Sharply divided Dutch MPs debate EU treaty with Canada

Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau at a European Council meeting about Ceta. Photo: Alexandros Michailidis via Depositphotos
Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau at a European Council meeting about Ceta. Photo: Alexandros Michailidis/SOOC

Dutch MPs will on Wednesday debate the EU’s free trade treaty with Canada, but it is unclear if there is majority support.

The Ceta treaty, which abolishes most import tariffs, was signed in 2016 after years of negotiation and came into force in 2017 but still has to be ratified by member states.

Nearly all the Dutch opposition parties are against the treaty, including the Labour party, which negotiated on behalf of the Netherlands during the trade talks as a member of the previous coalition government.

However, Labour leader Lodewijk Asscher has come out against Ceta, arguing it does not do enough to protect animal welfare, the environment and the principle of fair work.

There are doubts too in the four party coalition, with the minor Christian party ChristenUnie saying it fears the impact of the treaty on food safety and on farmers.

Debate

Wednesday’s vote now hinges on the five ChristenUnie MPs, who say they will wait for the debate before taking a decision what to do.

The coalition has a narrow majority in the lower house of parliament, and should win the vote if ChristenUnie falls into line. But in the upper house of parliament the government will have to win the support of one or more minor parties to ensure the treaty is ratified.

Trade minister Sigrid Kaag on Tuesday assured MPs that all Canadian products on the Dutch market will meet EU standards and that those standards will not be lowered because of the treaty.

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