Documents considered by the Committee on 4 March 2015 - European Scrutiny Contents


15 Trade in seal products

Committee's assessment Politically important
Committee's decisionCleared from scrutiny
Document detailsDraft Regulation amending Regulation (EC) No. 1007/2009 on trade in seal products
Legal baseArticle 114 TFEU; co-decision; QMV
DepartmentEnvironment, Food and Rural Affairs
Document numbers(36649), 6015/15, COM(15) 45

Summary and Committee's conclusions

15.1 EU legislation prohibits the commercial import and placing on the EU market of seal products, subject to exceptions for hunts conducted by indigenous communities and those carried out on a small scale and non-profit basis for sustainable marine resource management. Following a challenge by Canada and Norway, the World Trade Organisation (WTO) has upheld the general ban, but has found against the exception for marine resource management, and has also ruled that aspects of the exception for indigenous communities are discriminatory. This draft Regulation seeks to address these issues by making the necessary amendments to the relevant EU Regulation, and is supported by the UK.

15.2 Since the welfare of seals is a matter of some public interest, we think it right to draw this proposal to the attention of the House. However, as it would limit certain existing exceptions to the ban on trade in seal products, and is supported by the UK, we see no need to hold it under scrutiny. We are therefore clearing it.

Full details of the document: Draft Regulation amending Regulation (EC) No. 1007/2009 on trade in seal products: (36649), 6015/15, COM(15) 45.

Background

15.3 In response to widespread public concern in the EU about the inhumane way seals were being killed, Council Regulation (EC) 1007/2009 prohibits the commercial import and placing on the EU market of seal products. However, this is subject to two exceptions applying to products derived from:

·  hunts traditionally conducted by Inuit or other indigenous communities (and contributing to their welfare); and

·  those conducted on a small scale and non-profit basis for the sole purpose of sustainable marine resource management.

15.4 The Regulation and its implementing act[66] were challenged by Canada and Norway in the WTO, whose Disputes Settlement Body upheld the EU's general ban on trade in seal products as justified on animal welfare grounds, but found that the two exceptions resulted in unjustified discriminatory treatment of Canadian and Norwegian seal products, compared with those from Greenlandic Inuits. In particular, the WTO considered that, despite hunts based on marine resource management being small in scale and not profit-oriented, the distinction between these and the bigger commercial hunts was not sufficient to justify different treatment. Similarly, whilst the WTO generally accepted that the protection of the economic and social needs of the Inuit is internationally recognised and a different treatment can be justified, it did have some concerns over the application of the exception in the Regulation, particularly as this did not address animal welfare, even though this is its underlying rationale. It also suggested that the ambiguity of some of the conditions of the exception could lead to it being used for hunts primarily undertaken for commercial purposes.

The current document

15.5 This draft Regulation would amend Regulation (EC) No. 1007/2009 to bring the EU regime into line with the relevant WTO rulings. It will thus remove the exception for hunts based on marine resource management, and amend that for indigenous communities so as to link its use to respect for animal welfare and provide for a mechanism that would help prevent its misuse (by preventing seal products derived from hunts which are primarily conducted for commercial purposes from entering the EU market under the exception for indigenous communities).

The Government's view

15.6 In his Explanatory Memorandum of 23 February 2015, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (George Eustice) says that the UK supports bringing the EU Regulation on trade in seal products into line with the WTO ruling by removing the exception for marine resource management, and amending the conditions attached to the exception for indigenous communities. It also supports the proposal on the grounds that it should improve animal welfare in the way hunts by indigenous peoples are carried out, as there will be a requirement to conduct these in a manner which "reduces pain, distress, fear or other forms of suffering of the animals hunted".

15.7 The Minister notes that the detailed rules for implementation will be adopted in delegated acts, but, as the amendments are to an existing EU regime, he does not consider that there will be an impact on UK employment or business.

Previous Committee Reports

None.


66   Commission Regulation (EU) No 737/2010. Back


 
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