Committee

Draft revised Heads of Medicines Agency / European Medicines Agency guidance document on the identification of personal data and commercially confidential information within the structure of the marketing authorisation application dossier

Retrieved on: 
Thursday, April 18, 2024
Steps, Union, Patient, CTD, Syndrome, CCI, Local, Disclosure, Toxicity, Process validation, MAH, Clinical trial, IP, RMP, Pharmacovigilance, Cell, Legislation, Annex, Trial of the century, Escherichia coli, Safety, Pediatrics, INTRODUCTION, Documentation, Prevalence, Vital signs, Tablet, Design, Transparency, Conclusion, Pip, Analysis, European Parliament, INN, Record, Quality, Generic, Biology, CMO, Genotoxicity, Composition, CTIS, Uncontrolled, Health care, European Medicines Agency, Prejudice, Committee, Policy, HCP, Animal, Characterization, Cell bank, Fertility, IRB, CMOS, Risk management, Private law, European Pharmacopoeia, Telephone, Research, Good, Data Protection Directive, Ampere-hour, IEC, QP, Human, Personal data, Labelling, Bibliography, Figure, MAA, R4, Institutional review board, Elucidation, Marketing, M4, ChromeOS, Contract research organization, Mental, Impairment, Toxicokinetics, NCA, Independent, Metabolite, Drug, Risk, Metabolism, GMO, Organ, EMA, Common Technical Document, General Data Protection Regulation, Confidentiality, PPD, PI, Language, DRUG, Privacy, Result, Claimed, Medication, Comparison, Ethics, Drive, PD, Narrative, EEA, Developmental toxicity, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Pharmacopoeia, PIP, MCB, HMA, Physical chemistry, Midol, Particle size, Council, GCP, European Economic Area, Draft, Fermentation, Overview, Justification, Control, Dicarboxylic acid, Pharmacology, WCB, Expert, Immunogenicity, Data, Study, Publication, European, ICH, Element, Analytical procedures (finance auditing), Name, Common, Guideline, Exceptional circumstances, ID, Liver, Chin Na, Toxicology, Protein primary structure, Immunosuppressive drug, Vaccine

See websites for contact details

Key Points: 
    • See websites for contact details
      Heads of Medicines Agencies www.hma.eu
      European Medicines Agency www.ema.europa.eu

      11

      Table of contents

      12

      Abbreviations .............................................................................................. 3

      13

      Definitions ................................................................................................... 4

      14

      1.

    • redaction, masking,

      68

      hiding) in such a manner that the recipient can no longer attribute the resulting information to a data

      69

      subject and make it identifiable.

    • 81

      Contract Manufacturing Organisation (CMO): shall mean an arrangement under which a

      82

      manufacturer provides upstream manufacturing services under contract on behalf of third-party

      83

      pharmaceutical companies.

    • 94

      Protected Personal Data (PPD): shall mean any personal data which should be protected from

      95

      disclosure.

    • ?Finalised? shall mean that the marketing

      102

      authorisation (MA) has been granted or refused or that the MAA has been withdrawn.

    • The application of the general principles laid down in this guidance is without prejudice to

      106

      national rules on transparency.

    • The guidance should be read in conjunction with the relevant applicable

      107

      legislation and case law on transparency and data protection.

    • 117

      This guidance document is intended to apply to information/documents on medicinal products for

      118

      human use, for which the procedure has been finalised under the national, mutual recognition,

      119

      decentralised and centralised procedures.

    • Third

      124

      parties shall be informed or consulted as needed depending on respective national and European legal

      125

      frameworks.

    • 140

      In the following sections, the agreed principles on PD and CCI are presented, including guidance on

      141

      whether such information can be disclosed.

    • EMA/131365/2024

      Page 5/50

      142

      Any information identified as PD or CCI must be subject to a preliminary review by the EMA/NCA prior

      143

      to the possible disclosure of the information/documents.

    • Principles on the protection of personal data (PD)

      145

      The protection of PD is enshrined in EU legislation; it is a fundamental right of EU citizens.

    • In

      146

      compliance with the applicable European/national legislation, PD should be anonymised in order to

      147

      avoid the disclosure of the document undermining the privacy and integrity of any individual.

