WRITTEN QUESTION E-3083/98

by Pedro Marset Campos (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(16 October 1998)

Subject: Standard qualifications for cinema and video projectionists and technicians working in cinemas and theatres in the EU

Given that professional qualifications for cinema and video projectionists and technicians differ across EU Member States:

1. Is the Commission aware of the professional status of cinema and video projectionists and technicians in the Member States?

2. Will it say whether in all the Member States except Spain, cinema projectionists having completed the relevant course then obtain professional qualifications which are standardised across EU Member States in such a way as to enable them to practise their profession in any other Member State?

3. Is it aware that in contrast to the practice in other EU Member States, cinema projectionists in Spain are not awarded professional qualifications in line with European standards? Will it explain why this is so?

4. As guardian of the Treaties, does it not believe that this situation discriminates against Spanish cinema projectionists and thus fails to comply with the spirit of the EU Treaties?

Answer given by Mr Monti on behalf of the Commission

(14 December 1998)

The mutual recognition of cinema and video projectionists' and technicians' diplomas or qualifications is governed by the general system for the recognition of diplomas within the Community. This system is based on two directives: Council Directive 89/48/EEC of 21 December 1988, which establishes a general system for the recognition of higher-education diplomas awarded on completion of professional training of at least three years' duration(1), and Council Directive 92/51/EEC of 18 June 1992, which establishes a second general system for the recognition of professional education and training(2). Depending on their level of training, cinema and video projectionists' and technicians' qualifications are therefore covered by one or other of these directives.

Under the general system for the recognition of diplomas, a person fully qualified to exercise a profession in a Member State should, in principle, be able to exercise this same profession in another Member State. Mutual recognition of diplomas is therefore the general rule, although there are certain exceptions. One such exception is where the matters covered by the education and training received in the Member State of origin by the person seeking recognition of his or her diploma differ substantially from those covered by the diploma required in the host Member State. In this event, the host Member State has the possibility of requesting the applicant to choose between an adaptation period and an aptitude test ("compensatory measures").

These two directives apply to regulated professions, which is to say a profession for which access is legally restricted to those in possession of an appropriate diploma. If it is necessary to possess a cinema and video projectionist's or technician's qualification awarded by a Member State authority to exercise this profession in a Member State, then it constitutes a regulated profession in that Member State under the terms of the directive. If a qualification requirement exists in another Member State to be able to exercise this profession, then there too it is a regulated profession, and the diploma in the Member State of origin should be taken into account. An authority should therefore examine the situation in accordance with the rules stipulated in the Directive. The applicant should receive an answer within four months, and a refusal must be justified and open to appeal. Refusal to recognise the diploma, in conformity with the principles of the directive, can be justified only if it is a case of substantial difference.

There are no tables or lists of diplomas that should be recognised a priori by the other Member States. Under Community law, each case must be considered on its own merits. One cannot, therefore, speak of diplomas or certificates that are recognised on a "European level". Furthermore, the Commission does not intend to harmonise requirements in this area. Each Member State is legally sovereign as regards regulations on professions exercised on their territory. The Commission's intervention, on the basis of Directives 89/48/EEC and 92/51/EEC and on the related case law, consists of ensuring that professional qualifications are mutually recognised by Member States, despite the differences that may exist between national systems of qualification.

In the case of an unregulated profession, it may be exercised freely and is not subject to possessing a diploma. In this case, the migrant does not need to request an authority in a Member State to recognise his or her diploma.

Lastly, the Commission does not have any specific information on the professions of cinema and video projectionists and technicians or on how each Member State regulates these professions. This information can be obtained on a national level from each Ministry. However, it should be recalled that, whatever the national regulations, the above-mentioned principles must be respected and that, barring exceptions, cinema and video projectionists and technicians fully qualified in one Member State have the right, through the recognition procedures established by the directives, to request that their diplomas be recognised so they can exercise their profession in the other Member State of their choice. Within this legal framework, and with due respect for the honourable Member's concerns, the Commission's role is primarily to ensure that there is no discrimination.

(1) OJ L 19, 24.1.1989.

(2) OJ L 209, 24.7.1992.