Euro Brief
1-15 June 2005, No. 11/2005
Council fails to Reach Deal on New Working Time Directive
Brussels Hosts Top Brain Science Convention
New Cross-Border Rights for Patients?
Cigarette Smuggling Costs EU 200m Euros
EU Boost for Smokers and Drinkers
Council Sides with Commission over Parliament on Health Claims
Council fails to Reach Deal on New Working Time Directive
The UK has blocked moves to ditch the individual opt-out from the working time directive at a Council of Ministers meeting in Brussels (June2nd).
France wants to scrap the individual opt-out from the 48 hour working week limits and has found allies in Belgium, Finland, Greece, Spain and Sweden.
Nevertheless, Spain and France are looking to keep the opt-out for a transitional period in the healthcare sector where they, like the UK are facing manpower problems.
Despite press reports to the contrary, Germany is not falling in line with France but has instead come on side with the UK on the opt-out. Apart from Germany and the UK, other Member States favouring greater flexibility than that proposed by the Commission, include Austria, Estonia, Latvia, Malta, Poland, Slovenia and Slovakia.
This is in addition to those countries wanting to keep the opt-out in line with the Commission's proposal (i.e.: keeping the opt-out after collective agreement at national level - in the absence of which, tighter requirements will be applied).
These countries include Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands and Portugal. Lithuania has now adopted a neutral position after having been against the opt-out.
Hungary and Luxembourg (which holds the EU Presidency) are also neutral. The UK and Malta are the only two countries that use the opt-out in general.
Slovenia uses it only in the healthcare sector. Austria, France, Germany. Hungary, Latvia, Poland and Spain plan to use it for their healthcare sectors.
After months of discussion at the Council, the opt-out is the only outstanding issue to be resolved in the working time directive review.
The European Parliament recently issued its First Reading Report, which called for the opt-out to be scrapped within three years. The UK had been confident of enough member states to form a blocking minority in Council. While the UK did not get enough support to defeat the French outright, it has forced a compromise that might salvage the opt-out for a while longer.
Likewise the French may delay a decision until the UK takes on the Presidency of the EU later this year when it will have to take a more muted position.
A qualified majority is at least 232 votes and 13 member states and 62% of the population. A blocking minority is at least 90 votes or 13 member states or more than 38% of the EU population. Voting weights vary according to country size. Germany, France and UK all have 29 votes (although the UK has 13% of the population and Germany has 18%). Malta has 3 votes with just 0.1% of the population
Brussels Hosts Top Brain Science Convention
"Meeting of Minds", a European project supported by the Commission has held a Citizen's Convention in Brussels, bringing together 123 citizens from nine countries.
The Convention discussed the ethical, social and legal issues surrounding brain science. Other participants included research, policy and ethics experts, stakeholders and European institutions.
The convention's final report presents six broad themes that citizens consider essential for further investigations - such as regulation and economic interests.
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The conclusions will be presented to European and national policymakers and further discussed in other panels and the next European convention (January 2006).
These citizens' panels are an answer to the call for greater public involvement in the debate on future European research, technological decision-making and governance.
New Cross-Border Rights for Patients?
The European Parliament has adopted an own-initiative Report by John Bowis, Conservative MEP for London, on patient mobility and healthcare developments in the European Union by 554 votes in favour to 12 against with 18 abstentions. (9 June)
The BMA Brussels Office will be hosting an informal Roundtable on Patient Mobility in conjunction with the EU Think Tank "The Centre" on 11 October. John Bowis MEP will be the keynote speaker.
Cigarette Smuggling Costs EU 200m Euros
A Report by Herbert Bosch, an Austrian Socialist MEP reveals that cigarette smuggling cost the EU at least 200m Euros in lost revenue in 2003.
The Report which looks into wider financial irregularity concludes that much more needs to be done to fight fraud. It says that irregularities and fraud totalling 922m Euros were reported by Member States in 2003.
It welcomes the agreement between the Commission and Philip Morris International on combating cigarette smuggling.
MEPs are dismayed by the paltry recovery rate by the anti-fraud office OLAF. Of an estimated loss of 5.34bn euros over the last five years, only 100m or 1.87% have been recovered. MEPs blame inadequate reporting procedures by Member States.
EU Boost for Smokers and Drinkers
A Report by Portuguese Socialist MEP, Dariusz Rosati, aims to make it easier for consumers to buy large quantities of cigarettes and alcohol in another Member State and bring the goods home for their own personal use.
The parliamentary Report calls for the burden of proof to be placed firmly on state authorities to show that goods were for commercial use in disputed cases. At the moment, it is up to consumers to prove they are for personal use which makes it easier for purges by HM Customs and Excise to seize cigarettes and alcohol at the UK borders. This has led to a number of high-profile run-ins between the Treasury and the European Commission.
In addition the Report supports the Commission's proposals to delete the provision allowing Member States to set out quotas to establish whether products are for personal or commercial use. MEPs believe they have been used as mandatory limits and have led to discrimination against EU goods and therefore goes against single market rules.
The Report is non-binding since the Parliament only has a consultative role in custom union decisions.
Council Sides with Commission over Parliament on Health Claims
EU ministers have unanimously backed stringent rules for the control of health claims such as 'low fat' and 'sugar-free' on food products. The Health and Consumers Affairs Council adopted their position on 3rd June, backing the Commission's original proposals to attempts by MEPs to water-down the provisions.
In amendments to the proposal made on 26 May, Parliament had voted against provisions requiring any health claim to be backed-up by a ‘nutrient profile’ containing information on the amounts of fat, sugar and salt in the product.
The proposal will return to Parliament for a second reading where re-amendment could only be achieved by an absolute majority. The regulation is therefore likely to be finally adopted in early 2006.