The European Parliament has voted in favor of agricultural safeguards as part of the trade agreement made with Mercosur. The measure aims to protect the Union’s farmers from the potential negative impact of the agreement on their livelihoods.
On 10 February, the parliament’s plenary session approved safeguards linked to the Mercosur trade deal with 483 votes in favour and 102 against, with 67 abstentions. “Today we’re not going to be voting on the EU-Mercosur agreement,” said MEP Gabriel Mato (EPP/ESP). “We are voting on a set of measures to safeguard our farmers and livestock breeders and protect them against potential harm stemming from the agreement with Mercosur.”
Mr Mato stated that there would be no adequate protection for the farmers and livestock breeders of the EU if the Parliament did not adopt the provisional agreement without amendments. “If we can’t approve your proposal, if you amend it, then the trade agreement will be implemented without safeguards, without measures that protect our farmers.”
Warning over unprotected trade
This statement highlights the fragility of the political decision. It may be that those who truly wish for the Mercosur trade agreement to proceed have had to resort to such threats to win the votes of those who oppose it, or at least are uncertain, about the whole situation. This decision arrived after the European Commission expressed a desire to revive the Mercosur trade agreement after a period of resistance, especially from countries like France and Austria.
The commitment to protect the agricultural interests may indeed be enough to gather further support for the trade agreement. This, in turn, appears to be part of a wider strategy change in EU trade policy. In an effort to satisfy various political and economic concerns, it appears to involve increased liberalisation alongside increased protectionism. The Mercosur agreement aspires to become one of the most ambitious trade deals by the EU to date.