    • EMA/NCA applies a risk-based approach to assess which PD elements are to be

      152

      removed from the information/documents in order to limit the risk of re-identification.

    • are included in the MAA dossier because they have a legally

      164

      defined role or responsibility and it is in the public interest to disclose this data.

    • 168

      Applicants are advised that non-essential information (e.g., personal address, personal phone number)

      169

      should not be included in the MAA dossier.

    • The

      183

      confidentiality of records that could identify subjects should be protected, respecting the privacy and

      184

      confidentiality rules in accordance with the applicable regulatory requirement(s).

    • 185

      The applicant remains responsible for compliance with the relevant legislation in cases where such data

      186

      is inadvertently included in the MAA dossier.

    • 188

      EMA/NCA applies a risk-based approach to assess which personal data elements need to be removed

      189

      from the information/documents in order to limit the risk of re-identification.

    • 194

      EMA/NCA applies a risk-based approach to assess which personal data elements need to be removed

      195

      from the information/documents in order to limit the risk of re-identification.

    • 205

      Any proposal to consider information as commercially confidential should be properly justified by the

      206

      owner of the information.

    • In this respect, any reference(s) to the risk of that interest being

      209

      undermined should be foreseeable and not purely hypothetical.

    • 210

      Information that is already in the public domain is not considered to be commercially confidential.

    • Information on the Quality and Manufacturing of medicines

      226

      A general principle regarding quality and manufacturing information is that detailed information could

      227

      be considered commercially confidential but general information should be disclosed.

    • 234

      In general, and if not in the public domain, the names of manufacturers or suppliers of the active

      235

      substance or the excipients are considered commercially confidential.

    • 248

      A general description of the type of test methods used and the appropriateness of the specification is

      249

      not commercially confidential.

    • General information on the fermentation and purification process

      259

      is not commercially confidential, although details including operating parameters and specific material

      260

      requirements are commercially confidential.

    • 273

      A general description of the type of test methods used and the appropriateness of the specification is

      274

      not commercially confidential.

    • In general, the data included in clinical trial study reports is considered to be data that can be

      283

      disclosed once PD has been anonymised.

    • 338

      In each module, a non-exhaustive list of information that may be considered protected personal data (PPD) or commercially confidential information

      332
      333

      339

      (CCI) is included.

    • ?

      Direct contact details such as telephone

      Therefore, please refer to the appropriate sub-

      number, fax number, email, postal address,

      modules hereafter for guidance.

    • ?

      Information that may reveal strategic
      (contractual) agreements

      ?

      Any quality information on the clinical batches

      principal investigator

      that might be included here (such as e.g.

    • ?

      Information that may reveal strategic
      (contractual) agreements

      principal investigator

      Study Reports
      5.3.3.3

      as the evaluation of new formulation, innovative

      number, fax number, email, postal

      Paediatric Development Plan (PIP), etc.

    • This may include taking into

      More Than One Study
      5.3.5.4

      Other Clinical Study Reports

      5.3.6

      Reports of Post-Marketing
      Experience

      5.3.7

      Direct identifiers such as name,
      signature, contact details, etc.

Draft guideline on good agricultural and collection practice (GACP) for starting materials of herbal origin - Revision 1

Retrieved on: 
Thursday, April 18, 2024

REFERENCES ....................................................................................................................................... 14

Key Points: 
    • REFERENCES ....................................................................................................................................... 14

      29

      Guideline on Good Agricultural and Collection Practice (GACP) for starting materials of herbal origin
      EMA/HMPC/246816/2005

      Page 3/14

      30

      EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

      31
      32
      33
      34
      35
      36

      This guideline on Good Agricultural and Collection Practice (GACP) for starting materials of herbal origin

      37

      1.

