On Friday 27 November 2015, speakers from government and opposition parties, including CSV, DP and déi gréng, discussed the subject of fair trade in the context of public procurement.
Earlier that day, as part of the 'Fair Politics' campaign, the Cercle de Coopération, as an NGO representative body in Luxembourg, put forward this question to President of the Chamber of Deputies Mars Di Bartolomeo: "What practical measures can the government take to ensure that the State and its administrations consume more fairly and do not contribute with their purchases to the exploitation of primary resources and humans in developing countries?'
In Parliament later that same day, Nancy Arendt of CSV stated that "there needs to be in all political areas a systematic and effective check, because only then can we truly talk of a coherent policy in the matter of development and sustainability." She also demanded that we "pay attention to a more fair purchasing policy, for example by buying products which respond to sustainable and socially responsible criteria and which are therefore consistent with development policy. We wish to raise the issue of where are we with our procurement (ministries, municipalities and government) regarding Fairtrade products?"
Gusty Graas of DP emphasised that it is necessary to "once again draw attention to the consumption of Fairtrade products. We always notice that public institutions, most notable the State, do not show enough commitment in this field. At the individual level too, everyone can still make more of an effort".
In his speech, Claude Adam of déi gréng called for consistency which is currently lacking: "The call to resolutely commit to using sustainable products in public administrations has not had the success we wished for it. We can make a valuable contribution to a fairer world by using fair trade products. Even today we accept through public procurement the exploitation of men and women in many parts of the world. We also see that it is not a question of price, as in many public administrations and municipalities there are coffee machines where the price per kilo of capsules is between 80 and 90 euros, not to mention the ecological footprint of the packaging. We need to stop acting blind as regards public procurement."
He continued: "In October 2014, all parties of the Chamber of Deputies consensually deamnded fair purchases by Parliament. That was a year ago. When I ask for news on the current state of affairs, the reply is that they are moving. But I get the impression that the brakes have not yet been released and I would be happy to be able to make a different statement within a year."
In his closing speech, Romain Schneider drew attention to the fact that the responsibility for public procurement is not primarily within the Ministry of Cooperation, calling on ministries, municipalities and politicians to take responsibility for a fair purchasing policy.
Following the debate, the Cercle de Coopération and Fairtrade Lëtzebuerg called for the implementation of concrete measures from the whole government, in order for a coherent and fair purchasing policy become a reality in the Grand Duchy. Another important steo to follow was cited as being the transposition of the EU directive on public procurement into national law.
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