Transatlantic Consumer Dialogue (TACD)

The Transatlantic Consumer Dialogue (TACD) is a forum of US and EU consumer organisations which develops and agrees on joint consumer policy recommendations to the US government and European Union to promote the consumer interest in EU and US policy making.

It is in the context of the New Transatlantic Agenda (NTA; launched in 1995) and in particular of the New Economic Partnership (launched in 1998), that the TACD, along with several other transatlantic dialogues, was born.

In launching the NTA and the TEP, the governments of the EU and US had for the first time pledged their support to an increased involvement of civil society in transatlantic policy-making.

The TACD was launched in September 1998, at the end of the inaugural meeting which took place in Washington and gathered more than 60 consumer representatives from the US and the EU.

Aims
To provide a formal mechanism for EU and US consumer representatives to input to EU and US political negotiations and agreements as well as explore ways of strengthening the EU and US consumer view at the international level.

Activities
The TACD endeavours to feed into the TEP process by looking closely at the agenda of the various TEP committees and responding on the issues which concern consumers directly.

TACD regularly issues statements and recommendations on important food, information society, intellectual property and trade issues. TACD is also a member of the advisory group to the Transatlantic Economic Council.

• Primary Source

http://ec.europa.eu/consumers/cons_issue/tacd_en.htm http://ec.europa.eu/consumers/cons_issue/tacd_en.htm

Wikipedia: Trans Atlantic Consumer Dialogue http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trans_Atlantic_Consumer_Dialogue

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