Alliance for Natural Health Legal Challenge
As a follow up to the historic Opinion of Advocate General Geelhoed on 5 April 2005 in which he found in favour of ANH’s case, I am writing to let you know that I have prepared an up-dated Legal Executive Summary which analyses and comments upon his decision.
This has now been posted on our web site with the other documents relating to the case (conveniently in one place) which you may find helpful to consider as regards ANH’s legal challenge to the Food Supplements Directive (FSD).
In particular you might want to look at the following key docs:
ANH Legal Executive Summary 10 April 2005
Official ECJ version of Advocate General Geelhoed’s Opinion 5 April 2005
ANH Press Release re AG Geelhoed’s Opinion 5 April 2005
All these documents (plus others) can be found in the ANH Legal Challenge Archive on our web site at the following link:
http://www.alliance-natural-health.org/index.cfm?Action=archive&categoryID=7
Summary
It is hard to overestimate the importance of this Opinion for the protection of our health freedoms in the EU.
The AG has concluded that there is a fatal flaw in the Directive.
This is because it gives the EU Commission completely arbitrary power to decide whether or not a substance should be included on the list of approved nutrients(known as the Positive Lists) which are allowed to be sold in the EU.
In the AG’s view this is such a fundamental flaw that the whole FSD has to be cancelled (“annulled” to use the technical legal term) and sent back to the legislative drawing board.
His Opinion is not binding on the European Court (ECJ) which may decide differently when it renders its judgment (likely in May / June 2005) but there is every chance that the Judges will endorse his reasoning.
As the FSD deprives food supplement manufacturers and distributors of their products and millions of practitioners and consumers of their free choice, this is a vital issue for millions of people in the EU.
The ECJ will thus be keen to address the problem he identifies especially as EU Citizens in their millions will be voting on the European Constitution in the coming months and the whole EU project will be in the spotlight.
The FSD was supposed to be a “safe harbour” for food supplements so that they are not classified as drugs and to promote their availability across the EU.
We may now have an opportunity to make it so and shape the law in the EU for food supplements for years to come!
What you can do
We are all in this together and it is very important for us all to continue to take action.
Especially:
Tell your friends and contacts about the ANH’s case and forward this and other ANH e-mails to them so that they know what is going on.
Recruit your friends and contacts to join the Alliance.
Donate urgently needed funds to ANH.
PLEASE TAKE ACTION NOW!
To make a donation to ANH click here .
Remember that without you there is no Alliance!
Thanks for your support.
Yours in health!
David C. Hinde LLB Solicitor
Legal Director
Alliance for Natural Health
http://www.alliance-natural-health.org
This has now been posted on our web site with the other documents relating to the case (conveniently in one place) which you may find helpful to consider as regards ANH’s legal challenge to the Food Supplements Directive (FSD).
In particular you might want to look at the following key docs:
ANH Legal Executive Summary 10 April 2005
Official ECJ version of Advocate General Geelhoed’s Opinion 5 April 2005
ANH Press Release re AG Geelhoed’s Opinion 5 April 2005
All these documents (plus others) can be found in the ANH Legal Challenge Archive on our web site at the following link:
http://www.alliance-natural-health.org/index.cfm?Action=archive&categoryID=7
Summary
It is hard to overestimate the importance of this Opinion for the protection of our health freedoms in the EU.
The AG has concluded that there is a fatal flaw in the Directive.
This is because it gives the EU Commission completely arbitrary power to decide whether or not a substance should be included on the list of approved nutrients(known as the Positive Lists) which are allowed to be sold in the EU.
In the AG’s view this is such a fundamental flaw that the whole FSD has to be cancelled (“annulled” to use the technical legal term) and sent back to the legislative drawing board.
His Opinion is not binding on the European Court (ECJ) which may decide differently when it renders its judgment (likely in May / June 2005) but there is every chance that the Judges will endorse his reasoning.
As the FSD deprives food supplement manufacturers and distributors of their products and millions of practitioners and consumers of their free choice, this is a vital issue for millions of people in the EU.
The ECJ will thus be keen to address the problem he identifies especially as EU Citizens in their millions will be voting on the European Constitution in the coming months and the whole EU project will be in the spotlight.
The FSD was supposed to be a “safe harbour” for food supplements so that they are not classified as drugs and to promote their availability across the EU.
We may now have an opportunity to make it so and shape the law in the EU for food supplements for years to come!
What you can do
We are all in this together and it is very important for us all to continue to take action.
Especially:
Tell your friends and contacts about the ANH’s case and forward this and other ANH e-mails to them so that they know what is going on.
Recruit your friends and contacts to join the Alliance.
Donate urgently needed funds to ANH.
PLEASE TAKE ACTION NOW!
To make a donation to ANH click here .
Remember that without you there is no Alliance!
Thanks for your support.
Yours in health!
David C. Hinde LLB Solicitor
Legal Director
Alliance for Natural Health
http://www.alliance-natural-health.org
Starmail - 11. Apr, 23:31
