Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2000-02-02-Speech-3-062"
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"en.20000202.5.3-062"2
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"Mr President, no one wants more than I do to see a situation in which we are able to apply the precautionary principle in such a way that it is seen as radically protecting people’s health and the environment. Obviously, I cannot adopt a stance on this special case and on the particular product which has been mentioned here, but I shall go directly back and see what I can obtain in the way of information about this particular case.
The truth, of course, is that a great many Member States, and no doubt other nations too, have taken measures to protect their populations’ health which amount to using the precautionary principle, even if it has not always been called that. Naturally, it is not in the first place a question of cost; there can in fact be an enormous cost to society if the decision to take a particular measure is avoided. Nor must it be a case of sitting and calculating the value of a human life over and against the cost of taking a particular measure. I think, however, it is quite obvious that when it is eventually time to decide upon a particular step to be taken, it is often the case that there are many different courses of action to choose between. In those circumstances, consideration should be given to what is likely to produce the best result.
I cannot forbear telling you about an occasion when the expression
was used by people whom one cannot perhaps imagine using it, namely when I was on a visit to Africa. At a hospice for AIDS patients, I met two Irish Catholic nuns who were caring for dying AIDS patients. They were the first to say that, each day, they must think about doing what is most cost-effective because resources had to suffice for their poor patients there. We must be very careful about how we use resources. I believe we can learn something from this. We must, of course, always ensure that we use our resources in the most effective manner and in such a way that they provide the broadest possible help.
As is also explained in the present communication, it is not therefore correct that one must first begin with some sort of cost-benefit analysis. Consideration should be given to what science is offering in the way of knowledge, and this should be used as an important political tool for protecting the environment and people’s health."@en1
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"cost-effective"1
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