    • Due to the inherent
      complexity of medicinal plants and herbal substances the quality of these starting materials requires an
      adequate quality assurance system for the collection and/or cultivation, harvest, and primary
      processing.
    • (either outdoor, indoor or in greenhouses) should be carefully considered, since each of the mentioned
      types could have several problems and advantages.
    • The used cultivation method may be dependent on
      the final application of the herbal medicinal product.
    • primary processing of herbal substances that are used for the preparation of herbal medicinal products.
    • medicinal plants and herbal substances, ensuring that they are handled appropriately throughout all
      stages of cultivation, collection, processing and storage.
    • their preparations are exposed to a large number of environmental contaminants of both biotic and
      abiotic origin.
    • to existing wildlife habitats and must adhere to CITES (Convention on International Trade in
      Endangered species of Wild Fauna and Flora).
    • https://health.ec.europa.eu/document/download/bd537ccf-9271-4230-bca1-2d...
      4 https://health.ec.europa.eu/document/download/fd318dd6-2404-4e67-82b0232...
      3

      Guideline on Good Agricultural and Collection Practice (GACP) for starting materials of herbal origin
      EMA/HMPC/246816/2005

      Page 5/14

      104

      4.

    • Guideline on Good Agricultural and Collection Practice (GACP) for starting materials of herbal origin
      EMA/HMPC/246816/2005

      Page 6/14

      147
      148
      149

      8.

    • Guideline on Good Agricultural and Collection Practice (GACP) for starting materials of herbal origin
      EMA/HMPC/246816/2005

      Page 7/14

      185

      7.

    • Where possible, stable varieties and cultivars naturally
      Guideline on Good Agricultural and Collection Practice (GACP) for starting materials of herbal origin
      EMA/HMPC/246816/2005

      Page 8/14

      227
      228

      resistant or tolerant to disease should preferably be used.

    • Guideline on Good Agricultural and Collection Practice (GACP) for starting materials of herbal origin
      EMA/HMPC/246816/2005

      Page 9/14

      268
      269
      270
      271
      272
      273

      The application should be carried out only by qualified staff using approved equipment.

    • The following should be noted:

      Guideline on Good Agricultural and Collection Practice (GACP) for starting materials of herbal origin
      EMA/HMPC/246816/2005

      Page 10/14

      309
      310

      ?

      311
      312
      313

      ?

      314
      315
      316
      317

      ?

      318
      319
      320

      ?

      321
      322

      ?

      323
      324
      325

      ?

      326
      327
      328

      ?

      Damaged plants or plant parts need to be excluded or limited in accordance with a specific
      pharmacopoeia monograph, where relevant.

    • Guideline on Good Agricultural and Collection Practice (GACP) for starting materials of herbal origin
      EMA/HMPC/246816/2005

      Page 11/14

      347
      348

      directly to the sun (except in cases where there is a specific need) and must be protected from
      rainfall, insect infestation, etc.

    • The label must be clear, permanently fixed and made from

      6

      Reflection paper on the use of fumigants (EMEA/HMPC/125562/2006)

      Guideline on Good Agricultural and Collection Practice (GACP) for starting materials of herbal origin
      EMA/HMPC/246816/2005

      Page 12/14

      386
      387

      non-toxic material.

    • Certain exudates that have not been subjected to a specific treatment are

      Guideline on Good Agricultural and Collection Practice (GACP) for starting materials of herbal origin
      EMA/HMPC/246816/2005

      Page 13/14

      425
      426
      427

      also considered to be herbal substances.

    • European Pharmacopoeia General Monograph ?HERBAL DRUGS? 07/2017:1433

      Are obtained by subjecting herbal substances to treatments such as
      extraction, distillation, expression, fractionation, purification, concentration
      or fermentation.

Draft template for assessment report for the development of European herbal monographs and European Union list entries - Revision 6

Retrieved on: 
Thursday, April 18, 2024

The completed comments form should be sent to

Key Points: 
    • The completed comments form should be sent to
      [email protected]
      10
      11
      Keywords

      Committee on Herbal Medicinal Products; HMPC; European Union herbal
      monographs; European Union list of herbal substances, preparations and
      combinations thereof for use in traditional herbal medicinal products; herbal
      medicinal products; traditional herbal medicinal products; traditional use;
      well-established medicinal use; benefit-risk assessment; assessment report

      12

      1
      2

      Changes introduced in section 6 Overall conclusions.

    • Peer-reviewer

      If not the same peer-reviewer
      since last version, all peerreviewers should be listed, and
      the version specified in
      brackets.

    • 22

      23


      on
      .

    • It is a working

      24

      document, not yet edited, and shall be further developed after the release for consultation of the

      25


      .

