Qualified majority in favour of re-approval might prove elusive

French environment minister Segolene Royal has said on Twitter that France will not change its mind on glyphosate and will not vote in support of the Commission’s proposal to allow the weedkiller a time-limited extension.

Germany’s environment ministry has also confirmed on Twitter that it will not deviate from its opposition to glyphosate’s re-approval: “It’s still no”.

Germany’s agriculture ministry wants to re-approve glyphosate, but as long as the environment ministry maintains its position against, Germany will abstain from voting.

It’s unclear whether the Commission will have a qualified majority vote in favour of its new glyphosate proposal. Reliable sources have told us that the Commission will be reluctant to over-ride the concerns of member states and push the glyphosate re-approval through without the support of a qualified majority vote.