UE :[REPONSE]Question E-005602-17 de Inmaculada Rodríguez-Piñero Fernández (S&D) et Clara Eugenia Aguilera García (S&D)- Measures to prevent organisms harmful to plants or plant products being brought into the EU

Niveau juridique : Union européenne

UE : Question E-005602-17 de Inmaculada Rodríguez-Piñero Fernández (S&D) et Clara Eugenia Aguilera García (S&D)- Measures to prevent organisms harmful to plants or plant products being brought into the EU

Texte de la question :

« On 15 December 2016, Parliament adopted a resolution objecting, in accordance with Rule 106, to the draft Commission implementing Directive that amended Annexes I to V to Directive 2000/29/EC on protective measures against the introduction into the Community of organisms harmful to plants or plant products and against their spread within the Community.

The resolution was passed by a huge majority: 463 votes for and 168 against. It expressed the view that the draft Directive ran counter to the objectives of Regulation (EU) 2016/2031, in that it undermined the requirements for bringing into the EU certain fruits susceptible to pests, in particular citrus black spot and citric canker. It also tabled a series of amendments.

However, on 14 July 2017, the Commission approved the implementing directive without taking into account any of the tabled amendments.

1. Why was no action taken on the recommendations adopted by Parliament?

2. Is the EU applying the same level of requirements in relation to plant-health specifications and treatments as third countries apply to our crops for access to their markets? »

Réponse :

« Answer given by Mr Andriukaitis on behalf of the Commission(4.12.2017)

1. Commission Implementing Directive (EU) 2017/12791, amending Directive 2000/29/EC2, was adopted on 14 July 2017 and will apply from 1 January 2018. The European Parliament had earlier adopted a resolution objecting to some of the elements of the draft Directive. In addition, comments were received when the draft Commission Implementing Directive was published for feedback (September-October 2016). Based on all comments received, the draft was changed and re-discussed in the relevant Standing Committee3. Certain elements of the resolution were included in the adopted Directive, such as the option of cold treatment for Thaumatotibia leucotreta, as presented in the Commission’s written follow-up to the European Parliament’s resolution4. As explained in this written follow-up, Commission Implementing Directive (EU) 2017/1279 is fully in line with the principles of Regulation 2016/20315.

2. All contracting parties to the International Plant Protection Convention and World Trade Organization (WTO) members are subject to the same phytosanitary and trade-related guidelines. Phytosanitary import restrictions need to be science- and risk-based, balanced and proportionate. Every WTO Member has the right to determine its level of protection on condition that the principles of the WTO Sanitary and Phytosanitary Agreement are followed. The EU plant health system is based on protection against specified quarantine pests and restrictions for related host plant material. While a full comparison of the EU import requirements with those of non-EU countries is difficult, there are no indications that the EU model is less efficient than models used by other trading partners. »

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