The Legal Affairs (JURI) Committee adopt its position on a draft bill on the protection of the environment through criminal law. The proposal introduces new environmental crimes and sanctions for companies and individuals. Extracts from the vote and statement by Antonius MANDERS (EPP, NL), Rapporteur.

Brussels

statement

vote

Committee on Legal Affairs

fight against climate change (T)

MANDERS, Antonius (EPP, NL)

european climate law (T)

Vote on Environmental crimes - JURI Committee: statement by Antonius MANDERS (EPP, NL), Rapporteur and extracts from the vote

Antonius MANDERS (EPP,NL), Rapporteur,discussing with assistants before entering the meeting room

SOUNDBITE (English), Antonius MANDERS (EPP, NL), Rapporteur, The most important is that we introduce the precautionary principle to prevent environmental crimes. It's a very lucrative crime. It's number three on the list of the most profitable crime after drugs and after weapons. It's more or less what I have read a turnover of 350 billion a year in euro. It huge. And it's always coming from the upper world to the underworld. And what we try to to achieve is to cut the lines so that the waste of the upper world is not coming in the underworld anymore. That's actually why we had to do this. And we can take we've introduced a serious negligence if, for example, and the members of the board of a company are not behaving well and they could foresee what happens with their waste, and what it is done later on, they can be held liable and even be sanctions in a criminal court.

SOUNDBITE (English), Antonius MANDERS (EPP, NL), Rapporteur, We took the penalties at the same level as for competition law, that means 10% of the yearly turnover of a company worldwide, which is a huge amount. And the member states are used to to this level of of fines, this 10%. So we want to keep it the same, that's one. Secondly, there are four offenses added, but at a certain moment there was a whole list of more than 100 crimes which were added. Then I said no, stop. We take two main four, but what we introduce is an overall definition, what we think is an environmental crime, and then leave it up to the judges and the expertise of the judges to decide if it is an environmental crime or not.

SOUNDBITE (English), Antonius MANDERS (EPP, NL), Rapporteur, We asked the United Nations to come forward with a global definition, and then they can do it, for example, in cooperation with the ICC in The Hague, because then we have a global approach of what is ecocide.

SOUNDBITE (English), Antonius MANDERS (EPP, NL), Rapporteur, Its an important definition, that we can't do that on a national level in Europe and taking the risk of having 27 different definitions.

The Chairman opening the vote on Vote on Environmental crimes, report Antonius MANDERS (EPP,NL)

SOUNDBITE (English), Antonius MANDERS (EPP, NL), Rapporteur, Its a small step for us, but a huge step for mankind, because we start, no this is the beginning of our future.

Final vote and esult of the vote: 22 in favour, 0 against, 0 abstentions. Adopted, 4 shots

Result of the vote: 22 in favour, 0 against, 0 abstentions. Adopted.

Vote on entering into negotiations, 22 in favour, 0 against, 0 abstentions. Adopted. 6 shots.

Vote on Environmental crimes - JURI Committee: statement by Antonius MANDERS (EPP, NL), Rapporteur and extracts from the vote

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