Jude Kirton Darling's backroom deals are an example of why people feel they can't trust politicians
On Wednesday, Labour MEP Jude Kirton-Darling published a blog on Left Foot Forward defending her decision last week to compromise on a key vote about TTIP – the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership. She criticised 38 Degrees’ reaction to her decision. I’ll do my best to respond to her.
It’s important to start with a bit of background. 38 Degrees is member-led. Millions of ordinary people across the UK come together and campaign together on things that matter. One of those things is TTIP: you can see our most recent member poll results here to understand how much of a priority stopping TTIP is to 38 Degrees members.
The 38 Degrees TTIP campaign was chosen and shaped by members across the UK. It includes our opposition to any form of ISDS in TTIP. ISDS stands for the Investor State Dispute Settlement mechanism: the part of the deal that would let corporations sue our government if our laws dent their profits.
Similar mechanisms have been used in other countries to, for example, allow tobacco company Philip Morris to bring a lawsuit against Australia for introducing plain packaging, and a lawsuit against Uruguay for increasing the size of health warnings on cigarettes.
38 Degrees members have overwhelmingly said they do not want ISDS in the deal. Labour MEPs – including Jude Kirton-Darling – have agreed with that.
Last week’s vote, and the vote next week, are rare opportunities to throw sunlight on the deal. TTIP has been negotiated in secret, locked away from the democratic process for too long. These votes allow the EU Commission to see what the people of Europe will – and won’t – tolerate.
Labour MEPs gave assurances to their constituents that they would vote against ISDS. Jude Kirton-Darling even said that ‘EU citizens will not accept MEPs to compromise on ISDS’. And then, behind closed doors, they made a compromise.
That compromise told the European Commission that the people of Europe would tolerate ISDS.
Jude talks about the importance of the compromise. But most people expect decent politicians to vote with their principles and stick to their promises, not make last-minute backroom deals.
She complains that the European Parliament, and MEPs like her, don’t have enough power over TTIP. That’s absolutely right. So Jude can probably imagine just how disempowered ordinary people – with less influence than her – feel about this deal. As an MEP, she has a rare chance to affect the European Parliament’s official position on TTIP.
And she rightly says that it will be a long time before MEPs get their final vote on TTIP. So imagine a scenario where Jude and her colleagues hadn’t compromised on ISDS. She and her colleagues could have shown the European Commission that the Labour Party and the S&D group will not pass a TTIP with ISDS in it. They could have spent the next couple of years lobbying others to join them.
Given all that, it’s legitimate to ask why they chose to compromise now.
Jude accuses the 38 Degrees campaign of reducing ‘political values and ideals to a binary opposition of right and wrong.’ Yes, it’s easy to hide behind complexity. Yes, TTIP is complicated, and so is the European Parliament. But I think in this case there was a right, and there was a wrong. And most 38 Degrees members feel that Jude did the wrong thing.
I can understand that Jude feels wounded by this, after the work she has done up until now working against ISDS. But making a compromise that is against what you say you stand for – and then criticising those who call you out on it – is exactly why many people feel alienated from politicians.
Jude has said that she will vote against ISDS if she has the chance to next week, though her voters would be entitled to wonder whether she will compromise on this too. And if Jude does stand by her principles next week, she can be in no doubt that 38 Degrees members will applaud her for it.
Blanche Jones is campaigns director at 38 Degrees. Follow her on Twitter
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16 Responses to “There can be no compromises on TTIP”
steroflex
Blanche, the problem is not negotiating with the Americans.
The problem is not whether or not nurses are getting a rough deal.
The problem is the EU itself which always works in secret, always fixes things in private and is run by a Commission – people who are not elected, not accountable and not known. Do you, for instance, know which Commissioner is involved in this? Or his/her name?
Poor old Jude. She is a member of a country which is exactly 1/28th of the EU. In the parliament she has virtually no chance of speaking. And what the parliament actually discusses and for how long, depends on – the Commission. She has no influence whatsoever.
Why on earth Labour is in favour of staying in this secret, anti worker organisation is beyond me. Perhaps you can help?
CGR101
TTIP is a disaster for the national governments of the EU and the people they are supposed to represent. It will give global corporations uncontrollable legal powers over government decisions.
It is going to happen. The anti-democratic forces of the EU will demand it and force it through without Treaty change or any democratic mandate.
The only real and effective way to avoid TTIP is to support an OUT vote in the referendum.
Godfrey Paul
The FIFA of international politics !
Keith M
Kirsten-Darling not fit to be an MEP. Yet another with snout in trough.
Caroline Molloy
Most effective thing people can do now is get behind amendment 27 which rules out ISDS, and not accept the dodgy compromise amendments offered by David Martin and other Labour MEPs. Some of the better Labour MEPs (including Jude) have already signed, along with Greens and others. You can see the list, and how to find and contact your MEP, here. There’s not long – vote on Tues. Let’s not waste time infighting but get behind the better MEPs who are clearly struggling with some of their more reactionary colleagues, including some in Labour.
http://www.twitlonger.com/show/n_1smi2a3?new_post=true