ddrg/super_eurlex huggingface dataset:
Opinion of the Economic and Social Committee on the "Proposal for a Council decision concerning the placing on the market and administration of bovine somatotrophin (BST) and repealing Council Decision 90/218/EEC"

(2000/C 51/22)

On 9 November 1999, the Council of the European Union decided to consult the Economic and Social Committee, under Article 37 of the Treaty establishing the European Community, on the above-mentioned proposal.

The Economic and Social Committee decided to appoint Mr Nielsen as rapporteur-general with the task of preparing the Committee's work on the subject.

At its 368th plenary session (meeting of 9 December 1999), the Economic and Social Committee adopted the following opinion by 46 votes with two abstentions.

1. Background

1.1. Since 1990 the Member States may not grant authorisation for placing on the market or administration in any form, of bovine somatotrophin (BST) to dairy cows on their territory(1). This moratorium expires at the end of 1999.

1.2. Further to the Protocol on protection and welfare of animals annexed to the Treaty, the European Convention for the Protection of Animals Kept for Farming Purposes and the report of 10 March 1999 by the Scientific Committee on Animal Health and Animal Welfare, the Commission is proposing a permanent ban from 1 January 2000 on authorisation to place on the market or in any way administrate bovine somatotrophin (BST) to dairy cows. Undertakings buying, producing or marketing BST substances are required to keep registers detailing quantities etc.; on request, these must be made available to the authorities. The decision does not affect the Member States' production and imports of BST for purposes of its export to third countries.

1.3. The Commission points out, among other things, that it has not been proved scientifically or on the basis of experience, that BST is not detrimental to animal health or welfare. On the other hand, there is proof that BST can have harmful effects in the shape of clinical mastitis, food and leg disorders, reproduction capacity and reactions at the injection site. Apart from the fact that these disorders may cause animals pain, there is a risk of infecting other cows and hence causing a deterioration in the overall health of the herd.

2. The ESC's comments

2.1. The ESC fully endorses both the Commission's proposal for a ban on the use of BST and the Commission's arguments. However, the ESC considers that the Commission should indicate more precisely the degree of harm to animal health as set out in the scientific report.

Brussels, 9 December 1999.

The President

of the Economic and Social Committee

Beatrice RANGONI MACHIAVELLI

(1) Council Decision 90/218/EEC (OJ L 116, 8.5.1990, p. 27), as last amended by Decision 94/936/EC (OJ L 366, 31.12.1994, p. 19).
2.18.8

adopt multi-annual action programmes, with sufficient financial support and other resources, on equal opportunities for disabled people, ensuring that disabled people are involved –through the organisations representing them – in their drafting, management, implementation and assessment. In order to respond to the urgent needs and demands of disabled people, these programmes should focus on the following: — with regard to training and employment, encourage local and regional authorities – to include specific measures promoting the employability of disabled people in their local development plans and policies, and to make a commitment, within their remit, to implement Directive 78/2000/EC on a general framework for equal treatment in employment and occupation. One of the many possible measures to improve access to employment at local level is to insert social clauses in contracts to discriminate in favour of companies and entities that have disabled people on their staff; — with regard to the information society and access to new technologies, develop programmes aimed at promoting the info-inclusion of disabled people in the new knowledge-based society, and establishing public schemes for technical assistance and assistive technologies enabling disabled people to enjoy independent living and a better quality of life; — with regard to accessibility for all, adopt universal accessibility plans to ensure that designs are drawn up with all people in mind, in all areas that are the responsibility of local and regional authorities (building, town planning, infrastructures, transport networks, virtual forums, telecommunications, media, public goods and services, etc.); — with regard in particular to serious disabilities which prevent people from living independently, seek to ensure, under the principle of equal treatment, that such people are able to live autonomously in their own homes and thus remain integrated in the life of their local community. This basically means providing assistance and support so that individuals are able to continue living with parents or relatives before moving out into their own homes when they grow up. In cases where it is not possible for individuals to live with family or in their own homes, residential facilities should be made available that meet their particular needs; — with regard to combating poverty and social exclusion, ensure that local and regional social inclusion plans give special attention to disabled people in a precarious social position; — the development of programmes and actions for disabled people at local and regional level is essential to promoting and supporting their personal and social independence. One of the fundamental objectives should therefore be to facilitate access to housing by various means, such as community housing, sheltered flats and by reserving and adapting social housing for disabled people, whether for renting or buying;
10.

