Jahn, H.-E.

Archive of European Integration

27 June 1975 English Edition European Communities I I / '· .LI -, I EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT Working Documents 1975-1976 DOCUMENT 149/75 Report by the Committee on Public Health and the Environment ·on those parts of thrighth General Report on the Activities of the European Communities which fall within the terms of reference of the committee (Doc. 500/7 4) 'I Rapporteur : Mr H.E. JAHN , PE 40.623/fin. By letter of 14 April 1975 the President of the European Parliament authorized the Committee on Public Health and the Environment to draw up a report on those parts of the Eighth General Report on the Activities of the European Communities which fall within the committee's terms of reference. The committee appointed Mr Jahn rapporteur on 22 April 1975. At its meeting of 9 June 1975 the committee discussed the draft motion for a resolution and adopted it unanimously. Present: Mr Jahn, acting chairman and rapporteur; Mr Jakobsen, vice-chairman; Mr Adams, Mr Albertsen, Mr Antoniozzi, Lord Bethell, Mr Bregegere, Mr Duval, Mr Martens, Mr Willi MUller, Mr Ney, Mr Noe, Mr Petersen, Mr Rosati, Mr Spicer and Mr Springorum. The explanatory statement will be delivered orally. - 3 - PE 40.623/fin. j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j j The committee on Public Health and the Environment hereby submits to the l~uropean Parliament the followtng motionfor a resolution: MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION on t:1ose parts of the Eighth General Report on the Activities of the European Communities which fall within the terms of reference of the Committee on Public Health and the Environment :T-he European Parliament, having regard to those parts of the Eighth General Report on the Activities O'" ':he European Communities (Doc. 500/74) which fall within the t, ;a of reference of the Committee on Public Health and the Environment, having regard to the report of the Committee on Public Health and the Enviroru7tent (Doc. 149/75) , 1. Regrets that the Council was not able in the period under review to agree on the introduction of the pri.nciples of free movement of pharmaceuticals in the Co~~unity, but welcomes the fact that agreement was largely reached in February 1975; 2. Stresses the urgent need for the first programme of the European Economic Community for consumer information and protection to be put into operation soon, with due. account taken of the European Parliament's opinion, and therefore criticizes the fact that the Council, which undertook to adopt this programme as soon as possible and by July 1974 at the latest, did not do so until March 1975; 3. Attaches great importance to the activities of the Consumers' Consultative Committee, and th.refore.requeste the Commission al~ya to attach this committee's opinion to any future proposals for harmonization which contain provisions relevant to consumer protection so that the European Parliament may examine such proposals in full knowledge of the facts; 4. '"elcomes the fact that the Commission has always placed the protection of the consumer's health in the forefront in its work in the food sector and that the Scientific Committee on Foodstuffs Which was set up by decision of 16 April 1974 and is to be consulted on questions of the protection of human life and human health in the sphere of fc/::r consumption, has recently started work; 5. CalJ on the Commission to apply the system of total harmonization whcr '' :::.sary to satisfy the overriding requirement of the protect:1.vn vi public health and safety, whereas in other cases optional harmonization is sufficient for maintaining freedom of choice and multiplicity of supply in the Conununity, and insists that work to achieve uniform legislation on food should be energetically pursued with this end in view; - 5 - PE 40.623/fin. 6. Notes with satisfaction that progress has been achieved in the case of the research called for in Article 55 of the ECSC Treaty in the fields of safety, health protection and protection of the environment and looks forward with interest to the action programme proposed by the Commission on occupational safety, industrial hygiene and health protection at work; 7. Pays tribute to the activities of the Steel Industry Safety and Health Commission and the Mines Safety and Health Commission, but reiterates the appeal it has been making for many years for a considerable i:-:.crease in the staff of the secretariats of these two commissions, so that their daily, practical work may be fully effective, particularly through the achievement of a substantial reduction of safety and health risks; 8. Is disappointed that the Advisory Committee on Safety, Hygiene and Health Protection at Work set up by the Council decision of 27 June 1974 has taken a year to begin its practical work because the Council for a long time proved incapable of nominating its members; 9. Welcomes the first results of the meeting of the Council of Ministers responsible for environmental protection held on 7 November 1974 and expects the Council to continue to adopt by the Appointed time the measures provided for in the programme of action on the environment of 22 November 1973 while taking account of the European Parliament's opinions; 10. Applauds the work done by the Commission in submitting to the Council since the end of 1973 almost 20 proposals for regulations and directives, recommendations and resolutions, in extending its activities at international level and in continuing its work under the information agreement of 5 March 1973; ll. Emphatically supports the Commission's willingness to press for the necessary purification of the waters of the Rhine, insofar as it is able to do so; encourages it to strengthen its participation in the Rhine Commission and to offer coordinating aid to the Member States France, the Federal Republic of Germany and the Netherlands to support their efforts; 12. Attaches great importance to the harmonization proposed by the commission of the methods of supervising the protection of man and the environment against radioactivity emitted by nuclear power stat:i.ons and to the planned establishment of Community criteria and health standards as a means of achieving effective protection of the env ,:,t•ment; 13. Supports the Commission in its efforts to harmonize methods of establishing nuclear facility safety requirements and the resulting secondary requirements (in particular the preparation and transportation of the irradiated material, transportation and - 6 - PE 40.623/:Ein. storing of waste) and drawing up safety standards, since they have proved to be urgently necessary in view of the increasing prod~ction of nuclear energy; 14. Welcomes the 'environmental research' action to be carried out within the framework of the research programme authorized for the years 1973 to 1975, regarding it as worthy of scientific and technical support under the programme of action on the environment of 22 November 1973, and hopes that this action will soon produce practical results representing a valuable contribution to further practical mea.su:ces to protect the environment; 15. Notes with satisfaction that the Commission has been able to maintain the quality and intensity of Euratom safety supervision despite the considerable increase in the mmiber of substances subject to controls as a result of the accession of the new Member States, this being largely due to the development of measuring devices at the nuclear research centres which permit the rationalization of control procedures; 16. Regrets that the Commission contented itself with making a non-binding recommendation to the Member States on 20 December 1974 on the protection of birds and thei:c natural habitat and calls on the Commission to review its position and to meet its obligaticns under the programme of action on the environment by submitting proposals for regulations or directives that are binding on all the Member States; 17. Approves of the work being done by the Commission on the harmonization of safety in the transport sector and calls on the council to act more quickly in adopting the numerous proposals now before it, thus making a valuable contribution to reducing the number of victims of traffic accidents; 18. Looks forward with interest to the submission announced by the Commission o: the Communities' Second Programme of Action on the Environment, which in particular will include measures to prevent waste, and reserves the '~ight to give its opinion on the draft programme in due course; 19. criticizes the fact that the Commission does not intend to submit.until ·the end of 1975 the annual report on the state of environmental protection in the Community for which provision is made in the first programme of action a T'.'i uEnnands, as it has done in the past, that this report be submitted to the European Parliament and published on the Day of the Environment (6 June) each year; 20. Calls on the Comm:!.ssion and Council to implement the European Communi ties' consumer informatio,l and protection programme quickly and in accordance with the timetable. - 7 - PE 40.623/fin. 

Report by the Committee on Public Health and the Environment on the Activities of the European Communities which fall within the terms of reference of the committee (Doc. 500/74). Working Documents 1975-1976, Document 149/75, 27 June 1975

Report by the Committee on Public Health and the Environment on the Activities of the European Communities which fall within the terms of reference of the committee (Doc. 500/74). Working Documents 1975-1976, Document 149/75, 27 June 1975

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