Final REACH vote postponed

A final vote in the European Parliament on proposals to reform the EU chemicals sector is unlikely before December, it has emerged.

The controversial legislation, known as REACH, has divided governments and MEPs over the question of when to substitute hazardous chemicals with safer alternatives.

Italian Socialist MEP Guido Sacconi, who is responsible for guiding the dossier through Parliament, has asked for a vote to be postponed from this month’s first plenary sitting while ministers and parliamentarians try to negotiate a compromise.

MEPs are still awaiting official confirmation of the delay, which will be discussed on Monday (6 November), but observers agree that there is now no chance REACH will be on the 13-16 November plenary session agenda.

A REACH vote could still make it to the 29-30 November mini-plenary meeting in Brussels, but negotiations are said to be moving slowly and MEPs are often reluctant to vote on major legislation outside the main Strasbourg meetings.

Finland, the current holder of the EU’s rotating presidency, still hopes REACH will be voted on before the end of the year, making a final deal possible before Germany takes over the presidency on 1 January.

A final vote in the European Parliament on proposals to reform the EU chemicals sector is unlikely before December, it has emerged.