The European Commission will allow the EU’s trade deal with the Mercosur bloc of South American countries to come into force, despite the fact MEPs have not voted to ratify the agreement.
In a move that immediately drew backlash from farmers and other opponents, European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said the EU executive will provisionally allow the trade agreement take effect.
The controversial deal will lower tariffs and other barriers to trade between EU countries and Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay, opening up a significant new South American market for European industry.
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The Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA) has campaigned against the deal, claiming beef farmers will be undercut by competition from cheaper South American products produced to lower standards.
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The agreement still needs to be approved by the European Parliament. A vote by MEPs to ratify or reject it has been delayed, by a decision to first refer the agreement to the EU courts for a legal review.
A majority of MEPs voted last month to refer the trade agreement to the European Court of Justice (ECJ), to rule on whether it complies with EU treaties. The decision put the ratification process on ice pending the court ruling, which may take at least a year and a half to issue.
A sizeable majority of EU states – 21 out of 27 – backed the trade pact in a Brussels vote last month. It was opposed by Ireland, France, Poland and others.
That decision also gave the commission leeway to trigger the provisional application of the trade pact, before MEPs, or national parliaments had given their blessing to the deal.
Speaking on Friday, von der Leyen said she had “intensive” discussions on the decision to allow the deal come into effect provisionally with national leaders and senior MEPs.
Francie Gorman, IFA president, complained that controls to protect against substandard Brazilian beef being sold into the European market were not in place.
Von der Leyen’s decision to allow the deal take effect on an interim basis did not respect the role of the European Parliament, he said.
Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald said the commission’s decision “undermines confidence in democratic oversight and respect for the rule of law”.
Independent Ireland MEP Ciaran Mullooly condemned the move as an attempt to “bypass both parliamentary scrutiny and pending judicial review”.
Argentina and Uruguay ratified the deal on their end this week, with Brazil and Paraguay due to follow soon.
It is expected tariffs on trade between Europe and South America will be lowered, under the terms of the deal, in a number of weeks time, for the Mercosur states who have ratified it.
Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade Helen McEntee said she took note of the EU decision.
“While Ireland could not support the overall agreement, the Mercosur market provides opportunities for agrifood exports in dairy and spirits as well as pharmaceuticals, engineering and manufacturing,” she said.
The Government would keep talking to the commission to make sure commitments around safeguards for agriculture in the deal were fully implemented, McEntee said.
“Provisional application is by its nature provisional. It is right there in the name. In line with the EU treaties, the agreement can only be fully concluded once the European Parliament has given its consent,” Von der Leyen said.
The head of the EU’s powerful executive arm described the Mercosur deal as “one of the most consequential trade agreements of the first half of this century”.
The German politician said the deal was about “growth and Europe shaping its own future”.
Von der Leyen has previously said branching out to new trading partners had become a geopolitical necessity for Europe, as it tries to reduce its economic dependence on trade with the United States.
