TTIP's Regulatory Cooperation and the Future of Precaution in Europe

Abstract

This paper analyses the possible impact of TTIP's Regulatory Cooperation on the implementation of the precautionary principle in the EU. The European Commission argues that regulatory cooperation will not impinge on the application of the precautionary principle because, first, it does not change the legislative framework of precautionary legislation and, second, the 'right to regulate' will be safeguarded by the TTIP's horizontal chapters. In this paper I argue, however, that these guarantees are insufficient. Given the methodological and institutional constraints presented by the TTIP's institutional design, regulatory cooperation will undermine the precautionary approach to regulation in the longer run.

Keywords: TTIP, regulatory cooperation, precautionary principle, European law, right to regulate, international trade

JEL Classification: K33