WRITTEN QUESTION E-1294/02

by Marjo Matikainen-Kallström (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(8 May 2002)

Subject: Translation of European EN standards

European EN standards are published in three languages: English, German and French. Since 1987, they have also been translated into the other official languages of the European Union.

Yet the Commission has announced that after 2003 it will no longer pay the cost of translating standards relating to the relevant directives. This is a clear-cut case of discrimination against small countries, as they will be compelled to have the standards translated at national expense. Soon, for example, various standards relating to building products will be completed which will be needed, for instance, by small and medium-sized enterprises and which even consumers may need to use.

Since the Commission pays the cost of translating directives into all languages, it is logical that it should also refund the costs of translating standards which are fundamentally connected with the directives. What will the Commission do to remedy this situation?

Answer given by Mr Liikanen on behalf of the Commission

(10 June 2002)

Standardisation is a voluntary process in which the parties involved agree on European standards within independent bodies; CEN, Cenelec and ETSI. CEN and Cenelec have decided to produce these standards in their three working languages (English, French and German). Some standards (called harmonised standards) are the preferred, but not exclusive, means of complying with Community directives.

It should be noted that the costs of translating standards into these three languages are borne by the national standardisation bodies concerned (Afnor, DIN, BSI) and that the Commission makes no financial contribution whatsoever to these translations.

Since 1986, the Commission decided to partly finance translations into other Community languages in order to speed up the process of having these standards transposed by the national standardisation bodies and, ultimately, to facilitate the implementation of the directives concerned. There is thus clearly an advantage given to the small countries through the creation of the single market, including in the field of construction given as an example by the Honourable Member.

Given that the budget for standardisation has been substantially reduced in recent years, the Commission intends to focus its financial support on priority actions, in accordance with the Parliament and Council resolutions of 1999. Since it also has to take into account, or indeed anticipate, the effects of enlargement on the budget for standardisation in view of the probable accession of more than ten new Member States, the Commission proposed that funding for these translations should end in 2003.

Finally, the translation of European standards cannot be compared to the translation of directives, since the former are still applied on a voluntary basis, whereas the latter are compulsory.

The Commission has nevertheless stated that it is prepared to study any solution which CEN and Cenelec might propose for future years within the limits of the budgetary resources currently available. In order to curb expenditure, one solution would be to allocate, as of 2003, an annual financial package as the framework within which the national standardisation organisations would set their priorities in terms of translating European standards.