Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2002-03-12-Speech-2-291"
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"en.20020312.12.2-291"2
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"Mr President, allow me to start by thanking the rapporteur, Mrs Müller, not only on her sound report but also on the tenacity she has displayed.
The issue we are debating today has caused a huge stir. As we know, there are different traditions, as well as do’s and do not’s in Europe. Like the United States, Great Britain and the Netherlands have, in fact, very flexible legislation whereby, once registered, all vitamins and minerals can be freely bought, sold and used.
However, there are also products, certain vitamins and minerals, that are not without risk. In Germany, another Member State, rules are very strict. Food supplements are only available on prescription and at the chemist. This is sufficient reason, also as far as the European citizens are concerned, to start to harmonise the internal market. This harmonisation should be subject to two criteria: firstly, the indication of a recommended daily intake as a guideline to the consumer and secondly, the establishment of a definitive list of permitted products. Products not yet on the European list will be permitted if their file has been submitted to the independent scientific committee for testing.
Honest European businesses are satisfied with this directive, unlike cowboys such as one Mathias Rath, who, just across the German border in the Netherlands, runs a very lucrative business using his own products. Adoption of this European legislation will ensure that his trade, which is primarily aimed at Germany, will fizzle out because consumers will be able to buy safe vitamins and minerals at the chemist or the supermarket anywhere in Europe.
I am also inundated with an incredible number of
mails, thousands of
mails and letters. Rath drove the anxious citizen to action with false arguments, no less. Let me be quite clear: nothing is being taken away from the consumer. There is a 30-month period during which businesses can prove that their products are indeed safe, and I will continue to monitor the scientific committee with regard to registration. I am pleased that Europe is calling an end to a practice which is only aimed at excessive profiteering on the backs of many people who are seriously ill."@en1
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