Flemish Parliament asks Flemish Government to support TTIP negotiations

In the Flemish Parliament, the majority parties have approved a resolution about TTIP, the trade and investment agreement between the EU and the USA. In it, they call on the Flemish Government to continue supporting the ongoing negotiations and follow up on them thoroughly.

In a recent study, the World Trade Institute (WTI), connected to the University of Bern, calculated the impact of the agreement. It showed that its results include wage increases of 1 percent and prices decreasing by 0.1 percent. Trade agreements clearly result in more job creation in the private sector. In addition, the Flemish consumer will enjoy more products at lower prices. So the TTIP is a win-win for Flemings: jobs as well as purchasing power!

Increasing exports

The open Flemish economy represents 80 percent of all exports of this country. As the fifth biggest export destination, the USA is an important trade partner for Flanders. A good agreement is thus essential for the Flemish economy. The study of the WTI assumes an increase of exports of no less than 27 percent. TTIP allows us to deal with trade hindrances in order to increase our exports to the USA. Take for example our Flemish dredging companies, which are world-famous for their expertise, but are not allowed to operate in the USA. Another example is our textile industry, which currently has to pay up to 40 percent import duties in the USA. This type of protectionism is detrimental for our exports and must be changed.

Stopping misinformation

In the resolution, the majority parties are, of course, not blind to the concerns connected with the negotiations about the agreement. They guarantee that the high European, national and Flemish standards regarding consumer protection, Social security Social security is currently managed at the Federal level in Belgium. The most important pillars of Belgian social security are: sickness and invalidity insurance (NIDHI), pensions, unemployment insurance and child allowances. In addition, occupational illness, occupational accidents and annual holidays are dealt with at this level. Some Flemish parties have been campaigning for years for (large parts of) social security to be transferred to the Regions and Communities. social security , environment, privacy protection and public services will remain in place and are not negotiable.