Following recent discussions within the “Parliamentary Intergroup on Fair Trade”, the Socialist Party (PS) has tabled a draft law in the Belgian House of Representatives “aimed at legally recognising and providing tax incentives for fair trade”.
This, among other things, is what motivated the PS:
- to see whether, as part of the debate on tax reform, it would be possible to implement a demand from the fair trade sector and reduce the VAT rate on fair trade products. To do this, however, it is essential to first pass through the “legal definition” stage. It is not possible to grant certain tax advantages if their purpose is not defined in the legislation.
- A four-fold increase in sales of fair trade products in France over the last seven years, following the integration of local “Origine France” fair trade products into fair trade legislation.
The PS text is essentially based on French legislation. It also refers to the 2002 Belgian Social Label Act for certain operational aspects, notably the reactivation of the “Committee for Socially Responsible Production”, renamed the “Committee for Socially Responsible Production and Fair Trade” for the occasion. This 2002 law is still in force but has not delivered the expected results (that’s a different debate!). Referring to the law on the social label makes it possible to shorten the text of the draft law, have a shorter mechanism and not create a new body.
Legal recognition of fair trade would:
- remove the current vagueness, calm down the conflicts around “who really does fair trade and who doesn’t?” and provide a clear framework that will enable new players to embark on this type of trade in a more “secure”, “dispassionate” way.
- help consumers distinguish between fair trade and non-fair trade products.
- serve as a benchmark for the public purchasing of fair trade products.
- It is the responsibility of the public authorities to develop new instruments to support fair trade. The lack of a legal definition deprives public authorities of a legal basis for supporting anyone who seriously practises this type of trade, apart from NGOs such as Oxfam-Magasins du monde, Fairtrade Belgium and Miel Maya, which are officially approved by Belgian Development Cooperation.
The submitted text will now follow the classic parliamentary route. It can be co-signed by other parties, and amendments can be proposed before its hypothetical adoption.
It is a great opportunity for the sector to put fair trade on the agenda (again).
