Call to Action : ETUC proposal for EP report on Strengthening Europe in the fight against cancer - towards a comprehensive and coordinated strategy

To: Members of the Beating Cancer Special Committee at the European Parliament

Brussels, October 14th 2021

Dear members of the European Parliament,

This email regards to the report on Strengthening Europe in the fight against cancer - towards a comprehensive and coordinated strategy.

ETUC welcomes that the prevention of occupational cancer is included in the report. We however believe that the Parliament can take a more ambitious right-based approach at this regard, as it demonstrated recently with the report on the proposal for a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Directive 2004/37/EC on the protection of workers from the risks related to exposure to carcinogens or mutagens at work. More particularly, ETUC calls on the European governing bodies to provide for effective Binding Occupational Limits for 50 priority carcinogenic substances (currently they only exist for 27 substances), the extension of the scope of the Carcinogens and Mutagens Directive to include substances toxic to reproduction and dangerous medicines, and for the establishment of a new coherent, transparent and risk-based system for setting exposure limits.

Therefore, we welcome some of the contributions tabled, in particular amendments 475, 481, 483, 476, 477, and 478.

I hereby ask you to consider the above-mentioned amendments.

Yours truly,

Claes-Mikael Stahl

ETUC Deputy General Secretary