    • The principle of the template is to make clear
      distinctions between presentation of data (methodology and results)
      and the assessment of the data (?assessor?s comment?).
    • likely from an article but it seems it is concluded by
      the rapporteur; ?According to the author? to be added.
    • Chapters with
      a heading including the word ?conclusion? should include a summary
      of all critical assessment of the assessor for that particular
      chapter.
    • If an assessor?s comment is not needed, the Rapporteur
      should delete the box inserted in the template.
    • ?
      The report should be sufficiently detailed to allow for secondary
      assessment of the available data by other HMPC experts.
    • Overview of available pharmacokinetic data regarding the herbal substance(s), herbal
      preparation(s) and relevant constituents thereof ........................................................... 16

      97
      98

      3.3.

    • Overall conclusions on clinical pharmacology and efficacy ........................................ 27

      Assessment report on
      EMA/HMPC/418902/2005

      Page 4/41

      119

      5.

    • This sections is related to
      available quality standards and there is no need to repeat information
      on all preparations included in the monograph.
    • Search and assessment methodology

      161

      The Rapporteur shall undertake a comprehensive search of relevant
      scientific literature and articles, Acts of law and regulations and
      other relevant sources.

    • Cross-reference to the list of
      references in Annex, which should list separately the references
      supporting the assessment report.
    • 143
      144
      145

      150
      151
      152
      153
      154

      162
      163
      164
      165
      166
      167
      168
      169
      170
      171
      172
      173
      174
      175

      Herbal substance(s)

      Herbal preparation(s)

      Relevant constituents for this assessment report

      Examples of scientific databases to be searched are Medline, PubMed,
      Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, EMBASE etc.

    • Assessment report on
      EMA/HMPC/418902/2005

      Page 6/41

      176
      177
      178
      179
      180
      181
      182
      183
      184
      185
      186
      187
      188
      189
      190
      191
      192

      Additional relevant references could also be retrieved from the checked
      references.

    • Examples of books are Hagers Handbuch, The Complete German
      Commission E Monographs, PDR for herbal medicines etc.
    • In addition, information from non-EU regulatory
      authorities for examples Health Canada monographs or WHO monographs
      could be searched, if relevant to herbal substances and preparations in
      EU.
    • 221

      225
      226
      227

      232

      When the assessment report is revised, the rapporteur should briefly
      summarise the main changes under this section.

    • Data are collected using the template entitled ?Document
      for information exchange for the preparation of the assessment report
      for the development of European Union monographs and for inclusion of
      herbal substance(s), preparation(s) or combinations thereof in the
      list? (EMEA/HMPC/137093/2006).
    • Assessment report on
      EMA/HMPC/418902/2005

      Page 8/41

      Herbal substance/

      Indication

      Posology and
      method of

      preparation

      administration

      Posology, age
      groups,
      pharmaceutical
      form, method of
      administration,
      duration of use
      As reported in
      the market
      overview

      As reported in
      the market
      overview

      As reported in
      the market
      overview.

    • Assessment report on
      EMA/HMPC/418902/2005

      Page 10/41

      Herbal substance/

      Indication/Medicinal

      Posology and

      preparation

      use

      method of
      administration

      Posology, age
      groups,
      pharmaceutical
      form, method of
      administration,
      duration of use

      Regulatory Status

      Type of
      regulatory
      status where
      possible, date,
      Country

      287

      This overview is not exhaustive.

    • Clinical Safety/Pharmacovigilance

      836
      837
      838
      839
      840
      841

      See ?Assessment of clinical safety and efficacy in the preparation of
      EU herbal monographs for well-established and traditional herbal
      medicinal products?(EMA/HMPC/104613/2005) for further details.

    • Overall conclusions on clinical safety

      1067

      1068

      In terms of structure, the conclusion should follow the presentation of
      the results above.

    • Overall conclusions

      1092

      1093

      1101

      Describe key aspects only briefly, these will already have been
      described in detail in the respective sections.

    • This section should
      cover all recommended ?well-established use? and ?traditional use?
      indications and conclusions shall be provided for each therapeutic
      indication and each herbal preparation.
    • 1102

      Well established use monograph

      1103
      1104

      The clinical studies supporting well-established use should be
      specified for each therapeutic indication and each herbal preparation.

