The Agri Committee of the European Parliament yesterday spoke out against the Nature Restoration Act and the measures to halve the use of synthetic plant protection products. A major setback for Vice President of the European Commission Frans Timmermans and Environment Commissioner Virginijus Sinkevičius. It now appears that both gentlemen have pulled out all the stops to gain support in parliament.
Last Monday (22 May) things got tough at the meeting of the European Parliament's agricultural committee. Timmermans made it clear to parliamentarians that the Green Deal 'is a complete package'. Adopting one measure and rejecting another is not possible, according to the commissioner. "It is not an à la carte menu," Timmermans said during the meeting. "The Commission will not come up with a new package, let that be crystal clear. If the rules for sustainable use of plant protection products (halving the use of PPPs by 2030) and the nature restoration law are not adopted, then the proposal for authorizing new genetic techniques is also (gene editing) threatened Timmermans. The first two measures are pillars of the farm-to-table strategy and an important part of the prestigious Green Deal. Timmermans' tough tone did not help to get the proposals passed by the agricultural committee of parliament. to get.
Blackmail
Prior to the meeting on Monday, Timmermans and Sinkevičius appear to have already used controversial means to recruit support for the plans, news site Euractiv reported today. Timmermans' department confirmed to Eurativ that Timmersmans had met with MEPs and their staff 'to address concerns and clarify the nature restoration law'.
"The Commission is no longer trying to convince but is turning to blackmail," an anonymous parliamentarian told Euractiv. According to MP Emma Wiesner, the plans themselves should be good without the need for blackmail. "The Commission is trying to play left and right against each other, that is not the right way," according to Wiesner. The committee must convince with good arguments. Parliamentarian Herbert Dorfmann also expresses fierce criticism and speaks of an action that, according to him, smacks of extortion. “If this is the political democratic concept of Timmermans and Sinkevičius, that says a lot about their way of thinking,” he told Euractiv.