36 CHEMICAL, BIOLOGICAL, RADIOLOGICAL
AND NUCLEAR INCIDENTS: PREVENTION, DETECTION AND RESPONSE
(30731)
11480/09
COM(09) 273
+ ADDs 1-2
+ ADD 3
| Commission Communication on strengthening chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear security in the EU — an EU CBRN Action Plan
Commission staff working documents: impact assessment and summary of assessment
Commission staff working paper — Bridging security and health: towards the identification of good practices in response to CBRN incidents and the security of CBR substances
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| Legal base | —
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| Document originated | 24 June 2009
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| Deposited in Parliament |
2 July 2009 |
| Department | Home Office
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| Basis of consideration |
EM of 14 September 2009 |
| Previous Committee Report |
None |
| To be discussed in Council
| December 2009 |
| Committee's assessment | Politically important
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| Committee's decision | Cleared
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Background
36.1 Article 29 of the EU Treaty declares that it is an objective
of the EU to provide citizens with a high level of safety in an
area of freedom, security and justice. The objective is to be
achieved by, among other things, preventing and fighting terrorism
through cooperation between Member States' law enforcement and
judicial authorities.
36.2 Article 2 of the EC Treaty makes the promotion
of solidarity between Member States part of the Community's task.
Article 3 of the Treaty says that the Community's activities are
to include a contribution to a high level of health protection
and measures on civil protection. Article 152 of the Treaty requires
the Community to take action (complementing national policies)
to prevent danger to human health.
36.3 In 2002, the Council of Ministers adopted a
programme to improve cooperation in the EU to prevent CBRN terrorist
threats. That programme was superseded by the EU Solidarity Programme,
which was adopted after the terrorist attacks on Madrid in 2004.
The EU Strategy and Action Plan on Combating Terrorism was agreed
in 2005, following the attacks on London in July 2005. The Community
Mechanism for Civil Protection and the Monitoring and Information
Centre help mobilise and coordinate assistance to countries affected
by major emergencies. There are also EC rapid alert systems such
as ECURIE for radiological emergencies, the Early Warning and
Response System for communicable diseases and RAS-BICHAT for biological
and chemical threats. The EC Health Security Committee runs training
exercises on the response to CBRN incidents and draws up lists
of pathogens and chemicals which pose a risk to human health.
The CBRN Action Plan
36.4 The Commission says that the overall aim of
the Action Plan is to reduce the threat of, and damage, from incidents
in which terrorists use CBRN materials. The aim would be achieved
by cooperation between Member States, the Commission and others.
Measures for this purpose include:
- adopting a risk-based approach
to CBRN security in the EU, using risk-assessments to determine
security priorities;
- ensuring that CBRN materials are well protected;
- strengthening the exchange of information between
Member States in order to react more swiftly to emerging threats;
- improving the effectiveness and use of detection
systems; and
- providing the emergency services with the tools
necessary to save life and limit damage to property.
36.5 The Action Plan is based on the final report
and recommendations of representatives of EU bodies and national
organisations concerned with protection against CBRN, including
Government departments, the emergency services and authorities
responsible for radiological and nuclear safety. The final report
was published in January 2009 and contained 264 recommendations.
The Commission says that the report showed not only that there
is a lot of work that needs to be done but also that there is
strong consensus among experts about how the issues might best
be tackled.
36.6 The Action Plan is not a legal instrument and
is not binding on Member States. The Commission says that:
"immediate legal and budgetary consequences
for the EU could only derive from possible future legal instruments
implementing the Action Plan … ."[130]
36.7 The Plan is structured under four headings:
- prevention — ensuring
that unauthorised access to CBRN materials is as difficult as
possible;
- detection — having the capability to detect
CBRN in order to prevent or respond to incidents;
- preparedness and response — being able
to respond efficiently to CBRN incidents and recover from them
as quickly as possible; and
- actions common to all the above, such as improved
training and international cooperation.
The Action Plan states goals; 133 actions to achieve
them; who is to take the action; and the timetable for it.
36.8 Prevention has the most goals
(9) and actions (57). Goal 1 is for Member States and the Commission
to identify and record high-risk sources of CBRN materials; assess
their potential for malicious use; assess their vulnerability
to loss or theft; and identify possible measures to keep them
safe. The subsequent goals and actions are concerned with such
matters as the training of staff, improving the security of transport
and rules for the import and export of CBRN.