    • The choice for the wording of traditional use indications vis-?vis existing wordings in monographs in the same therapeutic area should
      be briefly discussed/justified.
    • 1153

      List entry

      1154

      The conclusions should include a statement pointing to the
      possibility/non-possibility to support a European Union list entry.

Luis de Guindos: Presentation of the ECB Annual Report 2023 to the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs of the European Parliament

Retrieved on: 
Thursday, April 18, 2024

Stock market development and familiarity (language and distance) are considered key determinants for home bias.

Key Points: 
  • Stock market development and familiarity (language and distance) are considered key determinants for home bias.
  • The literature neglects however that investors often invest in foreign funds domiciled in financial centers.

Survey on credit terms and conditions in euro-denominated securities financing and OTC derivatives markets (SESFOD) - March 2024

Retrieved on: 
Thursday, April 18, 2024

Survey on credit terms and

Key Points: 
    • Survey on credit terms and
      conditions in euro-denominated
      securities financing and OTC
      derivatives markets (SESFOD)
      March 2024
      The Eurosystem conducts a three-monthly qualitative survey on credit terms and
      conditions in euro-denominated securities financing and over-the-counter (OTC)
      derivatives markets.
    • The survey questions are grouped into three sections:
      1.

      counterparty types ? credit terms and conditions for various counterparty
      types in both securities financing and OTC derivatives markets;

      2.

      securities financing ? financing conditions for various collateral types;

      3.

      non-centrally cleared OTC derivatives ? credit terms and conditions for
      various derivative types.

    • The survey focuses on euro-denominated instruments in securities financing and
      OTC derivatives markets.
    • For securities financing, the survey refers to the
      euro-denominated securities against which financing is provided, rather than the
      currency of the loan.
    • Reporting institutions should report on their global credit terms, so the survey is
      aimed at senior credit officers responsible for maintaining an overview of the
      management of credit risks.
    • SESFOD March 2024

      2

      March 2024 SESFOD results
      (Review period from December 2023 to February 2024)
      The March 2024 Survey on credit terms and conditions in euro-denominated
      securities financing and OTC derivatives markets (SESFOD) reports qualitative
      changes in credit terms between December 2023 and February 2024.

    • Looking at credit terms and conditions for the various types of non-centrally cleared
      OTC derivative, initial margin requirements increased slightly for all derivative types.
    • Survey respondents reported mostly unchanged conditions as regards the maximum
      amount of exposure and the maximum maturity of trades.
    • Moreover, they reported that the volume of valuation disputes had
      declined for all derivative types except credit derivatives.
    • The survey asked respondents to compare credit terms
      and conditions on the cut-off date for the March 2024 survey round (i.e.
    • Compared with the
      previous year, overall terms and conditions for securities financing and OTC
      derivatives transactions had eased somewhat across all counterparties, while credit
      standards for funding secured against various types of collateral and non-price terms
      in OTC derivatives markets were generally tighter.
    • Credit terms and conditions for various counterparty types in both
      securities financing and OTC derivatives markets
      Overall credit terms and conditions eased between December 2023 and
      February 2024 (Chart A).
    • The overall easing of conditions masked some
      heterogeneity between price and non-price terms, and across different types of
      counterparty, though reported changes were relatively small.
    • Credit terms and conditions for various types of non-centrally
      cleared OTC derivative
      Initial margin requirements increased slightly for all derivative types.
    • Meanwhile, they reported
      unchanged conditions for credit derivatives referencing sovereigns and commodities,
      as well as a slight deterioration for credit derivatives referencing corporates and
      structured credit products.
    • The survey asked respondents to compare the credit terms and conditions observed
      on the cut-off date for the March 2024 survey (i.e.
    • Compared with the previous year, overall terms and conditions for securities
      financing and OTC derivatives transactions had eased somewhat across all
      counterparties.
    • Survey respondents reported that non-price credit terms in OTC derivatives
      markets had tightened somewhat for almost all types of derivative relative to
      the previous year.

