DEFRA secretary says no prospect of pesticide impact assessment

DEFRA secretary of state Hilary Benn has admitted there is no prospect of the European Commission undertaking an assessment of the impact of the European pesticides authorisation regulation.

In a letter to the Crop Protection Association he confirms his concern that no such impact assessment has been made.

But, he says, the industry and the government must be realistic. "It is clear [the commission] do not intend to prepare such an assessment at this stage, and there is no prospect of securing the agreement of all member states to put pressure on them to do so.

"It is, of course, disappointing that others are prepared to proceed when they may have no very certain idea of how the Regulation will affect them, but they are free to make that choice."

The uncertainty is unhelpful, particularly where it is unclear which substances may be withdrawn, he notes. "We are therefore urging the commission to bring forward proposals for definitive rules on endocrine disruption at the earliest opportunity, and will play a full part in helping to shape those rules."