ddrg/super_eurlex huggingface dataset:
WRITTEN QUESTION E-3667/01

by María Sornosa Martínez (PSE) to the Commission

(15 January 2002)

Subject: Canalisation of the Poyo, Torrent, Chiva and Pozalet ravines (Valencia Spain)

A resolution by Spain's department for hydraulic works and water quality was published in the country's official journal 291 of 5 December 2001, containing an invitation to tender for the project to enhance and adapt the beds of the Poyo, Torrente, Chiva and Pozalet ravines.

As the Commission is aware, following my Written Questions E-1059/00(1) andP-2534/01(2), as well as the complaints lodged by Agro-Environmental Action and the Spanish Ornithological Society (SEO) (99/4430 and 99/4494), these canalisation works will have an impact on the La Albufera nature park. In addition, a detailed study of the new draft of the project shows that the work involved will penetrate some two kilometres inside the boundaries of the nature park.

The Commission must also be aware that the new environmental impact assessments requested have not so far been carried out.

What measures will the Commission take in response to the approach adopted by the Spanish Ministry of the Environment?

(1) OJ C 46 E, 13.2.2001, p. 114.

(2) OJ C 81 E, 4.4.2002, p. 188.

Answer given by Mrs Wallström on behalf of the Commission

(26 February 2002)

After reading the second impact statement issued on the project, the Commission understands that the canalisation project is suspended between kilometre points 0 and 3,9, an area which corresponds to the special bird protection area, so long as no additional environmental and hydrological impact assessments have been carried out for this area.

On the basis of this second impact statement, the Commission has contacted the Spanish authorities to ascertain whether the additional studies will be carried out and whether the corrective and protective measures referred to in the statement will be taken. The Commission also asked to be sent the studies, once completed.

As soon as it has received this information, the Commission will examine it to ensure that Community legislation on the environment is complied with in this case.
WRITTEN QUESTION P-3408/01

by Glyn Ford (PSE) to the Commission

(5 December 2001)

Subject: Anti-semitic badges

During a holiday in Crete, one of my South-West constituents walked into a shop which had a range of anti-semitic badges on sale. An example of these was the one that my constituent bought, in order to send to my office, which said Chelsea Football Club: Up Chelsea, Fuck the yids.

Is the Commission aware that such offensive badges were being sold in Crete?

If so, will the Commission make representations to the Greek Government about this issue?

Answer given by Mr Vitorino on behalf of the Commission

(8 January 2002)

Racism and xenophobia are a direct violation of the principles of liberty, democracy, respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms and the rule of law, principles upon which the Union is founded and which are common to the Member States as stated in Article 6 of the Treaty on the European Union.

The Commission has recently presented a proposal for a Framework Decision(1), a legislative instrument in the field of penal law. The purpose of the Framework Decision is twofold: firstly, to ensure that the same racist and xenophobic conducts are punishable by the same penalties in all Member States and secondly, to improve and encourage judicial cooperation by removing potential obstacles.

Public insults towards individuals or groups for a racist or xenophobic purpose, as well as public dissemination of racist material by any means are included among the behaviours to be punishable as criminal offences in all Member States.

(1) COM(2001) 664 final.
WRITTEN QUESTION E-3601/01

by Jorge Hernández Mollar (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(8 January 2002)

Subject: Plan to facilitate access to electronic commerce for SMEs in Malaga

Around 30 % of small and medium-sized enterprises in the Spanish province of Malaga are connected to the Internet. However, most of these users log on to the Internet in order to see what is on offer or to make purchases, with very few using it to make sales.

Malaga Council and the Spanish Ministry for Science and Technology are launching a pioneer product in Andalusia aimed at helping SMEs to take advantage of the boom in electronic commerce. An initial investment is planned of around EUR 180 000.

Can the Commission say in what way it might contribute to this project with a view to making it as successful as possible?

Answer given by Mr Liikanen on behalf of the Commission

(8 February 2002)

Under the framework of the GoDigital initiative the Commission has launched a series of awareness and training initiatives organised by national and regional authorities and other multipliers and specifically addressed to small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). It intends to launch a second series of these events during 2002.

Indeed, the initiative launched by the Malaga Council and the Spanish Ministry for Science and Technology seems most interesting as it represents a serious attempt to empower SMEs to circumvent the difficulties associated with a fully-fledged access to electronic commerce. Although it is not the policy of the Commission to financially contribute to projects addressed to directly support SMEs to implement electronic commerce solutions, all projects which have an awareness and training dimension could fall under the specifications of the call for grant themes that the Commission plans to launch later this year. The Spanish authorities are welcome to submit a request for grant under the above-mentioned call as soon as it is published.

