New European Commission animal welfare committee
In a move aimed at boosting consumer confidence, the European Commission has reorganised Directorate-General XXIV, which is responsible for consumer policy and health protection. Whilst other DG's will still be responsible for drawing up consumer protection legislation in their respective areas, DG XXIV will be responsible for controlling the application of this legislation.
Central to this reorganisation is the creation of eight new scientific committees to provide expert advice to DG XXIV. One of them, the new Scientific Committee on Animal Health and Welfare will have two sub-committees: one on animal health and the other on animal welfare. The Commission decision setting up these bodies defines the field of competence of the animal welfare sub-committee as, 'Scientific and technical questions concerning the protection of animals, notably in regard to animal husbandry, herd management, transport, slaughter and experimentation.'
The inclusion of experimentation in the sub-committee's field of competence is notable. Although the purpose of these committees is to offer advice on matters relating to consumer protection, this suggests that DG XXIV may have a very wide interpretation of this concept. However, it seems unlikely that DG XXIV will want to be involved in the application of Directive 608/86, the European legislation governing the welfare of animals used in experimentation.
The Commission adopted an open method for the appointment of members of these committees, including the two sub-committees. A notice of the selection criteria and a call for expressions of interest was published in the Official Journal of the European Communities. The names of the people appointed to the committees has been published (see below), as will be the agendas and the minutes of their meetings.
Scientific Committee on Animal Health and Animal Welfare
Dr Reinhard Ahl - Consultant; Bundesforschungsanstalt fuer Viruskrankheiten bei Tieren, Germany Dr Dennis J Alexander - Central Veterinary Laboratory, United Kingdom Professor Soren Alexandersen - Danish Veterinary Institute for Virus Research, Denmark Professor Juan Badiola Diez - Universidad de Zaragoza, Departmento de Patologia Animal, Spain Professor Donald Broom - University of Cambridge, Department of Clinical Veterinary Medicine, United Kingdom Dr Robert Dantzer - Institut National de la Recherche Agricole, INSERM: Laboratory of Integrative Neurobiology, France Professor Aalt A Dijkhuizen - Wagenington Agricultural University, Department of Farm Management, The Netherlands Dr Fulgencio Garrido-Abellan - Laboratorio Nacional de Sandid y Produccion Animal, Spain Dr Michael Gunn - Veterinary Research Laboratory, Bacteriology/Parasitology Division, Ireland Professor Jorg Hartung - Direktor, Tierartzliche Hochschule Hannover, Institut fur Tierhygiene und Tierschutz, Germany Professor Per OS Jensen - Assistant Head of Department, Swedish University of Agricultural Science, Department of Animal Environment and Health, Sweden Dr Pierre Le Neindre - Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique; INRA, Laboratoire Adaption des Herbivores aux Milieux, Elevage et Nutrition des Animaux, France Professor Volker Moennig - Rekot der Tieraerztlichen Hochschule, Tieraerztliche Hochschule Hannover, Institut fuer Virologie, Germany Professor David B Morton - University of Birmingham. Department of Biomedical Science and Biomedical Ethics, United Kingdom Professor Gianfranco Panina - Former Head Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale, Brescia, Italy Professor Andre-Laurent M Parodi - Directeur de l'Ecole Veterinaire d'Alfort, Ecole Nationale Veterinaire d'Alfort, France Professor JT van Oirschot - Head, Porcine and exotic virus diseases, Institute for Animal Science and Health, The Netherlands Dr Emmanuel Vanopdenbosch - Head of Department of Virology, Institut National de Recherches Veterinaires, Belgium Professor Marina Verga - Universita di Milano, Facolta di Medicina Veterinaria, Instituto di Zootecnica, Italy
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