MEPs have decided not to split the European Parliament’s largest committee into separate groups on environment and health, prompting a call from a senior European People’s Party lawmaker not to overwhelm it with more environmental legislation.
The EU executive should present less ecological legislation in the next political cycle or risks overwhelming MEPs and their staffdeclared the environmental and health policy coordinator of the European People’s Party.
Peter Liese issued his warning the morning after MEPs agreed do not divide the Commission on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI) of the European Parliament in two separate committees.
“At least 25% of all codecision files land in ENVI,” said Liese, referring to the standard legislative process, in which European Commission proposals are amended separately and then jointly by MEPs and government delegates in the Council of the EU.
“This is a challenge, especially for the staff,” Liese said. “That is why we need fewer proposals from the European Commission“. At a press conference last week, the German Christian Democrat told reporters that supported the dissolution of Parliament’s largest committeeand that he hoped would occur.
The EPP has made the fight against bureaucracy a political priority after consolidating its position as the largest group in Parliament in the elections a month ago. Fewer new laws would also benefit citizens, “especially those working in industry and agriculture, overwhelmed by too many proposals,” Liese said.
The decision not to create separate health and environment commissions was welcomed by the BEUC, the environmental protection organization consumer rightswho last week wrote to MEPs urging them not to split the commission.
In his letter he warned of the strong ties that exist between climate change and pollutionand threats such as antimicrobial resistance and emerging zoonotic diseases: “We strongly recommend that the ENVI Commission not be divided, as this risks siled approaches to addressing the… multifaceted challenge“.
BEUC director Agustín Reyna told Euronews that MEPs had made the right decision by maintaining ENVI as a single committee, in line with the approach of “one health“who recently saw the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) create a joint working group with the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the EU chemicals, environment and medicines agencies.
“When it comes to improving our food systemsit is essential to have an integrated approach, and the ENVI commission is crucial to this,” Reyna said.
On the night of Monday, July 8, the MEPs also The commissions were distributed among the main political groups in Parliament in proportion to its size: the presidency of the ENVI commission went to the socialists and democrats.
It is planned that the chairmen of the committees will be appointed later this month, after Parliament reconvenes on July 16.
