"Fair Trade Movement urges MEPs to seize the opportunity to strengthen CSDDD in upcoming plenary vote," 23 October 2025

...After today’s decision at the European Parliament to table the text of the Committee on Legal Affairs (JURI), the Fair Trade Movement sees some potential for improvements in the CSDDD. However, we are deeply worried that this latest turn in the process could further weaken the European Parliament position, putting smallholder farmers, artisans, workers and responsible businesses across global supply chains at serious risk...

This vote comes at a time when citizens are calling for stronger corporate accountability. Over 75% of EU citizens want to see companies being held accountable for human rights and environmental abuses in their value chains. Yet, while countries around the world are strengthening due diligence requirements, the EU risks falling behind.

In particular, the Fair Trade Movement is concerned that the JURI committee’s position, negotiated by rapporteur Mr Jörgen Warborn (Group of the European People's Party), falls too short in several areas that are key to ensuring supply chain resilience, including:

• Excludes most companies by limiting due diligence to companies with over 5000 employees and €1.5 billion turnover...
• Fails to reinstate all safeguards on responsible disengagement, potentially encouraging cut and run...
• Restricts meaningful dialogue between buyers and suppliers during risk identification, allowing companies to request information from business partners only ‘as a last resort’ during in-depth assessments...

Ahead of the November plenary vote, the Fair Trade Movement urges Members of the European Parliament to seize this vital opportunity to correct the significant shortcomings of the current CSDDD text, and resist any attempts to further weaken its provisions. We call on MEPs to strengthen the Directive by introducing key safeguards that reflect the realities of global supply chains and the expectations of EU citizens by:

• Retaining the risk-based approach as endorsed by the INTA and DROI committees, and reflected in the final JURI text;
• Ensuring responsible disengagement by requiring companies to engage with stakeholders prior to suspending business relationships and mandating that any termination of business relations be carried out in a responsible manner;
• Recognising NGOs as key stakeholders, in line with the recommendations from the DROI subcommittee;
• Facilitating meaningful engagement during risk assessments, allowing companies to request necessary information to address pervasive rights violations, such as the lack of living incomes and living wages, while ensuring that such requests are proportionate, targeted and collaborative.