ddrg/super_eurlex huggingface dataset:
WRITTEN QUESTION E-1566/03

by Béatrice Patrie (PSE) to the Commission

(8 May 2003)

Subject: Fines imposed on six French federations in the beef and veal sector

In a decision of 2 April 2003 the Commission imposed a fine amounting to a total of EUR 16,7 million on six French federations in the beef and veal sector for concluding an agreement on the suspension of French beef and veal imports and setting minimum prices for certain categories of livestock.

In the wake of the mad cow crisis, beef and veal producers found themselves in a situation of great distress (drop in consumption and production prices), reinforced in France by the characteristics of French farms, where the role of suckler herds is very important.

In these circumstances the introduction of a price stabilisation system was justified. Indeed, the Commission itself recognised the special circumstances and the exceptionally difficult economic context that lay behind the measures taken.

Does the Commission intend, therefore, to take greater account of the non-commercial aspects of this matter and to forego these penalties completely or, at least, exact only symbolic fines?

Answer given by Mr Monti on behalf of the Commission

(18 June 2003)

The Commission would refer the Honourable Member to the answer it gave to Written Question P-1419/03 by Ms Mathieu(1).

The Commission is of course fully aware of the particular difficulties faced by the beef and veal sector, as is amply illustrated by the range of measures it has adopted to stabilise the market. Over a billion and half euro have been spent by the Commission on these efforts, and France has been authorised to grant over EUR 300 million in direct aid to farmers affected by the crisis. All of these factors were taken into consideration in the decision of 2 April 2003.

In its decision the Commission took account of what the Honourable Member refers to as the non-commercial aspects of this matter. Exceptionally, it made use of a special provision of its guidelines on setting fines(2) in order to substantially reduce the fine it would otherwise have imposed (by 60 %).

As for the possibility of reviewing the decision, it is not, in principle, for the Commission to go back on its decisions. If they consider that the Commission's decision is flawed in fact or law, the parties have the right to appeal to the Court of First Instance. The parties have indeed publicly declared their intention to use the legal remedies provided by the EC Treaty.

(1) See page 86.

(2) OJ C 9, 14.1.1998.
WRITTEN QUESTION E-1691/03

by Jonas Sjöstedt (GUE/NGL) to the Council

(21 May 2003)

Subject: Fees paid to the European Investment Bank for the management of the Investment Fcility of the Cotonou Agreement

Pursuant to a Council Decision of 8 April 2003 concerning the coverage of costs incurred by the European Investment Bank for the management of the Investment Facility of the Cotonou Agreement (2003/268/EC(1)), the EIB is allowed to charge fees up to a maximum amount of 10 % over five years of EUR 2 200 million.

The Council Decision does not contain any provisions for checking the exactness and veracity of the amounts claimed by the Bank.

Does the Council agree that such checks should be performed by the European Court of Auditors?

(1) OJ L 99, 17.4.2003, p. 45.

Reply

(7 October 2003)

1. The Council decision of April 8, 2003(1) details the level of the remuneration for the management of the Investment Facility.

This Council decision stipulates that each year (by June 30) the Bank presents accounts to the Investment Facility Committee. These accounts comprise details on the actual costs incurred as well as the fees recovered from clients during the preceding year in relation to the management of the Investment Facility.

These accounts will have been audited before submission to the Investment Facility Committee for discussion and approval.

2. The European Court of Auditors has auditing rights for the Investment Facility based on the Internal Agreement which defines the guiding principles for the audit and the discharge of the Investment Facility managed by the Bank.

It stipulates:

- in Article 32(5) that audit and discharge for the Investment Facility follow procedures laid down by the Statute of the Bank, and;

- in Article 32(2) that the conditions under which the European Court of Auditors will exercise its power are to be laid down in the Financial Regulation.

The Financial Regulation of March 27, 2003(2) stipulates in Article 112 and in Article 119(2) that:

- audit and discharge for the Investment Facility follow procedures laid down by the Statute of the Bank i.e. the Bank's Audit Committee;

- the discharge for the Investment Facility will be given by the Bank's statutory organs i.e. the Board of Governors on the basis of the recommendation of the Audit Committee;

- detailed rules for auditing by the European Court of Auditors will be set out in the Tripartite Agreement.

