Luxembourg MEPs against reducing the use of pesticides! Controversial vote in the European Parliament

What do Luxembourg’s MEPs represent? This question is being asked again following the European Parliament’s recent vote on pesticides.

The use of pesticides damages people’s health and destroys nature. It is largely responsible for the dramatic disappearance of insects and bees. In Luxembourg, people everywhere are exposed to pesticides. A situation that should no longer be acceptable to anyone.

Luxembourg therefore needs to work much harder on implementing its pesticide reduction plan! The aim of this plan is to considerably reduce the use of pesticides. Efforts to implement it should be stepped up!

But we also need clear rules at EU level. But last week, the European Parliament voted against a regulation aimed at ensuring the sustainable use of pesticides (SUR). This regulation aimed to reduce the use of pesticides by 50% by 2030 and to ensure integrated disease control, agro-ecology, organic farming and better protection of sensitive areas and vulnerable groups (e.g. children). “A black day for the health, environment and food safety of future generations”, as expressed by PAN-Europe, a European organisation that opposes the use of pesticides and of which the Mouvement Ecologique is a member. He added: “Everyone would have benefited from a strong SUR – farmers AND our environment and health. More than 6,000 scientists have come out in favour of an ambitious RUD to combat the alarming disappearance of pollinating insects and other species, and to safeguard our own food security in particular.

The voting behaviour of Luxembourg MEPs is also important. It should be noted that there were numerous proposed amendments to the draft presented, and that MEPs had to vote on each of these almost 700 proposals, which had the effect of watering down the proposal during the votes, to the point where it could no longer obtain a majority. Instead of resuming negotiations, an unfortunately anonymous majority decided to reject the text in its entirety.

So, under pressure from the pesticide and farming lobbies, Parliament voted against science, against the concerns of a majority of people, but also against a transition to more sustainable agriculture and the preservation of biodiversity.

Marc Angel (LSAP) and Tilly Metz (Déi Gréng) systematically voted in favour of reducing the use of pesticides. Charles Goerens (DP) and Monica Semedo supported the majority of
proposals along these lines. But it was above all the new CSV MP – Martine Kemp – who systematically supported the position of the pesticide lobby! Isabel Wiseler-Lima did not take part in the vote…
This vote shows once again that :

• Luxembourg must consistently apply its policy of reducing the use of pesticides;
• Systematically offer pesticide-free and, better still, organic food in all public canteens.

and above all

• In future, the voting behaviour of Luxembourg MEPs must be discussed more consistently! Does Martine Kemp’s vote reflect the CSV line? Or that of the Ministry of Agriculture?
  The Mouvement Ecologique expects the new government, and in particular the new Minister for Agriculture, to provide clear answers and a consistent and coherent policy for reducing the use of pesticides.

Mouvement Ecologique asbl

(*) As regards the context, we quote again from PAN-Europe: “There are now several options for what happens next, but the experts consider all of them unlikely. The Commission could withdraw its draft and present a new one, or the EU Council of Ministers could continue negotiations, allowing a second reading to be launched. To complicate this debacle, the time remaining before the end of the European legislature is short, and the cards will be reshuffled after the European elections in June 2024. It is therefore likely that the draft SUR directive will simply be abandoned and that the SUD framework directive (Sustainable Use Directive, 2009/128/EC), which has been shown to be ineffective, will remain in force.
(Translated with deepl)

29.11.2023