Breaking: EU renews glyphosate licence for five years

Glyphosate is poison for humans and the planet - Stop it! Photo © Karin Heinze

It´s hardly to believe! Germany voted yes for a five years renewal for the weedkiller glyphosate - this ensured the qualified majority for the approval.While massive protests took place some of the member states disregarded the citizens requirements. Till now Germany always abtained because the Agriculture Ministery was pro renewal while the Environmental Ministery was contra.

At the today´s meeting at the Appeal Committee, which consists of experts from the EU member states and the European Commission Germany swings the balance. The EU member states reached a qualified majority for the re-authorisation of the world’s most commonly used weedkiller, glyphosate.

According to the Commission, a qualified majority of member states voted in favour of the Commission’s proposal for a five-year re-approval (18 in favour, nine against and one abstention), EURACTIV.com informed. Germany voted in favour of re-approval, having previously abstained. 18 member states voted in favour, including Poland, Bulgaria, and Romania which previously abstained, while nine member states voted against and just Portugal abstained.

“Today’s vote shows that when we all want to, we are able to share and accept our collective responsibility in decision making,” Health Commissioner Andriukaitis said. The Commission will now adopt the decision before the current authorisation expires on 15 December, as provided for in the applicable EU legislation.

This policy is shown the red card

Martin Häusling, agricultural spokesman for the Greens / EFA in the European Parliament, comments: "The decision in favor of the controversial total herbicide glyphosate, which is suspected of causing cancer, has caused Europe to suffer the desolate state of government formation in Germany. The shift from abstention to agreement on this question gives us a foretaste of the future balance of power in Berlin. The behavior of Federal Minister of Agriculture Christian Schmidt (CSU) is instinctless and scandalous.

Glyphosate, which should be clear to all those involved, is suspected of causing cancer, decimates biodiversity and has nothing to do in the fields. It is considered a completely outdated agent. But neither the EU Commission nor the CSU minister and his boss Angela Merkel take care of that. They have surreptitiously surrendered to the pressure of lobbying instead of remembering the precautionary principle that prevails in Europe and placing consumer protection first in political dealings. This policy is shown the red card. "