3. The European Court of Auditors could proceed, if it so wished, with an audit on the regularity of the remuneration payment to the Bank from the re-flows of risk capital operations or special loans under successive Lomé- mandates or from those of the Investment Facility.

(1) OJ L 99, 17.4.2003, p. 45.

(2) OJ L 83, 1.4.2003, p. 1.
WRITTEN QUESTION E-2399/03

by Elspeth Attwooll (ELDR) to the Commission

(21 July 2003)

Subject: EU funding possibilities for electricity grid connections

It was recently reported that a small village in Wales used Objective 1 funding to help fund the connection of a number of houses to the national grid electricity supply. Could the Commission confirm that the

Objective 1 transitional programme in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland could be used for a similar purpose? Could the Commission also confirm whether there are any other sources of EU funding that could contribute to projects that aim to connect either homes, businesses or both to the national electricity supply?

Could the Commission also answer the above questions but in relation to water supplies?

Answer given by Mr Barnier on behalf of the Commission

(22 August 2003)

The Single Programming Document of 2000-2006 Highlands & Islands Special Transitional Programme stipulates that assistance from Guidance Section of the European Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund can be available for the provision or upgrading of electricity and water supplies.

Concerning water supplies, a measure in the Programme is dedicated to waste management, water provision and sewage treatment and pollution control. The aim of this measure is to improve water provision and sewage treatment which benefits economic activity and better protects the environment.

The responsibility for deciding on the selection of projects co-financed by European Structural Funds lies with the Regional Partnership in the Highlands & Islands (HIPP).
WRITTEN QUESTION E-1614/03

by Chris Davies (ELDR) to the Commission

(13 May 2003)

Subject: Energy efficiency of electrical appliances

The Commission will be aware of the findings of the recent study by the International Energy Agency which concluded that introduction of more energy-efficient domestic electrical appliances could enable developed countries to cut their energy consumption by 30 % by 2010, and contribute significantly to meeting targets for cuts in greenhouse gas emissions.

What plans does the Commission have to introduce mandatory standards for energy performance in electrical equipment, and to extend energy labelling schemes?

Answer given by Mrs de Palacio on behalf of the Commission

(10 June 2003)

The Commission is well aware of the findings of the study by the International Energy Agency (IEA) mentionned by the Honourable Member.

The Commission is currently preparing a proposal for a Directive establishing a framework for the setting of eco-design requirements for energy-using products. Specific eco-design requirements will cover in particular mandatory standards for the energy performance of products (all energy sources are covered). The methodology to set the level of the energy efficiency requirements is defined in the draft Directive and is based on the life cycle cost minimum to consumers; it is the same approach that was used by the IEA for their study.

Concerning the energy labelling of domestic appliances, the Commission has started work on raising the current requirements for the labelling of cold appliances (refrigerators freezers and their combinations) and of washing machines. Work is also on-going to extend energy labelling to water heaters.
WRITTEN QUESTION E-2093/03

by Paulo Casaca (PSE) to the Commission

(24 June 2003)

Subject: Possible infringement of the Community directive on urban waste water in Ponta Delgada

According to the press (Açoriano Oriental of 4 June 2003), the environmental organisation Quercus has complained that the waste water treatment plant in Ponta Delgada contravenes Community legislation, an allegation which has been denied by the Ponta Delgada council.

The Commission:

1. Can it confirm that the Ponta Delgada basin has been identified as a less sensitive area according to the criteria referred to in Article 6(1) of Council Directive 91/271/EEC(1)? If so, by what date must this status be reviewed as provided for in Article 6(4)?

2. Does it consider that comprehensive studies were carried out which indicate that such discharges will not adversely affect the environment, as required by Article 6(2) of the above Directive?

3. Is it aware of the studies undertaken by the University of the Azores in the early 1990s, which point to the extreme sensitivity of the waters of the Azores in general, and of the basin between Ponta Delgada and Caloura in particular?

