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European Commission Spokesman's Briefing for 99-11-23
From: EUROPA, the European Commission Server at <http://europa.eu.int>
MIDDAY EXPRESS
News from the Spokesman's midday briefing
Nouvelles du rendez-vous de midi du Porte-Parole 23/11/1999b
CONTENTS / CONTENU
[01] Commission clears Akzo Nobel's acquisition of Hoechst Roussel Vet GmbH,
subject to conditions
[02] Meeting to discuss the proposal for an emergency ban on phthalates in
childcare articles and toys intended to be put in the mouth suspended
[03] Commission study highlights substantial economic benefits from a new
WTO round
[04] La Commission signe un prêt d'assistance macroéconomique de 100
millions d'euros en faveur de la Bulgarie
[05] Margot Wallström meets Environment ministers of the candidate
countries
[06] Eight Central and Eastern European cities to receive award for
environmental progress
[07] Report on participation and role of women in science published
[08] Floods in Bangladesh : Commission clears humanitarian aid worth euro
1.075 million
[01] Commission clears Akzo Nobel's acquisition of Hoechst Roussel Vet GmbH,
subject to conditions
The European Commission has approved the transaction whereby Akzo Nobel
through its wholly-owned subsidiaries, Intervet International BV and
Intervet GmbH, agreed to acquire the shares and assets in the Hoechst
Roussel Vet Group, the animal healths business presently held by Hoechst
and its wholly-owned subsidiary, Hoechst Roussel Vet Participations S.A.
This approval follows substantial commitments to divest of products for
veterinary pharmaceuticals and biologicals.
[02] Meeting to discuss the proposal for an emergency ban on phthalates in
childcare articles and toys intended to be put in the mouth suspended
The Emergencies Committee set up under the General Product Safety Directive,
composed of representatives of the Member States, decided yesterday to
suspend their meeting. The Committee discussed the European Commission
proposal of 10 November 99 to ban the use of phthalates in childcare
articles and toys which are intended to be put in the mouth. The decision
to resume the meeting only in a week or 10 days was taken since new
elements have emerged last Friday : a letter was received by Health and
Consumer Protection Commissioner David Byrne from the Toy Industries of
Europe proposing to implement the full scope of the emergency ban on a
voluntary basis ; certain members of the Scientific Committee for Toxicity,
Ecotoxicity and Environment have expressed in a letter to the Commission
disagreement on the proposal. This needs to be clarified. The Emergencies
Committee decided therefore to postpone a decision until further
clarifications on these developments can be obtained. However, the
discussions made clear that there is wide consensus among the Member States
on the objective to eliminate immediately phthalates from toys which are
intended to be put in the mouth. There was furthermore agreement that it
would be necessary to verify if a voluntary measure could be a practicable
and effective alternative to an emergency ban. And Member States also asked
on for further clarification if the emergency clauses in the General
Product Safety Directive - which form the legal base for this proposal -
would be applicable. The Commission has undertaken to provide for these
clarifications whilst making clear that a quick solution has to be found.
[03] Commission study highlights substantial economic benefits from a new
WTO round
A study by European Commission economists suggests that the new WTO trade
round due to be launched next week in Seattle could yield substantial
benefits for the world economy. The study finds that further trade
liberalization could bring about an annual welfare gain for the world of up
to $400 billion. This is equal to adding an economy the size of Korea or
the Netherlands to world GDP each year. It is therefore around twice as
much as the OECD's most recent estimate of the impact of full
implementation of the Uruguay Round.
[04] La Commission signe un prêt d'assistance macroéconomique de 100
millions d'euros en faveur de la Bulgarie
Un prêt d'assistance macroéconomique de 100 millions d'euros en faveur de
la Bulgarie a été signé ce jour par Pedro Solbes, commissaire européen
chargé des affaires économiques et monétaires. Ce prêt communautaire
s'inscrit dans un ensemble de mesures financières prises par les pays du G-
24. Ce montage financier doit assurer un équilibre durable de la balance
des paiements et une position de réserve officielle afin de soutenir le
programme de réforme de la Bulgarie.
[05] Margot Wallström meets Environment ministers of the candidate
countries
Environmental ministers from the twelve candidate countries will meet
European Commissioner for Environment, Margot Wallström, and the President
of the Environment Council, Satu Hassi, for an informal discussion on
environmental aspects of the enlargement process on 26th November 1999 in
Brussels. This year's meeting with environmental ministers from twelve
countries is the biggest ever ; for the first time Malta will be
represented in the informal talks.
[06] Eight Central and Eastern European cities to receive award for
environmental progress
Eight Central and Eastern European cities will be awarded the "Cities
Towards European Union Compliance Award" - 1999 for their outstanding
progress in the fields of water, air quality, access to information and
waste management. The awarding ceremony will take place during the Fifth
Informal Ministerial Meeting with the European Commissioner for Environment,
Margot Wallström, on the 26th November.
[07] Report on participation and role of women in science published
The initiative on women and science was launched in July 1997 as part of
the preparation of the Fifth Framework Programme for Research. Its main
objectives are to encourage a debate on the subject and to achieve a
greater participation of women in research. It is widely recognised that
women are still playing a comparatively minor role in the scientific
hierarchy as well as in managing and decision-making bodies. Therefore, in
April 1998, the Commission organised a conference to discuss how this
gender mainstreaming could be achieved.
[08] Floods in Bangladesh : Commission clears humanitarian aid worth euro
1.075 million
The European Commission has cleared a package of humanitarian aid worth
euro 1.075 million for victims of flooding in Bangladesh. The aid,
channelled via the European Community Humanitarian Office (ECHO), will
enable humanitarian organisations to provide relief over the next six
months. This year's flooding was marked by extensive river bank erosion,
which affected millions of acres of land and swept away many houses. Much
of the land was highly fertile, and its loss has been a major setback for
farming and fishing communities which were just beginning to recover from
last year's flooding. In the capital, Dhaka, the flooding has affected the
most vulnerable slum dwellers, in particular street children. ECHO's
programme will focus on food, relief items and medical support for the
vulnerable, in particular for women and children, as well as on
agricultural inputs and housing rehabilitation. ECHO's partners for this
programme are the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent
Societies, Oxfam (UK) and Cooperazione Internazionale (Italy).
MIDDAY EXPRESS
From EUROPA, the European Commission Server at http://europa.eu.int/
© ECSC - EC - EAEC, Brussels-Luxembourg, 1995, 1996
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