European parliamentary committee endorses TTIP negotiating framework with changes to ISDS.
MEPs gave their thumbs up to EU-US trade talks and backed away from a confrontation with the European Commission over investor protection rights in a surprise vote on Thursday (28 May).
Deputies on the trade committee voted by 28 to 13 to support a non-legislative report by Bernd Lange, the German centre-left MEP committee chair, while the centre-left Socialist group had a change of heart on the controversial issue of investor/state dispute settlement (ISDS).
The compromise resolution backed by the European Parliament’s main groups, including the Socialists, calls for a transparent legal mechanism for disputes, where cases are heard by "publicly appointed, independent" judges, with the opportunity for decisions to be appealed.
Earlier this month, trade commissioner Cecilia Malmstroem unveiled plans to set up a global court to decide on disputes between investors and governments in a bid to defuse the controversy. “The current model for ISDS is no longer being tolerated by Parliament,” he said, adding that any new legal instrument “would have to be an independent court arbitration
https://euobserver.com/news/128877
The whole EU parliament votes in 2 weeks though it is only a vote on endorsing a framework for negotiations. Their parliament does not do the negotiating but has authority to approve or reject any final agreement.
