporteurs have access to the TTIP reading room, which opened this summer.

While a ban on taking notes in the reading room was lifted on 3 September, this is not in any way near enough.

GUE/NGL wants access to the negotiation documents for all MEPs - as promised by Commissioner-designate Cecilia Malmström in her Hearing on 29 September.

And just as importantly, the documents should also be made available to the general public so citizens can fully participate in a real public and democratic debate on such a far-reaching trade deal. The final consolidated text of negotiations on an EU-Canada trade deal - CETA (Comprehensive Trade and Economic Agreement) - was recently published without any public consultation at all.

#StopTTIP #noTTIP

Here is a short video of the event - http://youtu.be/TviARr4utqY

Some GUE/NGL pictures - https://www.flickr.com/photos/guengl/sets/72157648363732769

Pictures from Greens - https://www.flickr.com/photos/greensefa/sets/72157646452201833/