Evaluating EU Legitimacy and Accountability in the Negotiation and Implementation of EU Free Trade Agreements with a Focus on CETA

• Department of Law

PhD thesis defence by Paulien Van De Velde-Van Rumst

The Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) concluded with Canada, and the suspended negotiations to conclude a Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) with the US, have drawn particular attention to the European Union’s (EU) trade policy in recent years. Indeed, the EU’s most recent Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) have sparked a broad interest among EU Member States and citizens, and numerous civil society groups have opposed their approval, fearing negative effects on, inter alia, sustainable development. Regardless of how reasonable or otherwise these concerns are, the thesis considers it valuable to assess whether those negotiating and implementing these FTAs are sufficiently accountable to EU citizens. Examining this issue is especially important in light of the high standards pursued in EU primary law regarding environmental, social and consumer protection, and public health on the one hand, and given the complex institutional mechanisms established under the agreements providing for their implementation in these areas on the other.

The thesis employs legitimacy achieved through accountability as the benchmark for evaluation and a theoretical framework has been developed for this purpose. To evaluate legitimacy and accountability in relation to the negotiation and conclusion of the EU’s most recent FTAs as well as in relation to their implementation, the thesis provides an in-depth study of the mechanisms available to the European Parliament and civil society organisations to hold the EU’s decision-makers to account. CETA and the EU’s Trade and Sustainable Development Review of 2022 have been chosen as the relevant case studies and empirical research (interviews and participant observation) was conducted as a means to complement the desk-based case study research. The thesis concludes that the EP needs to be proactive and work with civil society organisations to fill the existing accountability gap, particularly in the FTA implementation phase.