EJRR Issue 2/2012 – The European Parliament’s role in risk governance

The latest issue of the EJRR boasts a wealth of risk-related articles, reports and cases including a symposium devoted to the European Parliament’s role in risk governance

The European Journal of Risk Regulation opens this new issue with a symposium devoted to the European Parliament’s role in risk governance. By building upon a workshop organized at the European Parliament’s premises in Strasbourg last Spring, it focuses on the operation of the little-known, yet important, Parliament’s own Science unit: the Science and Technology Options Assessment (STOA). The symposium is opened by STOA’s former chair, MEP Paul Rübig, and boasts the contributions of two among the most vocal MEPs in the area of health, safety and environmental risk in the EU: Michael Harbour (Conservative Party) and Jo Leinen(S&D). Moreover, the contributions by René von Schomberg, one of the most authoritative voices on the precautionary principle, Dirk Hudig, the chair of the European Risk Forum, Michael Rogers, a former member of the Bureau of European Policy Advisors, and Miro Smriga complete the symposium.

A special thank goes to Michael Rogers, the editor of this symposium as well as to Theodoros Karapiperis, STOA’s Head of Unit, for their dedication and enthusiasm in putting together these valuable contributions.

In addition to the Symposium, this issue contains three original articles that deal with some of the most actual regulatory challenges facing policymakers: the New Environment-Trade Debate within the WTO and the EU’s ongoing regulatory reform for genetically modified organisms. The first contribution is an authoritative essay by Alessandra Arcuri, from Erasmus University Rotterdam, who comments upon the recent US-Tuna II Panel Report. She not only questions the reasoning which led the Panel to consider the measure as a ‘technical regulation’ but criticizes also the applied least trade-restrictive test. The second and third articles both provide a critical examination of the EU’s current GMO regime and refer to the ongoing reform. While Vesco Pascalev follows the saga of BASF’s genetically modified potato “Amflora” – the second cultivation authorization ever granted under the present GMO regime –, Claudio Mereu, one of the most active EU risk regulation lawyers, provides an in-depth analysis of the EU’s regulatory framework for genetically modified organisms and highlights the various interests at stake.
As usual, our correspondents keep us updated on the latest developments in different risk regulation policies by covering issues such as the regulation of biosimilars, nanotechnologies and their labelling, as well as the conditions for mandating compulsory licensing.

Several annotations of important risk-related EU and WTO rulings complete the issue, among which the recent Appellate Body report in US-Clove Cigarettes by Benn McGrady.

Happy reading!

SYMPOSIUM ON THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT’S ROLE IN RISK GOVERNANCE

The Changing Face of Risk Governance: Moving from Precaution to Smarter Regulations
Paul Rübig

The Precautionary Principle: Its Use Within Hard and Soft Law
René von Schomberg

The European Parliament and Risk Governance: The Problem of Low and Uncertain Risks – Balancing Risks and Benefits
Dirk Hudig

Improving Regulatory Decisions through Targeted Research: A Case Study on Amino Acids
Michael Rogers and Miro Smriga

Risk Governance and the Precautionary Principle: Recent Cases in the ENVI Committee
Jo Leinen

Risk Governance and Risk Assessment – Key Tools for an Effective European Parliament
Malcolm Harbour

ARTICLES

Back to the Future: US-Tuna II and the New Environment-Trade Debate
Alessandra Arcuri

Can Science Tame Politics: The Collapse of the New GMO Regime in the EU
Vesco Pascalev

Schizophrenic Stakes of GMO Regulation in the European Union
Claudio Mereu

REPORTS

Biosimilars: Current Situation and Future Expectations
Guillermina Forno and Eduardo Orti

The Product of Nature Doctrine in the Myriad Saga
Emanuela Gambini

Overview of the Standard of Review for Possible Justifications to Introduce National Food Labelling Rules in the EU
Ignacio Carreño

EU and US Mutually Recognize their Respective Organic Standards and Control Systems as Equivalent
Ignacio Carreño

The Drive towards Nanotechnology Standardization
Evisa Kica

Looking Back to the Future of Regulating New Technologies: The Cases of Nanotechnologies and Synthetic Biology
Elen Stokes and Diana Bowman

The Impact of Better Regulation in the Case Law of the European Court of Justice
David Keyaerts

India Grants a Compulsory Licence of Bayer’s Patented Cancer Drug: The Issue of Local Working Requirement
Enrico Bonadio

CASE NOTES

Appellate Body Report, United States – Clove Cigarettes
Benn McGrady

Clarifying the Concept of Victim in the Motor Vehicle Driver’s Liability Insurance: The ECJ’s Judgment in Case C-442/10
Vadims Mantrov

Case C-225/09 Commission v Portugal: Fundamental Freedoms Strengthen the Rights of Patients
Aleanxder Weiss

BOOK REVIEWS

The Reality of Precaution – Comparing Risk Regulation in the US and Europe
Fabrizio Cafaggi

The Financial Crisis in Constitutional Perspective – The Dark Side of Functional Differentiation
Giorgio Tosetti Dardanelli

Corporate Finance Law. Principles and Policy
Timo Fest