"One of the issues we'll be addressing is TTIP because it’s unacceptable, certainly in its present form… we’re not in favour of trade deals whereby decisions are actually being made behind closed doors, that will affect things like workers’ rights, environmental standards, health and safety standards so we’ll be campaigning for a reform," McDonnell told the RT broadcaster in an interview which will be aired Saturday.
The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) free trade agreement would reduce barriers to trade in goods and services between Europe and its largest export market, the United States.
Negotiations on the agreement have been ongoing between Washington and Brussels since 2013. The 12th round of US-EU talks is due to be held in early 2016 with the aim of drafting the full text of the agreement before the end of the year.
Anti-TTIP activists criticize the trade deal for the unusual secrecy in which it is being negotiated, and are concerned that released sections of the document clearly show that it will benefit multinational corporations and corporate rights-holders at the expense of sovereign nations and consumers.