In the latest chapter of the ongoing controversy over the proposed Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) between the US and the EU, members of the German Bundestag (parliament) have expressed dissatisfaction with the US embassy’s rejection of their request to view a transcript of the debate.

In a letter to US ambassador John Emerson, Bundestag president Norbert Lammert had asked that the text containing positions of the US as well as the EU side be made available to selected members of the parliament in a suitable manner, in a special reading room set aside by the embassy in Berlin.

The embassy made the reading room available to members of governments of the EU states by appointment, after prior vetting, but not their elected representatives.

According to reports, the German economics ministry has given the embassy a list of 139 names it believes should be allowed to view the debate documents in person.

The daily newspaper Frankfurter Rundschau quotes a spokeswoman as saying the ministry has appealed both to the US government and the EU Commission to broaden the scope of those allowed to view the proceedings and the official negotiation documents to include members of European national parliaments, thus far without success.

Alternatively, she told the newspaper, the EU has suggested to the US side that a database be set up to provide information about the proposed treaty.

The path to TTIP remains rocky, despite the European Parliament’s (EP) Jul. 8 vote to approve the reopening of negotiations. That vote, originally scheduled for Jun. 9, had to be postponed at the eleventh hour due to a flood of complaints against or amendments to a proposed compromise.

The EP has the power to reject any final TTIP agreement but does not have the right to participate in the debate or – as yet – see the negotiation documents.

Many European organizations have been critical of the lack of transparency in the negotiations. The chemical industry unequivocally supports the treaty. In the view of the German industry association, Verband der Chemischen Industrie, improved regulatory cooperation has the greatest potential.