Negotiations between the Polish Presidency of the Council of the EU and the European Parliament on the rules governing the use of new genomic techniques (NGT) will begin on Tuesday 6 May (see EUROPE 13616/11).
They could last for many months, given the differences between the positions of the EU Council and the European Parliament on key elements of the text (see EUROPE 13613/21).
At this first trilogue, the EU Council and the European Parliament will present their respective positions.
After months of debate, the representatives of the EU Member States (Coreper) finally agreed on a negotiating mandate for NGTs on 14 March, paving the way for discussions with the European Parliament. By a narrow qualified majority (Germany and Bulgaria abstained, while Austria, Croatia, Hungary, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia voted against), the EU27 gave the green light to the text prepared by the Polish Presidency of the EU Council. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)