To add to the other replies, there are two areas where TTIP is particularly controversial.<p>One such area is that the TTIP <i>might</i> include provisions that are broadly worded and have unintended (or &quot;actually intended but they&#x27;d never admit to it&quot;) side effects. For example, if businesses in foreign countries gained new rights to sue national governments if the governments act in a way that costs those businesses revenue, would that mean a government can no longer ban smoking in public places by law without paying compensation to the cigarette firms? Or if we extended patent rights in the pharmaceutical industry, would that limit the access of patients in poor countries to generic medicines they can afford, and force them to buy branded versions at much higher cost or go without?<p>The other area of controversy is the secrecy of the negotiations. It seems likely that significant parts of the proposed agreement have been influenced or even written by lobbyists representing special interest groups. However, pushing these kinds of changes via a trade agreement means the exact wording is kept between a small number of officials from the EU and US and isn&#x27;t subject to wider scrutiny. Even elected representatives in European and more recently national governments only have access to documents under tightly controlled conditions. Thus there is concern that what will be presented for more democratically accountable consideration will effectively be a <i>fait accompli</i>, one big take-it-or-leave-it bundle of new rules backed by heavy political pressure to take it even if some of the details aren&#x27;t wanted.<p>For a more detailed criticism, there are a few articles like this one around:<p><a href="http:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.independent.co.uk&#x2F;voices&#x2F;comment&#x2F;what-is-ttip-and-six-reasons-why-the-answer-should-scare-you-9779688.html" rel="nofollow">http:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.independent.co.uk&#x2F;voices&#x2F;comment&#x2F;what-is-ttip-and...</a>