Central bank digital currency and monetary policy implementation

Retrieved on: 
Thursday, April 18, 2024

Key Points: 

    Digital euro safeguards – protecting financial stability and liquidity in the banking sector

    Retrieved on: 
    Thursday, April 18, 2024

    A digital euro would offer a wide range of

    Key Points: 
      • A digital euro would offer a wide range of
        financial stability benefits, including safeguarding the role of public money and
        strengthening the strategic autonomy and monetary sovereignty of the euro area in
        the digital era.
      • Keywords: CBDC, digital euro, bank intermediation, financial stability risks.
      • A digital euro has the potential to offer a wide range of financial stability
        benefits for the digital era.
      • A digital euro would
        stimulate financial innovation among private sector entities and enhance the
        efficiency and resilience of the financial system by supporting competition and
        diversity within it.3 In addition, a digital euro would strengthen the strategic autonomy
        and monetary sovereignty of the euro area.
      • A digital euro would be designed to minimise risks to the financial system.
      • 2

        The preparation phase will pave the way for a future decision on whether or not to issue a digital euro.

      • When gauging the implications for the euro area banking sector of introducing a
        digital euro, take-up would be key, as it would determine the level of deposit
        outflows.
      • In the latter case, the
        issuance of a digital euro would not affect banks? balance sheets, since banks would return euro
        banknotes to the Eurosystem in exchange for digital euro.
      • Banknotes and digital euro are two different
        types of central bank liability, so a swap between banknotes and digital euro would only affect the
        composition and not the size of the Eurosystem?s balance sheet.
      • In our analysis, we model only the
        substitution of commercial bank deposits with a possible future digital euro.
      • 8

        The legislative proposal on a digital euro provides for the inclusion of such safeguards and establishes
        specific criteria for the limits, aiming to contain the use of a digital euro as a store of value.

      • ECB Occasional Paper Series No 346

        4

        2

        The added value of digital euro
        safeguards such as holding limits
        To understand the benefits of digital euro safeguards, such as holding limits, it
        is useful to first consider the implications of introducing a CBDC without
        adequate safeguards.

      • (2022), ?Central bank digital currency and bank intermediation: Exploring different
        approaches for assessing the effects of a digital euro on euro area banks?, Occasional Papers, No 293,
        European Central Bank, Frankfurt am Main, May.
      • deciding to adopt the digital euro, and (ii) the average amount of digital euro in a
        wallet.
      • At the same time, as discussed in this paper, the design of a digital euro would
        include effective safeguards, such as individual holding limits, to mitigate
        potential financial stability risks.
      • ECB Occasional Paper Series No 346

        15

        an upper bound on the amount of digital euro in circulation, thereby addressing and
        limiting financial stability concerns associated with the introduction of a digital euro.

      • (2023), ?A digital euro: gauging the
        financial stability implications?, Financial Stability Review, ECB, November.

    Feedback on the input provided by the European Parliament as part of its resolution on the ECB’s Annual Report 2022

    Retrieved on: 
    Thursday, April 18, 2024

    Beyond managing related risks, the financial sector can also contribute to the transition toward a net-zero economy.

    Key Points: 
    • Beyond managing related risks, the financial sector can also contribute to the transition toward a net-zero economy.
    • Our work aims to enhance data transparency in climate change analysis, while informing monetary policy, financial stability and banking supervision.
    • The indicators we have developed focus on the euro area financial sector and are built from harmonised granular datasets.

    EBA, EIOPA and ECB set up a joint governance framework for the collaboration on the DPM 2.0 standard

    Retrieved on: 
    Thursday, April 18, 2024

    EBA, EIOPA and ECB set up a joint governance framework for the collaboration on the DPM 2.0 standard

    Key Points: 
    • EBA, EIOPA and ECB set up a joint governance framework for the collaboration on the DPM 2.0 standard
      The European Banking Authority (EBA), the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) and the European Central Bank (ECB) set up a Data Point Model (DPM) alliance, establishing a common governance framework for the collaboration on the DPM 2.0 Standard.
    • Following the publication by the EBA and EIOPA of the DPM 2.0 standard in June 2023, the two ESAs together with the ECB have agreed on the common arrangements that will govern their cooperation on DPM 2.0 (the DPM alliance).
    • Under the DPM alliance, the EBA, EIOPA and ECB will together govern the DPM 2.0 standard and cooperate in the DPM methodology for modelling reporting requirements, the metamodel used for populating the reporting requirements and the associated documentation.
    • The DPM alliance is established through a Memorandum of Understanding that was signed by the EBA, ECB, and EIOPA.