The May 2025 vote on the European Parliament’s priorities for the next EU long-term budget (Multiannual Financial Framework 2028-2034) included many important health considerations, including on financing for measures to prevent climate change and biodiversity loss. Unfortunately, MEPs failed to include financing to address pollution and the related health impacts. The Health and Environment Alliance (HEAL) calls on earmarking at least 10% of the next EU budget for zero pollution objectives across various funding instruments.
On 4 February 2020, the European Commission launched an EU-wide public consultation on Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan running for 12 weeks as well as a consultation on the roadmap for said plan, which closed yesterday.
HEAL has responded to the consultation on the roadmap, with four main action points:
- Fight cancer with the most vulnerable in mind, apply prevention and precaution and reduce workplace exposure by making occupational cancer data visible.
- Prevent cancer by ensuring that the Farm to Fork Strategy strives to end the use of pesticides in our food and revamp the outdated EU food contact materials legislation which allows harmful chemicals to be used in food packaging.
- Prevent cancer through zero-pollution in every part of the environment, by closing the current endocrine disruptors legislative gap, linking the Beating Cancer Plan to a comprehensive EU Chemical’s Strategy for Sustainability and other chemical policy frameworks, preparing a non-toxic environment strategy, and action to detoxify the circular economy. Finally, speed up the process of aligning EU legal air pollution limits with the WHO guidelines to enter into force by the end of the current mandate.
- Revise the European Code Against Cancer to raise people’s awareness on limiting carcinogens in their daily life.
Read the full response here
