Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2006-12-11-Speech-1-077"
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"en.20061211.14.1-077"2
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"Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, a long-term legislative procedure is reaching its completion and REACH is taking its final form.
REACH aims at reducing animal testing to a bare minimum. The agreement between Parliament and the Council on this point is satisfactory. It emphasises the importance of alternative methods and provides for a 45-day period for public consultation on each test proposal.
Wednesday’s vote will be the final stage of a procedure that aims at achieving the goal set out by the Heads of State or Government during the 2006 Spring Convention, namely the completion of REACH by the end of 2006. I hope that we complete the procedure as planned, and the regulation is put into effect so that we can begin to face this big challenge, namely to gradually collect information on thousands of substances that are being used today and so that we can adopt enhanced risk management measures.
Finally, ladies and gentlemen, we must begin, and soon, our efforts for the gradual replacement of dangerous substances. If alternative products exist, replacement must be our first choice.
The Commission, as mentioned by the Vice-President Mr Verheugen, congratulates the Council and Parliament on reaching an agreement. With this agreement we will achieve better health and environmental protection as well as promotion of industrial innovation and competitiveness.
The Commission supports this set of compromise proposals that were agreed between the Council and Parliament on 30 November 2006.
I would like to thank the Presidency and Minister Mr Pekkarinen, and of course the European Parliament, the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety and its president Mr Florenz, and especially its rapporteur Mr Guido Sacconi, for their significant efforts and determination, because of which this proposal had a happy end.
REACH is one of the most comprehensive, inspired and ambitious legislations that have been drafted in the European Union, so far. It will affect all industry sectors, but also simple citizens in direct or indirect ways considering that chemical products are so widespread in everyday life.
For citizens and consumers, REACH means better information regarding the substances contained in everyday products, but foremost it means that the dangerous substances will be gradually replaced by safer ones. Moreover, risk assessments will take into consideration vulnerable groups, such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. Therefore, citizens’ health will improve and environmental damage will be avoided which not only cost a lot to be rectified and managed, but in many cases cannot be restored.
REACH signifies broad responsibility on the part of industry to prevent adverse effects to health and the environment from the production, use and sale of chemical products. Furthermore, it means that the flow of information to the production chain will be improved so that future users will have better and full knowledge regarding the features and properties of the substances they use. Therefore, it will be possible to specify more precise objectives for risk management measures, a prospect that will boost workforce protection and reduce health and business problems.
Even though there will be some increase in cost, this expenditure and investment will be distributed over a long-term period, that is, 11 years in the event of registration or longer in the event of a loan.
With the new system, we expect to regain consumer confidence in chemical products and the chemical industry, and moreover REACH will boost competition and innovation, a fact that will both offset and cover the larger part of the initial expenses and investments."@en1
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