Trade, Growth & Jobs | Brussels, 29 November 2016

Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmström is today in Parliament to highlight both how the EU’s trade policy benefits the EU agriculture sector and how it supports jobs and strong labour rights across the European economy and around the world.

This afternoon she will attend a joint session of the committees on Agriculture and Rural Development and International Trade. Discussions there are expected to focus on the increasing importance of trade for the farm and food sector and how the EU's agenda of bilateral and regional trade agreements remove barriers to its growth while protecting sensitive products.

This morning she met Members of the Employment and Social Affairs Committee – again in combination with trade-focused MEPs. Her speech focused on the need for all political actors to be clear on the fact that positive employment benefits of an open trade policy, while acknowledging and addressing the truth that some do lose out in the face of global competition. She also stressed that EU trade agreements like the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement with Canada (CETA) contained effective provisions on securing workers' rights, at home and around the world.

Commissioner Malmström's speech on trade and agriculture will be available here after 17:30. Her speech on jobs and labour rights is available here.