EU hopes of end to GM moratorium dashed

Environment Daily 1569, 08 December 2003

European Commission ambitions to remove a de facto EU moratorium on
the commercialisation of genetically modified (GM) products suffered an
embarrassing setback on Monday when a committee of national experts
failed to support an application concerning a sweetcorn called Bt-11
made by Syngenta.

The vote was postponed last month as the Commission feared its
recommendation to approve the application would not win the required
qualified majority support (ED 07/11/03
http://www.environmentdaily.com/articles/index.cfm?action=article&ref=15484)
.
In a statement issued after Monday's vote, however, the Commission
said the results were "expected".

Six countries - Finland, Ireland, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden and
the UK - voted in favour of the Commission's proposal.  Another six -
Austria, Denmark, France, Greece and Luxembourg, plus Portugal - voted
against.  Belgium and Italy moved from the no camp to an abstension,
with Germany also abstaining. Overall, the application received 33
votes in favour and 29 against, with 25 abstensions.

EU ministers will vote on the proposal within the next three months.
Should they fail to reach a qualified majority either for or against,
the Commission will have the power to adopt it unilaterally.

Environmental campaigners Friends of the Earth (FoE) welcomed the vote
as "a victory for public safety and common sense".  They said that the
lack of scientific consensus over the safety of the GM Bt-11 sweetcorn
proved that the European Commission was wrong to try to press ahead
with lifting the moratorium.

Green groups have insisted that authorisation of products under the
old approval process - preceding the passing of a new regulatory
package on GMOs - should not go ahead.  But the Commission said this
was of no consequence, as any new product would be subject to the new
rules in any case.

The European Commission has been striving to persuade America that the
moratorium will soon be lifted.  An official challenge against the EU
under World trade organisation rules was launched by the United States,
Canada and Argentina last summer (ED 18/08/03
http://www.environmentdaily.com/articles/index.cfm?action=article&ref=14951)
.

FoE urged the EU executive to "put the well-being of European citizens
and their environment before the business interests of the US
government and the biotech industry".

Follow-up: European Commission http://europa.eu.int/comm/index_en.htm, tel:
+32 2
299 1111 and statement http://www.environmentdaily.com/docs/31208a.doc;
Foe http://www.foeeurope.org/, tel: +32 2 542 0180 and press release
http://www.foeeurope.org/press/2003/AB_08_dec_GMO.htm.

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