European Commission

Date: 05/10/1995

SOME 40 independent studies being carried out by academics and consultants have so far shown that the single market is working well. “It is already clear that the positive effects of the single market are beginning to make themselves felt,” said Single Market Commissioner Mario Monti. The studies should help the Commission decide whether or not to pass more single-market laws.

A NEW five-year supplementary certificate aimed at shielding European plant protection products from competition has been agreed by the Commission. The certificate, which will back up existing patents, will give European producers more time in which to recoup research and development costs. While in theory EU patents last for 20 years, this is often cut back to ten due to the time lag between applying for the patent and launching the product. The certificate will be issued by national patent offices.

ENERGY Commissioner Christos Papoutsis, hoping to secure a steady flow of oil from the Mediterranean, has told a conference in Cairo that cooperation with the area was a “major plank” in the EU's energy policy. The EU also wants to cut the cost of energy and make sure environmental principles are respected by oil producers, he says.

THE Commission has given its backing to an EU project worth 730,000 ecu to help relieve suffering caused by four years of civil war in Sierra Leone. The money will be used to set up therapeutic feeding centres, distribute food rations and monitor the situation to anticipate needs.

THE Commission has established a group of eight experts to prepare an action plan for research into the effects of mobile phones on human health. Although it claims that “the evidence regarding health and safety risks arising from the use of mobile phones is tenuous”, the Commission believes that research is needed into the athermal effects of exposure to radio frequency energy. The experts group will prepare its blueprint by April 1996.