After the government in Paris, the French parliament has now also rejected the Mercosur free trade agreement by a large majority. Meanwhile, farmers’ protests continue in the country.
MPs voted against the agreement with a large majority on Tuesday. By 484 votes to 70, parliamentarians agreed with the government’s position not to accept the treaty in its “current form”. Agriculture Minister Annie Genevard had earlier criticized in parliament that the agreement did not guarantee “fair competitive conditions for our farmers” “under the current circumstances”.
Concerns about food security in Poland
The Polish government also does not want to agree to it, as Prime Minister Donald Tusk recently emphasized. His government passed a resolution opposing the current draft agreement. According to the report, this raises concerns about Polish farmers and food safety in the country. Deputy Prime Minister and head of the co-ruling Peasant Party, Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz, said his country is already working to gather enough votes within the EU to prevent the agreement from coming into force.
The European Commission now wants to conclude an agreement
The political majority in Austria has also always been critical and there was a parliamentary resolution against the agreement – which is now years old. Discussions about the agreement have been going on for 25 years and an agreement has been in place since 2019, but it has not yet been ratified. In addition to the concerns of European farmers, critics also cite the continued deforestation of the Amazon rainforest. However, according to information from Brussels, it is conceivable that the agreement could be signed in early December at the summit of the Mercosur states of Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay and Bolivia.
Source: Krone
I’m Ben Stock, a journalist and author at Today Times Live. I specialize in economic news and have been working in the news industry for over five years. My experience spans from local journalism to international business reporting. In my career I’ve had the opportunity to interview some of the world’s leading economists and financial experts, giving me an insight into global trends that is unique among journalists.
