Putting Lipstick on a Pig: Activists Slam Changes to Corporate Court System

Trade campaigners say the EC's planned changes to the investment court system — which would be used in proposed international trade agreements such as TTIP — are merely cosmetic, as they would still allow large corporations to sue governments if they are deemed to have harmed the profits of an organization.

Officials in Brussels released plans to replace the existing Investor State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) mechanism, saying that the new proposals were more transparent.

"With our proposals for a new Investment Court System, we are breaking new ground. The new Investment Court System will be composed of fully qualified judges, proceedings will be transparent, and cases will be decided on the basis of clear rules," EC First Vice-President, Frans Timmermans said. 

"With this new system, we protect the governments' right to regulate, and ensure that investment disputes will be adjudicated in full accordance with the rule of law." 

However, critics have slammed the proposals, arguing that the new investment court system was merely public relations spin.

"The European Commission says that this new proposal is based on 'substantial input' from its public consultation, but 97% of the thousands of responses it received in this consultation were clearly opposed to ISDS in any form," Nick Dearden, director of activist group Global Justice Now said.

"This alternative proposal is essentially a PR exercise to get around the enormous controversy and opposition that has been generated by ISDS. The Commission can try to put lipstick on a pig, but this new proposal doesn't change the fundamental problem of giving corporations frightening new powers at the expense of our national democracies."

Calls for TTIP, CETA to Be Scrapped

Although welcoming what he described as "a little more transparency", Mr Dearden said the proposals were inadequate, and called for proposed trade agreements such as Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) and CETA to be scrapped.

"This change shows the European Commission is feeling the pressure of nearly 3 million people opposing TTIP and CETA, the two looming deals featuring ISDS. But the Commission has at least admitted with this proposal that the ISDS which is written into CETA is unacceptable, so why haven't they halted the ratification process?"

Campaigners in Europe have been protesting against proposed free trade deals such as TTIP, which is currently being negotiated by the US and European Union, and the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), between Canada and the EU.

Critics fear that such agreements would peel away workers' rights across the continent and give unprecedented power to multinational corporations.

Major concerns surround the ability for corporations to sue governments through court mechanisms, known as ISDS, if they introduce legislation or rules that may inhibit the profits of an organization.