The European Parliament has decided to ask the European Court of Justice to examine whether the EU Mercosur agreement is compatible with the EU Treaties. A corresponding resolution was narrowly adopted, while a second resolution with a similar demand was rejected. The Court will now review the legal basis of the agreements; meanwhile, Parliament will continue its substantive assessment and will decide on its consent only after the Court’s opinion has been delivered.
René Aust, Chairman of the AfD delegation, comments:
“The Mercosur free trade agreement opens up opportunities for industry and for certain agricultural sectors, but it is rightly facing strong opposition from many farmers. This is the result of an EU agricultural policy that has weakened the competitiveness of European farms over many years. A comprehensive relief and support package for agriculture is now urgently needed. This includes, in particular, a significant reduction in bureaucratic requirements, lower administrative burdens, effective country of origin labelling, and the abolition of rules that distort competition and do not apply to producers in South America. The trade agreement can only be an opportunity if the EU stops making its own farmers the weakest link in the value chain. The anti farmer policies of recent years must come to an end. We welcome today’s decision to have the European Court of Justice conduct a review, in order to ensure legal certainty for all sides here as well. The narrow majority shows: The AfD and the ESN are decisive.”
Arno Bausemer, the ESN Group’s spokesperson on agriculture, adds:
“Our votes were the decisive factor. With a margin of only ten votes, the judicial review of the Mercosur agreement was pushed through. Our farmers in Europe can breathe a sigh of relief. The protests have had an effect. We stand by our farmers and will work above all for a better and fairer agricultural policy, including in Germany. Our citizens deserve high quality, healthy food produced at home and do not want inferior imports from the third world. The AfD is the guarantor that our farmers will continue to be able to make a living from their vitally important work in the future.”