Independently of this possibility, and should Spanish authorities express this desire, the Commission is certainly prepared to examine the possibility of participating in the promotional activities the Spanish authorities are planning around this initiative.
WRITTEN QUESTION E-3179/01

by Herbert Bösch (PSE) to the Commission

(20 November 2001)

Subject: Report on State aid granted in the cable-car and ski-lift sector

At its meeting of 10 and 11 April 2001 the Committee on Petitions considered Petition No 949/98 by Mr Giorgio Rigo concerning subsidies for ski-lift operators and environmental hazards.

When it was dealing with the petition in August and September 1999, the Commission referred to a report on State aid granted in the cable-car and ski-lift sector, which apparently already existed in initial draft form. When I asked in the Committee on Petitions whether I could obtain this report, the Commission official promised to send it to me within a few days. Unfortunately, despite repeated telephone enquiries, I have still not received the report.

1. Has the report now been completed?

2. What conclusions are to be drawn regarding the State aid granted in the cable-car and ski-lift sector?

3. Did the research in preparation for the report uncover any questionable uses of aid? If so, to what ski-lift or cable-car installations do these cases relate, and what amounts of subsidies are involved?

4. Which provinces or regions grant subsidies for the construction and modernisation of ski-lift installations? What is the view of Mr Monti, the Member of the Commission responsible for competition?

5. Has the Commission already responded to the findings of the report? If so, what action has it taken?

6. Given that one of the aims of its internal reform is to increase transparency, could the Commission send me the report without further delay? If not, why not?

Answer given by Mr Monti on behalf of the Commission

(8 February 2002)

1. The information provided by the Member States, in reply to the Commission's inquiry, presented a scattered and fragmented picture so that no report in a proper sense could be drawn up. The Member of the Commission in charge, therefore, did not think it opportune to continue this exercise.

2. Because of the incomplete nature of the data provided no generally valid conclusions can be drawn.

3. The information provided presented a scattered and fragmented picture which did not allow to conclude on possible questionable uses of aid.

4. Ski regions grant subsidies for the construction or modernisation of cable-car and ski-lift installations but the situation described under point two makes an overall picture impossible. Of course it is in the view of the Commission that in any granting of subsidies the Competition rules have to be respected.

5. Because of the situation described under point two the Commission could not respond to any findings. The actions taken by the Commission address notified cases and complaints filed with the Commission.

6. As already said, since the nature of the data is very incomplete no conclusions could be drawn and no report as such has been made.
WRITTEN QUESTION E-3343/01

by Cristiana Muscardini (UEN) to the Commission

(3 December 2001)

Subject: Action to promote a federal state in Somalia

During the latest UN Security Council session, at which the situation in Somalia was discussed, the Ethiopian Ambassador said he had proof of Islamic fundamentalist involvement in Somali politics, with particular reference to the Arta Group, and thus to the Transitional National Government led by Abdiqassim Salad Hassan.

What is more, the Washington Post has reported that there have been repeated political and military attacks against the autonomous region of Puntland over recent months, which are seriously undermining the security and stability of the entire area.

1. Is the Commission aware of this situation?

2. Does it intend to open talks with the authorities in the autonomous region of Puntland and, in general, with all the parties concerned, with a view to finding a solution which will ensure that due respect is shown for the various ethnic groups in Somalia?

3. Has it looked into the press reports about links between the Transitional National Government and Islamic fundamentalists?

4. Is the European Union involved in economic cooperation with Somalia?

5. If it is, what does such cooperation entail and what results has it achieved?

Answer given by Mr Nielson on behalf of the Commission

(7 March 2002)

1. to 3. Yes, the Commission is aware of the statements by the Ethiopian authorities regarding the Transitional National Government set up pursuant to the Arta agreements. However, it notes that the statements were made as Addis Ababa was receiving the new Prime Minister of the TNG for diplomatic talks, and Ethiopia appears to be taking the initiative again in Somalia on the ground.

The Commission prefers to encourage the parties concerned to discuss the future of Somalia themselves. Any political initiative by the Commission would have to take account of the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP).

The reports to which the Honourable Member refers are not new. While the Commission is always willing to give due consideration to information it receives, it treats with caution reports from any of the parties involved in the Somali situation.

The Commission is generally reasonably well-informed, specifically as regards Somalia, through its own local contacts and its close coordination with the Member States active there.

4. and 5. The Community has no economic cooperation ties with Somalia.

As regards development cooperation, the Commission would draw the Honourable Member's attention to The ACP-EC Council Decision of 20 December 2001 allocating special aid to Somalia under Article 93(6) of the Cotonou Agreement. Arrangements for implementing this special aid are still to be examined by the Community's decision-making bodies.
WRITTEN QUESTION E-3699/01

by Jonas Sjöstedt (GUE/NGL) to the Council

(17 January 2002)

Subject: Interpretation into Swedish at Council meetings

In 1999, the Swedish government wrote to the Council protesting at discrimination against the Swedish language. In early 2000, it was found that the situation had still not improved. Interpretation to and/or from Swedish was provided at only 20 % of Council meetings.

