Local Campaign Forces EU Commission U-Turn To Keep Hampshire Ponds Clean

11.40.22am UTC (GMT +0000) Wed 25th Feb 2004

Pat Pain, Paul Watson, Tony Pain and Chris Huhne MEP at Greenways based near Sutton Scotney, Winchester.

Yes it is official! Brussels bureaucrats really can climb down when they make a mistake.

Hampshire's ponds and lakes will stay clear of algae this summer thanks to a successful local campaign to get the EU Commission and Whitehall to change its mind about banning barley straw.

The straw, which is made into mats to keep ponds and reservoirs clear, was thought to fall foul of the EU's Biocidal Products Directive. This requires testing of all products that use chemical processes to achieve their effect.

But a campaign by Hampshire MEP Chris Huhne with local barley straw mat-makers Green Ways chief Tony Pain has persuaded the EU Commission to do a U-turn. 'This is great news' said Chris Huhne. 'It shows that the Brussels bureaucrats can admit mistakes and correct them, which is a great relief!'

(Pictures attached of Tony Pain, Chris Huhne MEP and staff of Green Ways, near Sutton Scotney, Hampshire with matting machine)

Mr Huhne took up the case last year after Mr Pain feared that his business would have to close if the centuries-old product was forced to undergo rigorous chemical testing more appropriate for new washing powders or toy paints. He peppered the Commission with parliamentary questions.

Environment commissioner Margot Wallstrom began the climbdown in October when she told Hampshire MEP Chris Huhne that 'further clarification will be necessary before a final position can be taken'.

And now Mr Pain has had an official response from the Brussels committee that rules on the matter. Mr Pain said: 'Good news at last! At the 15th Competent Authorities meeting of representatives of Member States for the implementation of Directive 9/8/EC concerning the placing of biocidal products on the market, our argument that hydrogen peroxide was the only active ingredient was accepted. Barley straw products can remain on the market until the end of July 2007.

'By this time a dossier on hydrogen peroxide will have been prepared but, since its action and effects are well known, no further research will be required and preparation of the dossier should not be difficult or expensive' said Mr Pain.

Mr Pain paid tribute to Chris Huhne's efforts to stick up for the local business. 'Chris Huhne's support in Brussels has been very significant in bringing about this result and I cannot thank him enough for this. It is very reassuring that with common sense and a little flexibility a satisfactory solution has been found'.

Mr Huhne said: 'Big businesses have the clout to look after themselves, but I am particularly pleased in this case because Green-ways is a tiny but successful business that could have been drummed out of its marketplace by a bureaucratic nonsense'.

Mr Huhne said that the Liberal Democrat manifesto for the June european elections would contain new ideas for stopping daft EU proposals, including compulsory independent impact assessments and sunset clauses to get old rules off the statute book.

Ends