strongly supports the European Commission in its efforts to achieve a new intergenerational pact. This means that: — the rights and interests of each individual generation must be preserved. It is becoming increasingly important for each generation to have the possibility to participate in educational systems, labour markets and society. Children and young people in particular, whose percentage share of the total population is decreasing, need to have good and dependable options for participating in an ageing society. More work for individual age groups is needed, again with particular regard to the circumstances of children and young people, but also by establishing new and more differentiated approaches to age; — intergenerational exchange of experiences, skills and support is an essential condition for society to be able to develop, with generations coexisting in solidarity. This exchange occurs mainly within the family. Given the requirements for mobility and flexibility, for example in relation to the labour market, and also given the increasing number of people living on their own, intergenerational relations outside the family are also becoming of increasing relevance to demographic change. In future, more attention must be paid to this development, not least at European level. A cross-generational approach will enable us better than at present to tap into the existing potential to shape demographic change. In future, networks and initiatives to implement a cross-generational approach should therefore receive more support than hitherto; — thus, at European level the new intergenerational pact should be the subject of an ongoing exchange of knowledge and experience on the basis of best practice models of social development in a context of demographic change. This also applies to the continuation of the European Demographic Forum. Representative civil society organisations should be involved to the fullest possible extent in this transparent and open dialogue;
16.

supports the proposal that Member States should have the opportunity to adjust from a historical basis for SPS towards a ‘flatter’ rate as 2013 approaches, where considered necessary, but believes that this will require flexibility in the detailed implementation of the ‘flatter’ rate in the Member States and regions. This flexibility should also allow for the impact that full decoupling may have on certain sectors and regions, and the possibility of graduated payments in favour of the more multifunctional farms and farms that are less well rewarded by the market. Impact analysis is also desirable in the Member States on the effect of this major potential change in terms of its likely effects on land-use, farm structure, farm ownership and succession, enterprise mix, regional balance and overall farming efficiency and competitiveness;
25.

feels that the overall measures concerning education provision for pupils with special educational needs is inappropriate. Firstly, the individual needs of such children vary greatly; secondly, there are considerable differences between systems in the Member States for providing for special educational needs. It must be the general aim of education to give pupils with learning and adaptation difficulties prompt and flexible help irrespective of the type of school they attend. It is wrong, therefore, to judge the quality of special needs education solely on the kind of school attended. For many pupils it is only special needs schools that provide access to education. In particular, however, it is important for children who may have special educational needs that these are spotted and recognised as early as possible in their pre-school years so that support mechanisms can be activated. This would make the transition into school much easier for the children concerned and their families.
33.

a Local Food Product: 1) is produced locally/regionally, 2) contributes to the local/regional rural development strategy, 3) is sold to the consumer through the that is possible, reasonable and efficient: involving no more links than a) the producer or the locally-established producer organisation, b) the party or cooperative of parties responsible for matching supply and demand, and c) the consumer, 4) can be sold at the local store or open-air market based on a local contract, but can not be sold – under the Local Food label – to a retail central buying department, 5) is targeted at consumers with one or more such as taste, freshness, high quality, cultural motivation, local tradition, local speciality, animal welfare, environmental value, health aspects or sustainable production circumstances, 6) is sold as as possible, reasonable and efficient: the distance variables may differ according to product, region and circumstances but come down to one crucial question: is the point of sale the closest one the consumer has access to (this may vary from 1 to over 30 miles), 7) is connected to a ;
20.

proposes to the Commission and consequently to the Council that, in the forthcoming programming period, minority and regional languages play an appropriate part, in the context of regional policy, in the next framework programme on research, in the Culture and MEDIA programmes, and in programmes in the cultural, educational and training sectors, and in particular in the action programme on lifelong learning (LLP), and that the same should apply in areas such as the Structural Funds, the Digital Agenda and everything that touches upon helping individuals and communities to achieve their maximum;
7.

points out that, according to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, European citizens enjoy the rights and are subject to the obligations set out in the Treaty; to these should be added the fundamental rights recognised by the European Convention on the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, to which the European Union is planning to accede with the adoption of the Treaty of Lisbon, and the rights and freedoms enshrined in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union of 7 December 2000, as adapted at Strasbourg on 12 December 2007, which under the Treaty of Lisbon has taken on the same legal value as the Treaties;
7.

