WRITTEN QUESTION E-1651/99

by Nelly Maes (Verts/ALE) to the Commission

(22 September 1999)

Subject: Discrimination in connection with pigeon racing in the border regions of Belgium and the Netherlands

For the past fifty years Belgian pigeon-fanciers have been unable to take part in pigeon races across the border. Pigeon-keepers from the Netherlands are not allowed to participate in races in Belgium, and vice-versa. People living in border regions in the Netherlands who wish to race homing pigeons in Belgium, and their counterparts in Belgium, are very unhappy with this situation.

The question arises of whether the rules concerned contravene Article 59 of the Treaty. As pigeon racing is not recognised as a sport by the International Olympic Committee, the rules would not be regarded as entailing discrimination against sportsmen and women.

For those who take part in the popular sport of pigeon racing, such a situation is fundamentally unacceptable. There is also an economic aspect to the holding of pigeon races. A registration fee has to be paid in connection with racing homing pigeons. In my view, therefore, objections to the rules in question are justified, as the ban on participation by Dutch people in races held in Belgium is discriminatory within the meaning of Article 59.

The ban is, after all, not imposed on grounds of public order, public safety or public health. Article 59 does not apply only to rules laid down by governments, but to all rules governing the provision of services.

Does the Commission take the view that such a ban therefore contravenes Article 59 and should be lifted?

I consider discrimination of this kind affecting a popular sport in border regions as completely anachronistic at a time when European integration is being stepped up.

Answer given by Mr Bolkestein on behalf of the Commission

(4 November 1999)

According to the information available to the Commission, pigeon races are organised by the relevant associations, and the criterion for membership of a pigeon-fancier association in an area of Belgium or the Netherlands is the place of residence.

If there were an economic aspect to this sport, it could come under the provisions of Article 49 of the EC Treaty (formerly Article 59).

However, the restriction of access to competitions on the basis of residence does not appear to be incompatible with Article 49 of the EC Treaty.

In fact, it has been brought to the attention of the Commission that the residence criterion for membership of a pigeon-fancier association is intended to take into account the distances to be covered. For the same reason, it appears that even within one of these two Member States pigeon fanciers may join only the association covering their geographical area.

In accordance with the established case-law of the Court of Justice(1), the principles of the EC Treaty do not preclude rules established on non-economic grounds which relate to the specific nature of the sporting activity in question.

The organisation of pigeon races with relation to the specific nature of the activity does not therefore appear to be incompatible with the provisions of Article 49 of the EC Treaty.

(1) Cf. the Bosman judgment of 15 December 1995 (C-415/93).