There are perhaps 250 Council working parties. The basic idea is that members from the 15 Member States should be able to use their mother tongue, irrespective of whether the meetings are about tax rules or hazardous chemicals or whatever.

This naturally requires large numbers of interpreters. The problem is, however, that investigations in 1999 and 2000 placed Swedish at the bottom of the list as far as interpretation for the various languages was concerned.

Can the Council provide a list showing the coverage of the various languages by interpreters at the various meetings at the Council? What has been done to boost the Council's Swedish interpretation service?

Reply

(26 June 2002)

In 1981 the Council and the Commission set up a Joint Interpreting and Conference Service (JICS) which organises the work of nearly a thousand interpreters each day to meet the interpretation needs of both institutions in all the Community languages. The Permanent Representations of the countries concerned notify the JICS of the meetings at which they require interpretation into their languages. Requests are met insofar as the budget and availability of interpreters allow, given that there is no binding legal rule requiring that interpretation is provided into all languages at working party level.

In 2000, aware of the increased need for interpretation into and out of Swedish with the Swedish Presidency in prospect, the GSC expanded the number of interpreters' booths for Swedish. The Council invites the Honourable Member to look at the statistical tables provided by the JICS attached to this reply, which show active and passive coverage of the various languages. They show that the percentage of active cover of the Swedish language rose from 21 % in 1998 to 31 % in 2002, with passive cover rising from 23,9 % to 42,2 %, which calls for further improvement. The Council invites the Honourable Member to approach the JICS directly for more detailed information.

This increase means that interpretation for Swedish can be provided at all ministerial-level meetings as for all the other languages and at an increased number of working party meetings.

The Council would remind the Honourable Member that, as indicated in its reply to Oral Question H-0365/99, in 1999 the JICS launched and notified to the Swedish authorities a programme for recruiting and training interpreters to work into or out of Swedish. Any improvement in the interpretation cover for Swedish at Council meetings will clearly depend on the progress of that programme, which the Council hopes to see achieved as soon as possible.
WRITTEN QUESTION E-3562/01

by Daniel Varela Suanzes-Carpegna (PPE-DE) to the Council

(9 January 2002)

Subject: State of the European shipbuilding industry

On 5 December the Council of Industry Ministers failed to agree a common position on the temporary aid to be granted to the European shipbuilding industry in order to enable it to withstand the unfair competition being practised by South Korea. Such competition has a detrimental effect on the industry, which, unless the situation changes, is likely to see many of its constituent companies go out of business.

Can the Council answer the following questions:

- What further measures is it now intending to adopt in order to enable additional action to be taken against unfair competition from South Korea?

- How is it intending to address the current state of affairs and enhance the competitiveness of the European shipbuilding industry?

Reply

(25 June 2002)

The Honourable Member rightly points out in his question that the majority necessary for political agreement on the adoption of the proposal for a Regulation concerning a temporary defensive mechanism for shipbuilding was not reached in the Council at its meeting on 4 and 5 December 2001. The Commission stood by its dual strategy which consists of lodging a complaint with the WTO against the Republic of Korea only if at the same time the complaint is accompanied by a temporary defensive mechanism to benefit shipbuilding sectors which have manifestly been caused damage.

The Commission was invited to consider the elements of a strategy to remedy the specific problems encountered by the shipbuilding sector.

Concluding its discussion, the Council agreed to return to this dossier at a future meeting.
WRITTEN QUESTION E-3703/01

by Jonas Sjöstedt (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(16 January 2002)

Subject: Research into renewable energy sources in the candidate countries

Ending dependency on nuclear power is a sensitive issue in some candidate countries and also in the CIS States.

How is the Union helping to support research into renewable energy sources in Ukraine?

Answer given by Mr Patten on behalf of the Commission

(27 February 2002)

The last EU-Ukraine summit identified renewable energy resources and energy efficiency as a priority for future co-operation including over improving energy efficiency and conservation and enhancing the use of renewable energy resources. There is a clear link between energy efficiency and renewables, both contributing to the security of supply and to the improvement of environmental standards.

Through the TACIS Action Programmes 1991-2001 the Commission has financed 24 projects amounting EUR 30,6 million in the area of energy efficiency. The first project to support the production of biofuel in the southern part of Ukraine should start this year.

The Commission manages a substantial Research Programme, in which research, development, demonstration and promotion of new energy technologies has a major role. Work is already in progress towards allowing participation of Ukraine in the programme. The Commission hopes that this area of cooperation will be facilitated by the Science and Technology Cooperation Agreement with Ukraine that has already been initialled can be signed this year.

