Swiss parliament backs faster approval of pesticides

New plant protection products must be approved more quickly. Following in the footsteps of the House of Representatives, the Swiss Senate approved a parliamentary proposal on Thursday by 31 votes to 12, calling for pesticides approved in Europe to be approved in Switzerland too. + Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox The proposal provides for a simplified authorisation procedure for plant protection products already approved in Germany, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Belgium and Austria. It is the result of an initiative by Philipp Matthias Bregy from the Centre party. The Swiss authorities should only control these products in areas where Switzerland has special protection provisions, such as water protection. Werner Salzmann from the right-wing Swiss People's Party argued that plant protection products should be approved more quickly in Switzerland as a matter of urgency. + Swiss lawmakers want to speed up access to plant protection products Emergency ...