WRITTEN QUESTION No. 2897/97 by Phillip WHITEHEAD to the Commission. Proposal for a Council regulation on denominations and technical specifications of Euro coins
C 158/18 EN Official Journal of the European Communities 25. 5. 98 If the new research and the scientific opinion echoes the concerns already expressed about the health consequences of using a nickel alloy in the 1 and 2 euro coins, does the Commission intend to modify the existing proposal? (1) OJ C 208, 9. 7. 1997, p. 5. (98/C 158/23) WRITTEN QUESTION E-2897/97 by Phillip Whitehead (PSE) to the Commission (17 September 1997) Subject: Proposal for a Council regulation on denominations and technical specifications of euro coins After having formally transmitted the above proposal (COM(97) 0247) (1) to both the Parliament and the Council, it appears that the Commission have decided to consult the Scientific Committee for Toxicity and Eco-toxicity of Chemical Compounds regarding the health implications of the proposal to use a nickel allow in the 1 and 2 euro coins. It also appears that the Commission is financing further research in this area. Given this: 1. Can the Commission give details of the additional research being carried out? 2. When does the Commission expect the results of the research to become available? 3. Will the Scientific Committee on Toxicity and Eco-toxicity of Chemical Compounds await the results of this research before reaching an agreement? (1) OJ C 208, 9. 7. 1997, p. 5. Joint answer to Written Questions E-2896/97 and E-2897/97 given by Mr de Silguy on behalf of the Commission (11 November 1997) When adopting the proposal, the Commission announced it would be revised in the light of the work of the scientific committee for the toxicity and ecotoxicity of chemical compounds on the risk arising from manipulating coins containing nickel. The committee has now released its preliminary report which states that there is no evidence to suggest that current coinage is associated with the onset of sensitivity to nickel. On the basis of the very limited information available, the committee has concluded that a very few cases of allergies to nickel affecting either the general public or workers handling coins in a professional capacity, may have been caused by the release of nickel from coins in circulation. In the committeeís opinion, it is unlikely that the new coins, even with a similar nickel release rate, would cause a greater risk. The committee is now carrying out scientific tests to assess the nickel release rate of the new coins. The results of these tests should be available in the next few weeks. However, regardless the results of these investigations, the Commission, decided, in its proposal, to minimise the nickel content of the new coins by using, when available, nickel-free alloys satisfying technical and security requirements, thereby reducing the overall nickel content in coins from the current 75% to 8%