15 Trade in seal products
| Committee's assessment
| Politically important |
| Committee's decision | Cleared from scrutiny
|
| Document details | Draft Regulation amending Regulation (EC) No. 1007/2009 on trade in seal products
|
| Legal base | Article 114 TFEU; co-decision; QMV
|
| Department | Environment, 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
| 