The Committee would like the Commission to promote the option at national level for bidders to apply for a ‘procurement passport’ (preferably in the form of an electronic registration system), whose content and use would be standardised. Such a passport would demonstrate that an operator has the declarations and documentation that are often requested by contracting authorities during procurement. The fact that they only have to apply once for the passport means that operators do not have to keep presenting the same declarations and documents. This saves considerable time and resources when an operator frequently takes part in procurement procedures. Such a procurement passport would be valid for a given period - since the relevant certificates have limited validity - enhancing its credibility. Such a system already exists in some places at local level, and experience with it has been positive. In view of the nature of the procurement passport, it must not entail high costs.
Text proposed by the Commission

Article 3 Investment priorities In accordance with Article 16 of Regulation (EU) No […]/2012 [CPR], the Cohesion Fund shall support the following investment priorities within the thematic objectives set out in Article 9 of Regulation (EU) No […]/2012 [CPR]: (a) supporting the shift towards a low-carbon economy in all sectors by: (i) promoting the production and distribution of renewable energy sources; (ii) promoting energy efficiency and renewable energy use in small and medium-sized enterprises; (iii) supporting energy efficiency and renewable energy use in public infrastructures; (iv) developing smart distribution systems at low voltage levels; (v) promoting low-carbon strategies for urban areas; (b) promoting climate change adaptation, risk prevention and management by: (i) supporting dedicated investment for adaptation to climate change; (ii) promoting investment to address specific risks, ensuring disaster resilience and developing disaster management systems; (c) protecting the environment and promoting resource efficiency by: (i) addressing the significant needs for investment in the waste sector to meet the requirements of the Union's environmental acquis; (ii) addressing the significant needs for investment in the water sector to meet the requirements of the Union's environmental acquis; (iii) protecting and restoring biodiversity, including through green infrastructures; (iv) improving the urban environment, including regeneration of brownfield sites and reduction of air pollution; (d) promoting sustainable transport and removing bottlenecks in key network infrastructures, by: (i) supporting a multi-modal Single European Transport Area by investing in the Trans-European Transport Network; (ii) developing environment-friendly and low-carbon transport systems including promoting sustainable urban mobility; (iii) developing comprehensive, high quality and interoperable railway systems; (e) enhancing institutional capacity and an efficient public administration by strengthening of institutional capacity and the efficiency of public administrations and public services related to implementation of the Cohesion Fund.
16.

following the opinions which it has adopted since the beginning of 2012 on the Commission's various legislative proposals, reiterates that: a. With regard to sub-heading 1b and the Funds covered by the Common Strategic Framework (CSF): it supports the proposal to establish a new category of "transition regions" and the need for account to be taken of the specific and unique situation of the outermost regions regarding access to structural funds, in line with the provisions of Article 349 TFEU (point 25 of the negotiating box); it supports a threshold of 300 km for European territorial cooperation, except for the outermost regions, to which the distance criterion will not apply (point 27, ibid.); it supports the creation of a "safety net", equal to at least two thirds of their allocation for the 2007-2013 period, for regions which will no longer come under the convergence objective (point 44, ibid.); it supports the Commission's proposals on co-financing rates, apart from a raising of the rate to 85 % for programmes under the "European territorial cohesion" objective, and endorses the increase in the co-financing rate for inter-regional cooperation in the outermost regions from 50 % to 85 % (point 46, ibid.); it supports continuation of the food aid programme for deprived people under heading 2 of the MFF rather than its inclusion in the European Social Fund under heading 1 (point 48, ibid.); it supports the establishment of a co-financing rate that is 10 percentage points higher for Member States facing temporary budgetary difficulties (point 47, option a, ibid.); it supports the creation of a CSF for the three Structural Funds and the Cohesion Fund, the EAFRD and the EMFF (point 65, ibid.); it supports pre-financing rates of 2 % in 2014, 3% in 2015 and 3 % in 2016 (point 75, ibid.); and it supports non-recoverable VAT being eligible expenditure for a contribution from the CSF Funds (point 78, option c, ibid.); b. With regard to heading 2: it supports more rapid convergence and a precise calendar for convergence between Member States (point 53, ibid.); capping of direct payments at EUR 200 000 rather than EUR 300 000 including greening, with tapering starting at EUR 100 000 instead of EUR 200 000 (point 54, ibid.), and a rate of 30 % for greening (point 56, ibid.); it supports the option of budgetary transfers from the 1st to the 2nd pillar (point 57, ibid.); it is, however, opposed to any transfer in the other direction, given the need to improve the budgetary balance between the two CAP pillars (point 58, ibid.); it supports the inclusion of transition regions in the rural development regulation (point 62, ibid.); it opposes the creation of a new reserve, as proposed, for crises in the agriculture sector (point 64, ibid.);
stresses the fact that The Rethinking Education Communication package sets out the policy priorities for education and training systems for the next years, an essential part of which must be personal development when it comes to educating the young, pushing Member States for a renewed focus on:

— QUALITY: The right skills to be delivered for the workplace

— ACCESSIBILITY: What reforms will increase efficiency and inclusiveness of education and contribute to lifelong learning

— FUNDING: With which resources and with whom should reforms be achieved relating to actions necessary to unlock the potential of education and training systems as drivers for growth and youth employment. They are in line with the Country Specific Recommendations made to Member States in the European Semester.
(a) allow for the computerised handling and exchange of information, data and documents necessary for the performance of official controls, resulting from the performance of official controls or the recording of the performance or outcome of official controls in all cases where the rules referred to in Article 1(2) and the delegated acts provided for in Articles 15 to 24 provide for the exchange among competent authorities, between the competent authorities and the Commission, and where appropriate with other authorities and the operators, of such information, data and documents; (b) provide a mechanism for the exchange of data and information in accordance with the provisions of Title IV; (c) provide a tool to collect and manage the reports on official controls provided by the Member States to the Commission; (d) allow for the production, handling and transmission, including in electronic form, of the journey log referred to in Article 5(4) of Regulation (EC) No 1/2005, of the records obtained by the navigation system referred to in Article 6(9) of Regulation (EC) No 1/2005, of official certificates and of the common health entry document referred to in Article 54 of this Regulation.

(a) allow for the computerised handling and exchange of information, data and documents necessary for the performance of official controls, resulting from the performance of official controls or the recording of the performance or outcome of official controls in all cases where the rules referred to in Article 1(2) and the delegated acts provided for in Articles 15 to 24 provide for the exchange among competent authorities, between the competent authorities and the Commission, and where appropriate with other authorities and the operators, of such information, data and documents; (b) provide a mechanism for the exchange of data and information in accordance with the provisions of Title IV; (c) provide a tool to collect and manage the reports on official controls provided by the Member States to the Commission; (d) allow for the production, handling and transmission, including in electronic form, of the journey log referred to in Article 5(4) of Regulation (EC) No 1/2005, of the records obtained by the navigation system referred to in Article 6(9) of Regulation (EC) No 1/2005, of official certificates and of the common health entry document referred to in Article 54 of this Regulation. e) contain data protection mechanism in conformity with applicable rules, namely Directive 95/46/EC, and proposed Regulation COM(2012)11 final and proposed Directive COM(2012)10 final.
1. Each Member State shall designate for each coastal zone and marine region or sub-region concerned, the authority or authorities competent for the implementation of this Directive, including to ensure cooperation with other Member States as defined in Article 12 and cooperation with third countries as defined in Article 13. 2. Each Member State shall provide the Commission with a list of the competent authorities, together with the items of information listed in Annex I to this Directive. 3. At the same time, each Member State shall send to the Commission a list of their competent authorities responsible for those international bodies in which they participate and which are relevant for the implementation of this Directive. 4. Each Member State shall inform the Commission of any change to the information provided pursuant to paragraph 1 within six months of such a change coming into effect.

1. Each Member State, taking into account the need for a strong multi-level governance and cross-sectoral approach, shall designate for each coastal zone and marine region or sub-region concerned, the authority or authorities competent for the implementation of this Directive, including to ensure cooperation with other Member States as defined in Article 12 and cooperation with third countries as defined in Article 13. 2. Each Member State shall provide the Commission with a list of the competent authorities, together with the items of information listed in Annex I to this Directive. 3. At the same time, each Member State shall send to the Commission a list of their competent authorities responsible for those international bodies in which they participate and which are relevant for the implementation of this Directive. 4. Each Member State shall inform the Commission of any change to the information provided pursuant to paragraph 1 within six months of such a change coming into effect.
10.

trusts that the Commission will make a distinction between institutions representing regional and local bodies (institutional stakeholders) and those representing private interests (private stakeholders), bearing in mind that only the former are democratically elected and thus democratically embody the real needs of the people, including those who are not individually able to make their voices heard. It would seem, therefore, that there is a need to strengthen the Commission’s structured dialogue with the Committee of Regions as well as with representatives of regional and local authorities, so as to safeguard the democratic nature of the participatory process when drafting EU legislation. This stems from the conviction that the EU institutions should give priority to local and regional authorities, which champion the interests of all economic and social groups, over large corporations, including in consultations;