Vince Cable Calls for Transparency in Trade

Article by Alex Lawson – Independent Newspaper

Background on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP)

A trade deal between Europe and the United States has come under fire amid claims that it undermines European cosmetics standards and could put the NHS at risk. The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), an agreement designed to reduce regulatory barriers for business, has been dubbed “a race to the bottom” after reports that there will be no harmonization between Europe and America on prohibited cosmetic substances.

Nick Dearden, director at the campaign group Global Justice Now, told The Independent: “Companies which produce with chemicals not even allowed in the European Union will still be able to sell into our markets, undercutting standards we’ve democratically agreed on. It’s a race to the bottom, which doesn’t pitch the EU against the US, but people’s rights against big business.”

Calls for Transparency in the Trade Partnership

Business Secretary Vince Cable will today call for greater transparency within the trade partnership during a meeting with EU Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmström.

Separately, the trade union Unite has urged Prime Minister David Cameron to use his veto to protect the NHS from potential legal risks posed by TTIP.

Len McCluskey, Unite’s General Secretary, warned: “There is no doubt that NHS services are being included in TTIP. As a result, there is the risk of irreversible privatisation because the deal will give US corporations or investors the right to sue our government if it tried to take back services into public ownership.”

WEU’s Perspective on TTIP

The Workers of England Union (WEU) finds TTIP deeply concerning on multiple levels:

1. Transparency Concerns: Vince Cable, a pro-EU Liberal Democrat, is calling for greater transparency in the deal, yet he acknowledges this will have little impact while the EU bloc negotiates in private.
2. NHS Ambiguity: The agreement appears to undermine the NHS, but it is unclear which service is at risk. Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland manage their health services independently—does this threat target the English NHS run by the UK government?
3. Quality of Service at Stake: Despite its flaws, the English NHS remains the envy of the world. Any deal that compromises its service standards must be rejected, as it directly affects people’s health and lives.
4. Trade Union Integrity: Unite’s campaign for public-sector health workers raises questions after revelations that its tax-avoidance scheme led to zero tax paid in 2011/12. Unite financially supports the Labour Party, which introduced PFI arrangements that effectively privatized the English NHS by the back door. With looming job cuts in the health service, whose interests are they truly representing?

Defending the English Health Service

Transparency is essential to protect the English health service—not only from politicians of all parties but also from trade unions compromising worker and public interests.

The WEU is proud to be a truly independent trade union, unaffiliated with any political party or major business. As our name suggests, we represent the “Workers of England.”