The European Parliament administration deemed inadmissible a draft resolution signed by 145 MEPs seeking to suspend the EU-Mercosur trade deal and refer it to the EU Court of Justice. The move deepens divisions revealed in an October vote that split MEPs (269 vs 259) over welcoming the agreement. Supporters say the pact opens strategic markets; critics warn it risks unfair competition for EU farmers and could undermine Green Deal rules. Member states remain divided and the planned 20 December signing is uncertain.
EU Parliament Administration Rejects MEPs' Move to Pause Mercosur Ratification
The European Parliament administration deemed inadmissible a draft resolution signed by 145 MEPs seeking to suspend the EU-Mercosur trade deal and refer it to the EU Court of Justice. The move deepens divisions revealed in an October vote that split MEPs (269 vs 259) over welcoming the agreement. Supporters say the pact opens strategic markets; critics warn it risks unfair competition for EU farmers and could undermine Green Deal rules. Member states remain divided and the planned 20 December signing is uncertain.
09:17 AM, 11/20/2025Politics
The European Parliament's administration on Wednesday ruled a draft resolution seeking to challenge the EU-Mercosur trade agreement inadmissible, blocking a proposed referral to the EU Court of Justice that would have aimed to suspend ratification.
Signed by 145 Members of the European Parliament (MEPs), the draft asked the Court to review the agreement and effectively pause the ratification process. The Conference of Presidents — the body made up of the chairs of the Parliament’s political groups — confirmed the administration's decision, meaning the resolution will not appear on the agenda for next week’s plenary session in Strasbourg.
MEPs remain deeply divided over the pact: an October vote exposed significant parliamentary splits that left the consent required for ratification in doubt. On 8 October, 269 MEPs voted to reject a paragraph in a motion that welcomed the Mercosur deal, while 259 voted in favour — a result that surprised the agreement’s backers and underscored the fragility of parliamentary support.
“MEPs' prerogatives are being flouted and they are being muzzled in their ability to carry out their parliamentary activities,”
Saskia Bricmont, Belgian Green MEP
Supporters, led by governments such as Germany and Spain, argue the political agreement reached in December 2024 after roughly 20 years of negotiations would give the EU access to important strategic markets across Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay. They say the deal is especially timely as geopolitical competition in Latin America intensifies and trade frictions elsewhere increase.
Opponents — notably many farmers and climate campaigners — warn the pact could expose EU producers to unfair competition and undermine key elements of the EU Green Deal. One legal objection in the draft resolution contends that by separating trade provisions from political commitments, the European Commission attempted to sidestep the need for national parliamentary approval, exceeding its mandate.
The Parliament administration responded that the request to bring the Mercosur agreement before EU judges was inadmissible because the Council of the EU (which represents member states) has not formally asked for the Parliament's consent to ratify the deal. That procedural issue now sits at the centre of the dispute.
Member-state positions remain mixed: Hungary and Poland oppose the agreement, while France, Ireland, Austria and the Netherlands have yet to finalise their stances. The European Commission has proposed safeguards to monitor and address potential market disruption from a surge in Mercosur imports, but disagreement persists over their sufficiency.
The situation is likely to remain fluid ahead of a planned signing on 20 December, when Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is due to travel to Latin America to mark the political agreement. Whether the trip and the ratification process will proceed as intended is uncertain.