Commission renews the mandate of the EGE for five years
The European Commission has published in the Official Journal of the European Union of January 5th, 2010, a decision on the renewal of the mandate of the European Group on Ethics in Science and New Technologies. It will last until 2015.
The European Group on Ethics (EGE)is an independent, pluralist and multidisciplinary organism, composed of 15 experts nominated by the European Commission to issue opinions on ethical issues regarding science and technology.
In November 1991, the European Commission decided to incorporate ethics into the decision-making process for Community research and technological development policies by setting up the Group of Advisers on the Ethical Implications of Biotechnology (GAEIB).
The Commission decided on 16 December 1997 to replace the GAEIB by the European Group on Ethics in Science and New Technologies (EGE) extending the Group’s mandate to cover all areas of the application of science and technology. The EGE’s mandate, with a slightly modified remit, was renewed by Commission Decision of 26 March 2001 for a four-year period, and the current EGE’s mandate was decided on 11 May 2005, and extended by Commission Decision 2009/757/EC.
The task of the EGE shall be to advise the Commission on ethical questions relating to sciences and new technologies, either at the request of the Commission or on its own initiative. The Parliament and the Council may draw the Commission’s attention to questions which they consider to be of major ethical importance. The Commission shall, when seeking the opinion of the EGE, set a time limit within which such an opinion shall be given.
The EGE members are appointed by the President of the Commission, they are nominated ad personam and are asked to advise the Commission independently from any outside influence. The EGE shall be independent, pluralist and multidisciplinary, with up to 15 members, and each member of the EGE shall be appointed for a term of five years.
The identification and selection of the EGE members will be made on the basis of an open call for expressions of interest. Additional applications received through other channels will also be taken into consideration in the selection procedure, and the list of EGE members shall be published by the Commission in the Official Journal of the European Union.
The EGE will normally meet at the Commission’s seat according to the modalities and the calendar fixed by the Commission. The EGE should meet at least six times during a 12-month period involving around 12 working days a year. Members are expected to attend a minimum of four meetings a year.