Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2005-11-15-Speech-2-174"
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"en.20051115.25.2-174"2
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"Mr President, the background to why we need new chemicals legislation in Europe has been eloquently described. I shall not therefore go into more detail about it. In the Group of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe, we have identified ten thorny political issues. I wish therefore, instead, to describe some of these.
Credible evaluations of the draft legislation have been undertaken, and these have shown that there are special problems for small enterprises where 1-10 tonne volumes are concerned. There is therefore a need for simplified registration for small enterprises when it comes to non-hazardous chemicals. At the same time, stricter requirements need to be made of those chemicals suspected of being dangerous. The compromise means that further information is required about approximately 30% of the substances, while simplified registration is enough for the remaining substances. I think that this is a good balance – perhaps not perfect, but acceptable – and, when it comes to such important matters, something good should not be jeopardised by pursuit of the ideal. It is often said that what characterises a good compromise is the fact that everyone is equally dissatisfied with the result. I believe that the opposite is, in actual fact, true in this case, that is to say that most people are reasonably satisfied with the result.
The proposal needs also to be strengthened in a number of ways. Each individual consumer must have the right to know whether there are any dangerous chemicals in the goods that he or she purchases. Therefore, our compromise also contains rules concerning the duty of care, which clearly lies with companies. The ALDE Group also proposes an addition clearly stating that the burden of proof should lie with companies.
One important issue concerns authorisation, that is to say the actual decisions concerning chemicals. It is important to have a strong substitution principle for hazardous chemicals that can be replaced by less hazardous alternatives. Those chemicals that need to be authorised are not just any old ones. They are chemicals that can cause cancer, that damage people’s reproductive functions and that become concentrated in the human body – in other words, the worst of the worst offenders. Those companies lowest down in the chain, known as downstream users, need also to have access to better information, and consumers need to have the right to be informed. I am therefore pleased that the relevant provisions are included.
REACH needs, moreover, to be made clearer. The mining industry is wrong to believe that it has to test every lorry-load of iron ore taken out of a mine. The proposal contains similar grey areas and odd features which all three of the major political groups have been very much in agreement about removing.
I should like to thank Commissioners Verheugen and Dimas. For a moment, I was concerned when they came up with this ‘room paper’, but I am very pleased that the Commission has now decided to support the main policy represented by the big three groups in Parliament.
I should also like to congratulate Great Britain on the sterling work it has done and continues to do and also to congratulate Luxembourg on the work it did earlier on when it held the Presidency. The decision I hope we shall vote through on Thursday here in the Chamber greatly resembles the proposal put forward by the Presidency. This means that we now have the opportunity both to stabilise the whole issue and to reach a decision considered by the ALDE Group to be incredibly important. We shall support the compromise proposals on the table."@en1
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