36.9 Detection of CBRN is crucial for
the prevention of loss, theft or misuse and for the rapid identification
of the material if there is an incident. Goals and actions under
this heading include developing minimum standards for detection
equipment and establishing schemes to accredit detection systems.
36.10 The goals and actions for Member States and
the Commission under the preparedness and response heading
include improving emergency planning; conducting training and
testing exercises for organisations which would be involved in
responding to incidents; assessing Member States' capacity to
respond to major terrorist attacks and other incidents; and improving
Member States' capacity to conduct criminal investigations of
CBRN crimes.
36.11 Goals and action under the fourth heading —
actions common to CBRN prevention, detection and response
— include more and better international cooperation; better
communication with the public; identification and dissemination
of good practice; and better dissemination and application of
the results of relevant R&D.
36.12 The Commission says that:
"The implementation of the Action Plan should
be taken forward primarily by way of existing mechanisms. Although
the EU Action Plan envisages the establishment of a small number
of working structures, these are mainly intended as temporary
working arrangements, which have specific and time-limited goals."[131]
So, for example, work on improving preparedness for
CBRN incidents, such as training and assessments of capability,
will be done through the existing Community Civil Protection Mechanism.
Up to €100 million will be made available from existing EU
expenditure programmes to finance the implementation of the Action
Plan between 2010 and 2013.
The Government's view
36.13 In his Explanatory Memorandum of 14 September
2009, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Home Office
(Admiral Lord West of Spithead) tells us that the Government attaches
high priority to tackling the threat of terrorism employing CBRN
materials. The Government welcomes and supports EU efforts to
minimise the risks of such incidents.
36.14 The Minister says that the Action Plan is comprehensive
and ambitious in scope and has the Government's broad support.
He comments that:
"Although the UK is comparatively advanced
in addressing the CBRN threat this policy package is a potentially
valuable opportunity to enhance the UK's capabilities and resilience
through sharing of best practice, common methodology and, where
appropriate, risk and mitigation information with EU partners.
A key requirement however will be to ensure that duplication of
effort is kept to a minimum and that EU efforts are complementary
to national programmes and aligned with other international initiatives.
The UK will ensure that existing national arrangements are not
adversely affected by the Action Plan."[132]
36.15 The Minister goes on to provide a detailed
commentary on the goals and actions listed in the Action Plan.
For example, he says that there is a risk that the proposed action
to enhance the security of transport will duplicate work already
in progress in the Commission's Directorate General for Energy
and Transport. He also notes that the Government will be seeking
clarification of some of the proposals. For example, the Government
will ask about the intended allocation of €100 million from
existing EC expenditure programmes to support the implementation
of the Plan.
36.16 ADD 1, a Commission staff working document,
provides a detailed impact assessment of the Action Plan. The
Minister says that the Government believes that the document presents
a fair and objective view of the likely effects of the Plan. It
also considers that the action proposed in the Plan is proportionate
to the risks of CBRN incidents.
36.17 In the Government's view, there are potential
benefits to the UK from the Action Plan. The Minister says that
the Plan should:
- "enable UK evaluation of the various approaches
used by Member States to deal with CBRN and facilitate exchange
of expertise and good practice;
- strengthen the arrangements across the EU to
reduce the risk of dangerous material falling into unwanted hands
(and therefore possibly being used against UK citizens or interests);
- draw together other CBRN-related initiatives
underwritten by the EU in which we participate — eg scientific
research programmes and funding support; [and]
- provide an opportunity for the alignment of EU
CBRN planning scenarios (which Member State will use to assess
their capabilities) with UK scenarios, where appropriate."
36.18 Finally, the Minister tells us that there will
be a series of meetings to finalise the text of the Action Plan
with the aim of the Plan being adopted by the Council in December.
Conclusion
36.19 Terrorists do not respect national borders.
We recognise the benefits of practical cooperation between Member
States and between them and the Commission to prevent, detect
and respond to threatened or actual terrorist incidents which
involve chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear materials.
We note that the Government welcomes and broadly supports the
Action Plan. We also note that the Plan will not be legally binding.
It will be open to each Member State to decide to what extent
it will participate and what resources to allocate to the actions
listed in the Plan. For these reasons, we see no need to keep
the document under scrutiny. Because of its political importance,
we draw the Action Plan to the attention of the House.
130 Commission Communication, page 4, second sentence. Back
131
Commission Communication, page 5, third paragraph. Back
132
Minister's Explanatory Memorandum, paragraph 22. Back
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