Mixed Reaction to EU Commissioner Resignation

Source from:  theparliament.com  10/19/2012

The commission has confirmed the resignation of EU health commissioner John Dalli. The Maltese official stepped down on Tuesday after an anti-fraud investigation connected him to an attempt to influence EU tobacco legislation. Olaf, the EU's anti-fraud office, said a Maltese businessman had tried to use his contacts with Dalli for financial gain by offering to influence future EU legislation on tobacco products, particularly on the EU's export ban on snus.

On Wednesday, a commission spokesman confirmed the resignation, saying, "The Olaf report did not find any conclusive evidence of the direct participation of Dalli but did consider that he was aware of these events." He stressed that Dalli had "categorically" rejected Olaf's findings, adding that commission vice-president Maro? ?efcovic will take over Dalli's duties on an interim basis until a new commissioner of Maltese nationality is appointed. Dalli, 64, took over the portfolio in 2010. It is claimed that tobacco producer Swedish Match complained in May that a Maltese entrepreneur had used his contacts with Dalli to try to gain financial advantages from the company. The entrepreneur had allegedly offered in return to influence a possible future legislative proposal on tobacco products, in particular on the EU export ban on snus, a smokeless tobacco taken orally. Reaction to the commissioner's decision was swift with ALDE MEP Graham Watson saying he "welcomed" the move which, he said, will allow investigations to proceed. Watson added, "If former commissioners had behaved in the same way, the commission and the EU would have been spared much embarrassment." UKIP leader Nigel Farage said, "The circumstances of Dalli's resignation are very strange and ask more questions that it answers. The commission statement is simply insufficient. If it is corruption, then we have the right know the full facts. "The strong suspicion is that EU legislation can be bought and sold through underhand methods. At a time of low levels of trust in EU institutions, this resignation asks many questions. " Further MEP reaction came from German Socialist Matthias Groote, who chairs parliament's committee for the environment, public health and food safety. Groote said, "The long wait for commission proposals on tobacco products is becoming a never-ending story. I urge ?efcovic to take the commission's foot off the brakes and publish the tobacco proposals before the end of this year. This important legislation has been postponed time and time again. Parliament and the European public will not tolerate further delays." Elsewhere, a spokesman for the European union of tobacco growers, focused more on the planned tobacco legislation, saying, "Throughout this flawed process, Dalli and his health department have consistently ignored the many concerns expressed by a very wide range of EU citizens, including the European tobacco growers during the public consultation and the rushed impact analysis. "We call on the commission to abandon the proposals developed by Dalli and begin again with a fair and transparent process that results in tobacco regulations that will both protect public health and our jobs during this time of crisis." The SmokeFree Partnership (SFP) says it was "concerned" that Dalli's resignation "threatens to further delay the review of the tobacco products directive, a process already slowed down following intense lobbying and pressure by the tobacco industry and its allies." Florence Berteletti Kemp, director of SFP, said, "This (resignation) is an unfortunate event, given the importance of the portfolio. A few months ago, we exposed the tobacco industry's 'block, amend and delay tactics' on the directive and warned that these tactics are being deployed again in the review process. "At the time, we emphasised that policymakers need to be aware of how the tobacco industry tries to influence the legislation - and when it cannot, to block or delay the process." "We strongly urge ?efcovic to ensure that the directive review proposal is released before the end of the year as was promised by the commission." Enditem