Michael D Higgins (Galway West, Labour)
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Question 103: To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will clarify his stance on the EU proposals on the reform of pesticide legislation that are being finalised; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19629/08]

Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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The Commission has proposed a Thematic Strategy for the Sustainable Use of Pesticides. The Strategy includes a number of initiatives designed to reduce the negative impacts associated with use of "Plant Protection Products" (agro-chemical sprays). It is in this context the Commission has proposed:

1. A framework Directive on the sustainable use of pesticides, the aim of which is to reduce the risks and impacts of pesticide use on human health and the environment.

2. A new regulation concerning the placing on the market of "Plant Protection Products". This proposal is designed to replace Council Directive 91/414/EEC (the current legislative instrument in place).

3. A new regulation concerning the collection of statistics on the use of pesticides in agriculture.

1. A framework Directive on the sustainable use of pesticides

In December last (2007) a common position in Council was achieved regarding the proposed framework directive on the sustainable use of pesticides. The agreed text was subsequently discussed by the jurist linguist group in March and final endorsement of the Council position was given at yesterday's Council meeting. This final endorsement allows the initiation of the second reading process where the Council and the Parliament can engage directly. The main elements of this proposal relate to issues such as operator and advisor training, inspection of application equipment and national action plans. Accordingly Ireland endorsed the current proposed text at Council.

2. A new Regulation concerning the placing on the market of "Plant Protection Products"

This proposal is designed to replace Council Directive 91/414/EEC (the current legislative instrument in place). The current proposal was also addressed at yesterday's meeting of the Agriculture and Fisheries Council in Brussels but the meeting failed to reach agreement because of the continuing differences between Member States on elements of the proposal. This proposal currently includes many novel provisions which I support, including the regulation of parallel trade and simplified provisions for data protection. However, it also includes a provision for 'hazard-based cut-off criteria' as a mechanism for making decisions relating to the approval of fungicides, herbicides and insecticides. If unchanged, this provision could result in a significant reduction of the number of substances available for plant protection in Europe. At the conclusion of yesterday`s Council, the Presidency undertook to "take stock" of the position and reflect on the outcome of the meeting.

3. A new regulation concerning the collection of statistics on the use of pesticides in agriculture.

The 3rd proposal is still at Council working group level and officials from my Department are participating in these discussions. The current proposals will not result in any changes to current practice in Ireland.