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EUROPEAN REVIEW

ISSUE 11 - Page 7

EU & UK suffer court setback on smoking laws

A RECENT OPINION by the European Court of Justice does not bode well for both the European Parliament and the U.K. government in their campaigns to discourage smoking. In June the Advocate General Nial Fennelly, said that legislation banning cigarette advertising did not advance the interests of the single market and should be blocked because it was not within the powers of the European Union to enforce it. Only the day before, the Parliament had voted in favour of proposals to increase the size

Health warnings are small at the moment

of health warnings on cigarette packets but this measure is also thought likely to be blocked by the court. The European Council directive on banning cigarette advertising was adopted in 1998. It restricted both tobacco advertising and sponsorship of sporting events within the EU. The EU had hoped to ban all advertising for cigarettes from 2002, and the sponsorship of all sporting events by 2006. The European Parliament rejected proposals for gruesome photographs to cover large areas on cigarette packets to put off smokers but agreed to those increasing the size of the health warning from 4% to 33% of the pack.

'Scare tactics' which the Parliament rejected

The European decision follows a similar case in the U.K. which is now in the House of Lords for a final judgement (see issue 9). The British government will now try to press ahead with a national ban on tobacco advertising. Public health minister Yvette Cooper pledged that the UK would bring in its own primary legislation as soon as possible to ban advertisements and tobacco sponsorship. 'A ban on tobacco advertising is supported by the majority of the general public, the medical profession and in parliament, but the tobacco industry continues to oppose it' she said. The government is expected now to try to pull out all the stops to get the UK ban in place before the next election at least a year later than it had hoped.

UK beaches improve in EU Bathing Water Report

Conciliation agreement on old car disposal

THE EU HAS JUST published the 1999 report on bathing waters. This seventeenth annual report covers 11,435 seaside beaches and 4,376 fresh water ones. 95% of them meet the minimum standards, a slight improvement. Looking at the survey in more detail we find that that the United Kingdom has a relatively good record in recent years. From 1992 to 1999 the proportion of UK seaside beaches which met the basic EU standard rose from 77.1% to 91.5% and those that met the more rigorous guide standards increased from 35.6% to 50.5%. Fresh water bathing areas did not fare so well, albeit that only 11 sites were sampled, with one site failing the mandatory tests to reduce the percentage meeting the basic standard to 90.9%.

AS REPORTED IN our last issue the European Parliament has been making various moves on ensuring that the environment is respected when old cars are scrapped as well as cleaning up new vehicles. Now a Conciliation Committee held jointly by the Parliament and the Council of Ministers has reached agreement on the outstanding issues. Manufacturers will meet nearly all of the costs of delivering end-of-life vehicles to treatment centres from 1 January 2001 for vehicles made after that date and from 2007 for older ones. On heavy metals: lead, mercury, cadmium and hexavalent chromium will be banned from vehicle components by 1 January 2003. A Directive on this subject will be adopted once the full Parliament and Council have voted for it.

Baby toy ban strengthened

Following last Christmas's emergency ban in the U.K. (see issue 9), the European Parliament is seeking to strengthen the Commission proposal to ban Phthalates and other potentially harmful substances used in the manufacture of children's toys. Phthalates are chemicals used to soften teething rings and other plastic baby toys that have been linked to health dangers to the liver, kidney and testicles. Per Arne ARVIDSSON, MEP (EPP/ED, Sweden) will be tabling several amendments to the proposal to ban the use of six Phthalate plasticizers in toys and other products likely to be placed in the mouth by children under three and to oblige manufacturers to include warning labels on other toys containing PVC.

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