12 Evaluation of pesticides containing
micro-organisms
| (25308)
5675/04
COM(03) 814
| Draft Council Directive amending Annex VI to Directive 91/414/EEC as regards plant protection products containing micro-organisms
|
| Legal base | Article 18(1) of Council Directive 91/414/EC; QMV
|
| Document originated | 22 December 2003
|
| Deposited in Parliament | 29 January 2004
|
| Department | Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
|
| Basis of consideration | EM of 6 February 2004
|
| Previous Committee Report | None, but see footnote
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| To be discussed in Council | No date set
|
| Committee's assessment | Politically important
|
| Committee's decision | Cleared
|
Background
12.1 Council Directive 91/414/EEC[28]
deals with the placing on the market of agricultural pesticides
(plant protection products), and requires all those derived from
active substances authorised at Community level to be evaluated
by Member States in a uniform way for efficacy and for any risks
to human health and the environment. When that Directive was
enacted, Annex VI, setting out uniform principles governing evaluations,
was left uncompleted, and the relevant criteria were subsequently
set out in Council Directive 97/57/EC[29]
so far as chemical pesticides are concerned.
The current proposal
12.2 The present proposal seeks to set out similar principles
for those pesticides containing micro-organisms, though the number
of these is currently small. For example, only a handful of micro-organisms
have been authorised within the Community as active substances,
as against around 400 chemicals; and, within the UK, there are
presently only five pesticides containing micro-organisms, compared
with about 4,000 chemical pesticides.
The Government's view
12.3 In his Explanatory Memorandum of 6 February 2004, the Minister
of State for Rural Affairs and Local Environmental Quality at
the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Mr Alun
Michael) says that the UK fully supports Directive 91/414/EEC,
and that this proposal will help to achieve the aim of ensuring
high protection standards for workers, consumers and the environment
through the consistent evaluation across Member States of pesticides
containing micro-organisms. He adds that the principles involved,
which are technical in nature, and designed to be used by regulatory
scientists within Member States, have been developed by a Commission
scientific working group with an input from all Member States.
The UK input reflects advice from the independent Advisory Committee
on Pesticides (ACP), and the Minister says that the Government
is content with the content of the proposal, bearing in mind also
that its data requirements are generally in line with those required
within the UK (and thus should not lead to significantly higher
costs for industry here).
Conclusion
12.4 We note that this is an essentially technical measure,
which is supported by the Government, and we are therefore clearing
it. However, since the arrangements for approving pesticides are
a matter of public interest, we think it right to draw this development
to the attention of the House.
28 OJ No. L.230, 19.8.91, p.1. Back
29
OJ No. L.265, 27.9.97, p.87. Back
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