report parliamentary committee draft, 28 October 2024
On the proposal for a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Directive 2011/65/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards the re-attribution of scientific and technical tasks to the European Chemicals Agency
Document ENVI-PR-763254 · (COM(2023)0781 – C90448/2023 – 2023/0454(COD))
Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety · Rapporteur: Dimitris Tsiodras
AI:In short
The draft report proposes amendments to the Commission's proposal to re-attribute scientific and technical tasks under Directive 2011/65/EU to the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA). It extends the transitional period from 12 to 24 months.
Position. The rapporteur proposes to amend the Commission proposal by extending the transitional period from 12 to 24 months, and stresses the need for an ECHA Basic Regulation and adequate resources.
Key points
- Extends the transitional period for applying the amended Directive from 12 to 24 months after publication.
- Justifies the longer period because ECHA will not receive resources until the legal text enters into force and needs time to recruit and train staff and adapt processes.
- Calls for an ECHA Basic Regulation to ensure the Agency is fit for the future and can deliver EU goals on chemical safety, health, environment and competitiveness.
- Highlights the significant impact of re-attribution on ECHA, requiring restructuring to handle increased workload without compromising quality and timeliness.
- Suggests considering new structures such as committees or working groups and reinforcing existing ones like the Risk Assessment Committee and the Committee for Socio-Economic Analysis.
- Notes that without clarity on the future structure of scientific committees, it is impossible to conclude whether proposed resources will be sufficient.
Who is affected
- European Chemicals Agency (ECHA): will receive new tasks and needs a longer transition period to prepare.
- Applicants and Member States: will have more time to adjust to modified procedural steps.
Figures and deadlines
Legal basis. Article 294(2) and Article 114 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union
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Full text
Draft european parliament legislative resolution 27 paragraphs
(COM(2023)0781 – C90448/2023 – 2023/0454(COD))
(Ordinary legislative procedure: first reading)
The European Parliament,
–having regard to the Commission proposal to Parliament and the Council (COM(2023)0781),
–having regard to Article 294(2) and Article 114 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, pursuant to which the Commission submitted the proposal to Parliament (C90448/2023),
–having regard to Article 294(3) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,
–having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee of 20 March 2024,
–having regard to Rule 60 of its Rules of Procedure,
–having regard to the opinion of the Committee on Budgets,
–having regard to the report of the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (A100000/2024),
1.Adopts its position at first reading hereinafter set out;
2.Calls on the Commission to refer the matter to Parliament again if it replaces, substantially amends or intends to substantially amend its proposal;
Read the rest (15 paragraphs)
3.Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council, the Commission and the national parliaments.
Amendment 1
Proposal for a directive
Recital 8
| Text proposed by the Commission | Amendment |
|---|---|
| (8) For amending procedural provisions under Directive 2011/65/EU, a transitional period of 12 months is necessary to allow for appropriate resource and task allocation for the European Chemicals Agency. That timeframe is considered sufficient to allow potential applicants or Member States to adjust to the modified procedural steps under that Directive. | (8) For amending procedural provisions under Directive 2011/65/EU, a transitional period of 24 months is necessary to allow for appropriate resource and task allocation for the European Chemicals Agency. That timeframe is considered sufficient to allow potential applicants or Member States to adjust to the modified procedural steps under that Directive. |
Or. en
Justification
ECHA needs a longer transitional period than the 12 months' period set out in the Commission's legal proposal. This is particularly important since no resources (neither financial nor posts) are currently planned to be provided to ECHA until the legal text is adopted and enters into force, and the Agency will have in principle to wait until then to start preparing, incl. recruiting/training new dedicated staff and adapting our processes, guidance and tools, for being able to receive and process regulatory submissions.
Amendment 2
Proposal for a directive
Article 2 – paragraph 1
| Text proposed by the Commission | Amendment |
|---|---|
| The provisions under this Directive shall be applicable from [OJ: 12 months after the publication of this Directive]. | The provisions under this Directive shall be applicable from [OJ: 24 months after the publication of this Directive]. |
Or. en
Justification
ECHA will need a longer transitional period than the initial 12 months' period set out in the legal proposal. This is particularly important since no resources (neither financial nor posts) are currently planned to be provided to ECHA until the legal text is adopted and enters into force, and the Agency will have in principle to wait until then to start preparing, incl. recruiting/training new dedicated staff and adapting our processes, guidance and tools, for being able to receive and process regulatory submissions.
Explanatory statement 6 paragraphs
In general, the Rapporteur considers that ECHA needs a Basic Regulation to ensure it is fit for the future and can deliver EU goals and ambitions on chemical safety, protecting health and the environment and supporting competitiveness. To ensure simplification and flexibility, the basic regulation should provide ECHA with the possibility to have one single budget line for its EU contribution and the possibility to build up a reserve fund from fees.
The Rapporteur considers that the reattribution of scientific and technical tasks will have a significant impact on ECHA. A restructuring of the work of the Agency will be necessary to ensure that its Committees can cope with the increased workload without compromising the quality, punctuality and the timeliness of their work.
In this context, new structures – committees or working groups – are likely to be considered in order the Agency to cope effectively with the new tasks. In addition, the reinforcement of the existing ones (the Risk Assessment Committee and the Committee for Socio-Economic Analysis) is needed.
Beyond the need for additional budget and staffing, the setup as well as the organisation of the work need to be considered. With no clarity on the future structure of the Agency’s scientific committees it is impossible to conclude on whether the proposed resources will be sufficient for the Agency to manage the increased workload.
The adoption of a proposal for an ECHA Basic Regulation is very important, as it will allow the Agency to smoothly and efficiently integrate the new tasks.
In this regards, the Rapporteur proposes a longer transitional period than the current 12 months set out in the legal proposal. This is particularly important since no financial and human resources are currently planned to be provided to ECHA until the legal text is adopted and enters into force.
Annex: entities or persons from whom the rapporteur has received input 4 paragraphs
Pursuant to Article 8 of Annex I to the Rules of Procedure, the rapporteur declares that he has received input from the following entities or persons in the preparation of the draft report:
| Entity and/or person |
| CEFIC |
| COSMETICS EUROPE |
| EFPIA |
| SFEE (Hellenic Association of Pharmaceutical Companies) |
| BASF |
| EFEO |
| ECHA |
| L'Oréal group in Europe |
| AnimalhealthEurope |
| ClientEarth |
| European Environmental Bureau (EEB) |
| FuelsEurope |
| EFSA |
| EEA |
| EMA |
| Croplife Europe |
| DOW |
| AESPG |
| AISE |
| SMEunited |
| DUCC (Downstream Users of Chemicals Co-ordination group) |
| SEVAS (Association of the Greek Industry of Detergents and Soaps) |
| Eurometaux |
| Eurocolour |
The list above is drawn up under the exclusive responsibility of the rapporteur.
Where natural persons are identified in the list by their name, by their function or by both, the rapporteur declares that he has submitted to the concerned natural persons the European Parliament's Data Protection Notice No 484 (https://www.europarl.europa.eu/data-protect/index.do), which sets out the conditions applicable to the processing of their personal data and the rights linked to that processing.