We think that the proposed actual research design, the methodology and the process of drafting the report does not constitute a solid foundation for an analysis which is able to guide EU trade and investment policy towards a socially and environmentally sustainable orientation.<br /><br />To begin with, we believe that a sound Sustainability Impact Assessment should have been produced before the adoption of the EU’s negotiation mandate. The fact that an analysis of potential effects of the TTIP on sustainable development commissioned by the European Commission will only be available one and a half years after the launch of the negotiations demonstrates that the negotiation mandate and the currently ongoing negotia-tions are not based on solid considerations of social, environmental and human rights impacts.<br />