In addition, the EU is a major donor supporting the Science and Technology Centre in Ukraine (STCU) which sponsors research into renewable energy sources. Since 1998 five projects concerning research into renewable energies with an overall budget of more than EUR 660 000 have been funded.
WRITTEN QUESTION E-3600/01

by Markus Ferber (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(8 January 2002)

Subject: EU funding for the dredging of the Ráckeve-Soroksár arm of the Danube in Hungary

The Ráckeve-Soroksár arm of the Danube in Hungary is to be dredged. A layer of mud is to be removed in preparation for gravel extraction.

Has EU funding, e.g. under the PHARE or ISPA programmes, been applied for and authorised, and if so, how much?

Answer given by Mr Verheugen on behalf of the Commission

(12 February 2002)

The Commission can confirm that no Community funding, neither under the PHARE programme nor under the Instrument for Structural Policies for Pre-Accession (ISPA), was granted for the dredging of the Ráckeve-Soroksár arm of the Danube. The Commission has not recently received any request for funding from the Hungarian authorities for this purpose.

In view of the importance of this section of the Danube, PHARE has financed, under the 1994 PHARE National Plan, a study on the Water Management Development Project of the Ráckeve-Soroksár Danube Branch. The scope of this project, which was completed in 1998, was to define the main problems related to the water quality and pollution and to contribute to a comprehensive water management and development strategy for the Ráckeve- Soroksár Danube Branch.
EN Official Journal of the European Union CE 78/340

(2004/C 78 E/0358)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-1721/01

by Ilda Figueiredo (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(6 June 2001)

Subject: Net budget transfers

On 31 January 2001 the Commission submitted its second report on economic and social cohesion, in which it concluded that Portugal was a net contributor to the CAP. In answer to my Written Question P-0897/01, the Commission supplied the study on which it had based that conclusion, taking into account the effects of agricultural trade within the Community and with non-Community partners. The same reasoning could be applied to the budget overall, allowing for the financial balances and the effects of trade as a whole within the Community and with non-Community partners.

Could the Commission therefore specify:

— the overall budget balance (net contributors and recipients) for each of the Member States from 1994 to 2001 (estimated), at constant prices; and

— the financial balance for the same period, offset against the gains/losses in trade flows within the Community and with non-Community partners (imports and exports) for each Member State?

Answer given by Mrs Schreyer on behalf of the Commission

(17 July 2001)

The Commission would inform the Honourable Member that the Member States' overall budgetary balances for the years 1993-1999, determined according to the standard method used by the Commission (net operational balance after UK correction), can be found in terms of current prices and percentage of GDP in the statistical annex to the report ‘Allocation of 1999 EU operating expenditure by Member State’, table 6 (last table in the report) (1).

The report for 2000 should normally be ready before August 2001 (1).

These reports are based on actual implementation. The Commission does not publish simulations for Member States' future net balances.

For details of the method of calculating net balances, please refer to point 4.1. of Annex 3 to the report ‘Financing the European Union’, which is available at the same site.

With regard to your second question concerning net balances ‘offset against the gains/losses in trade flows within the Community and with non-Community partners’, the Commission would point out that it does not carry out such calculations.

Nevertheless, in the context of enlargement, its departments commissioned two studies (2) on the effects of enlargement on two existing Member States, Germany and Austria, which also seek to take account of the effects of trade flows in an enlarged Community.

(1) http://europa.eu.int/comm/budget/en/agenda2000/a2000rp.htm

(2) http://europa.eu.int/comm/budget/en/financementbudget/elargissement_etude.htm
WRITTEN QUESTION E-2688/01

by Mario Mauro (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(3 October 2001)

Subject: Funding from ECHO Humanitarian Aid Office

Will the Commission provide a list of the projects which, in 2000 and 2001, were submitted by the Italian Regions of Liguria, Lombardy, Piedmont and Valle d'Aosta for financing from the funds administered by the ECHO Humanitarian Aid Office, and the names of those which were subsequently approved?

Answer given by Mr Nielson on behalf of the Commission

(31 January 2002)

The Commission informs the Honourable Member that its Office for Humanitarian Aid (ECHO) manages assistance, relief and protection operations to help people in third countries and as a priority those in developing countries. ECHO does not fund regions such as those mentioned by the Honourable Member but partners (NGOs, UN agencies, and the Red Cross family) to carry out its operations in third countries.

The nature and amounts of funding are determined on field needs assessments and are based on partners' specific proposals for relief activities in a given region. The funding plans (global plans and funding Decisions) show the partners chosen for each aid programme and are subject to approval/consultation with the Humanitarian Aid Committee.