Roma, 21 dic. (askanews) – Following the long awaited approval by the BECA Committee of its report on Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan and ahead of the final plenary vote on the report, Askanews caught up with a number of key MEPs involved in the drafting of the plan, to discuss their reaction to the final version which will put before Parliament. The MEPs interviewed included MEP Stefania Zambelli of the Identity and Democracy Group, BECA Committee Shadow Rapporteur Pietro Fiocchi of the European Conservatives and Reformists, MEP Aldo Patriciello of the European People’s Party and his party colleague, BECA Committee Shadow Rapporteur Peter Liese.
Overall, the MEPs were happy with the report, with all four praising the provisions it outlines for improved cancer prevention and research. They were particularly pleased with the report’s recommendations for cross border coordination, and the free movement of both cancer patients and researchers around Europe, in order to make treatment and research more efficient. Nonetheless, the MEPs acknowledged that the plan was not perfect. MEPs Zambelli and Fiocchi pointed respectively to the report’s counterproductive provisions around alcohol and tobacco taxes, which they said made no distinction between harmful and moderate forms of consumption, and could encourage black market activity. MEP Liese, meanwhile, noted that many of the provisions within the report were relatively abstract, and that much of its success or failure would depend on how it was concretely implemented.
Askanews’ ‘EU Verified’ offers a platform for in-depth discussions with policymakers involved in drafting and implementing one of the most ambitious policies the EU has ever formulated in the health arena, Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan. Our interviewees have been carefully selected to give a voice to all those involved in the discussions and to ensure the EU ethos is upheld in the form of transparency and openness.