EU-US Free-trade agreement; everyone’s a winner!

By Leon J Williams

Free-trade, that sounds good and everyone seems so happy at the news but what does it mean?

Free-trade really means no tax, so US and EU companies will be able to easily import and export without paying any ‘tariffs’ (taxes).

The real benefactors of this agreement will be large corporations, the markets will be happy!

For example, your local butcher (if you still have one) has nothing to gain from this, if they do import their meat it will likely come from within the EU and as such already part of a free-trade agreement and everything to lose. Large companies will have more money available to expand their businesses and continue to push out the little guy.

Less taxes means less money available for projects that help small to medium size enterprises (SME’s) both existing and start-ups.

Governments and big businesses will be happy but the rest of us not so much.

Unified regulations

This also sounds good in theory but will this be a compromise between US standards and EU standards, good for the US, bad for the EU. Why should we lower our standards to meet the US halfway?

What will happen over food safety over issues such as trans-fats?

What will happen over monopolising businesses such as Microsoft and Intel?

What will happen over the US’s lack of banking regulations?

This could spell disaster for Europe and a huge step forward for the US.