Sinn Féin MEP for Dublin, Lynn Boylan, has called on the government to commit to ending the export of dangerous chemicals that are banned in the EU.

Boylan is a member of both the Environment and International Trade Committees in the European Parliament.

Speaking ahead of a meeting of the EU’s Environment Council, Boylan said:

“Currently, a number of chemical substances, such as pesticides and industrial chemicals, are banned for sale in the EU because they have been proven toxic to human and animal life.

“However, these bans do not extend to exports of these chemicals, many of which are produced by EU companies. This leads to a disgraceful double-standard whereby the EU is exporting products that have been deemed too dangerous for use in Europe.

“How can we say that certain chemicals are too dangerous to allow them to be sold in Europe, yet condone their sale elsewhere? How can we refuse to afford people in other countries the same protections that we defend for those living in the EU? The hypocrisy of the current situation is painfully clear.

“The European Commission promised a ban on the export of toxic chemicals in its 2020 Sustainable Chemicals Strategy, but it has not materialised. Like many promised initiatives to regulate chemicals, it seems that this proposal fell foul of massive lobbying by the chemicals industry.

“Next week, Eamon Ryan and his fellow environment ministers will meet in Luxembourg, and the EU’s chemical policy is on the agenda. Ryan’s Danish counterpart has committed to push for a ban on toxic chemical exports at the meeting. Ireland has a moral imperative to support such a move.

“At the Environment Council, Eamon Ryan should call for a ban on the export of toxic chemicals covered under the Prior Informed Consent Regulation, and publicly state Ireland’s commitment to end double-standards that allow for the export of dangerous goods banned in the EU.”