Following strong criticism from MEPs for its management of the BSE crisis, the European Commission has responded by introducing wholesale administrative reforms. It has opened up the workings of the - hitherto secretive - scientific committees and announced the appointment of a further 100 inspectors to ensure food quality. The work of Parliament's special enquiry committee, set up to investigate the handling of the crisis, now comes to an end.
In adopting the recommendations of the committee last February, Parliament gave the Commission until the end of this year to reform its procedures, or face censure. Reiner Boge (D, EPP), responsible for drawing up the committee's report, welcomed the Commission's response, and although he did not name names, he was far from complimentary about the attitude of some member states. Former UK agriculture minister, Douglas Hogg declined to appear before the committee, and in future Parliament wants a commitment from the member states to respond positively to any such request from a parliamentary committee.
The enquiry committee was also dissatisfied with the Commission's failure to sack officials considered responsible for the mishandling of the crisis and with its decision not to demand a refund from the UK of EU financial assistance. In his defence, Commission President Jacques Santer said there were insufficient grounds for either course, although he would not hesitate to do this should the UK fail to comply with EU legislation. On a positive note, the Commission President was more sympathetic to calls from MEPs for compensation for victims of CJD.
MEPs will be monitoring developments closely.
In the debate, John Corrie (UK, EPP) said there was no doubt that mistakes were made at all levels in the early days. While the bulk of the problems had been found in the UK, he regretted the fact that there had not been a European policy, as other European countries were affected. But with the number of cases reducing from 37,000 three years ago, to just 3,000 this year, he felt the problem was now being tackled seriously. For the future he looked forward to "a certified herd scheme", with proper tagging to enable animals to be traced at all times, and meat from BSE-free herds to be sold onto the markets.
Jim Nicholson (NI, I-EN) trusted that the farming industry would never have to face such a dramatic problem again. Liam Hyland (Leinster, UFE) emphasised the importance of food safety over profitability; the lesson from the BSE experience was that it should never be repeated. He looked forward to regulations being put in place to ensure this. He too, pleaded the case of innocent victims affected by a crisis beyond their control. Alan Gillis (Leinster, EPP) argued that many mistakes had been made through ignorance. He believed however, that the Commission officials involved had acted under instructions from politicians and that it was important to concentrate on those people who were really responsible for failure to act properly.
For the Council, Mr Fernand Boden argued that the Council had sought to guarantee public health by drawing up adequate rules based on the most recent scientific evidence. These rules, he believed, should restore the confidence of Europe's citizens. Mr Boden said that it was still not appropriate for Council to decide on a possible lifting of the embargo of British beef and it was the task of the Commission to decide when the United Kingdom had met the relevant criteria.
He recognised public concern over the shortcomings in inspections, but believed that it would be impossible to eradicate all criminal activity. He welcomed the fact that additional funds had been released for research into viruses and vaccinations, which meant that a total of Ecu 50 million was now available.