4. Were any studies carried out pursuant to Article 6(2) submitted to public debate, as is the general rule for environmental impact assessments?

(1) OJ L 135, 30.5.1991, p. 40.

Answer given by Mrs Wallström on behalf of the Commission

(5 August 2003)

1. Portugal identified all the coastal waters of the Azores, which include also the Ponta Delgada basin, as less sensitive areas. The Commission has not given its approval to this identification. The Commission believes that some of the areas do not fulfil the criteria set out in the Directive 91/271/EEC, in particular in view of the risk of the contamination of a large number of bathing waters and also shellfish waters.

The Commission has launched an infringement procedure against Portugal for failure to comply with the Council Directive 91/271/EEC concerning urban waste water, which covers, inter alia, the identification of less sensitive areas.

According to the available information, the waste water from Ponta Delgada and Angra do Heroismo (both agglomerations are above 15 000 population equivalents) is discharged into bathing water areas without the necessary biological treatment. The deadline for providing these treatment facilities was 31 December 2000.

2. The Commission has not received any comprehensive study from the Portuguese authorities, as required under Article 6(2) of Council Directive 91/271/EEC.

3. The Commission is not aware of these studies.

4. The Commission has not received any study under Article 6(2) from the Portuguese authorities. Therefore, it is unclear whether or not such a study has been carried out.
WRITTEN QUESTION E-0315/03

by Chris Davies (ELDR) to the Commission

(10 February 2003)

Subject: Data analyses of illegal drugs in EU

What efforts is the Commission making to secure common definitions and routines concerning data collection and analyses regarding the use of illegal drugs in Member States?

Answer given by Mr Byrne on behalf of the Commission

(13 March 2003)

The Lisbon-based European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA), one of 12 decentralised European Community agencies was set up in 1993 to provide the Community and its Member States with objective, reliable and comparable information at European level concerning drugs and drug addiction and their consequences.

Various methods and tools are employed to assess the drug situation across the Union.

The EMCDDA has defined five key epidemiological indicators for the collection and interpretation of comparable data:

- prevalence and patterns of drug use among the general population;

- prevalence and patterns of problem drug use;

- drug-related infectious diseases;

- drug-related deaths and mortality of drug users;

- demand for drug treatment.

Qualitative research focuses on the meanings, perceptions, processes and contexts of the world of drugs and offers ways of understanding drug-use patterns and responses. The EMCDDA manages a network and a database on qualitative research in Europe. It aims at making qualitative drugs research accessible to researchers, Reitox National Focal Points, national experts, commentators on drug policy and interventions and students.

Modelling involves using mathematical formulae or computer programmes to construct a simplified model of a process. The end result can be a useful model to investigate different outcomes under different circumstances or interventions or a best estimate of future developments in the spread of drug use or a drug-related infectious disease, such as hepatitis C.

The EMCDDA works in this area with key partners at three different levels:

- The EMCDDA collects information through the Reitox network, which has national Focal Points in all 15 Member States, in the Commission and in Norway.

- The Reitox national focal points collect epidemiological information about drug use and its consequences whilst working with the EMCDDA to improve the comparability of data.

- The international scientific community works with the programme team to develop new methods for studying drug use and for increasing in-depth scientific analysis.

- National and international organisations work with the programme team to exchange information and co-operate in research projects.

Work on drug-related deaths and on surveys on drug use is carried out in co-ordinated with Eurostat.
WRITTEN QUESTION E-0676/03

by Marco Cappato (NI) to the Council

(7 March 2003)

Subject: Fumigation in certain coffee-growing areas of Colombia

Whilst I was visiting Colombia last week together with the Secretary of the International Anti-Prohibitionist League, Marco Perduca, a number of reports were received about a plan for the imminent fumigation of the coffee-growing areas of Colombia, in the context of a disastrous and indiscriminate campaign of chemical fumigation, from a very high altitude, of vast areas of the country, designed to eradicate coca leaf production and to be carried out in agreement with the US Administration.

In view of the devastating impact of this practice on human health, the environment and socio-economic equilibrium, and the fact that the Commission is carrying out alternative development programmes in some of these areas, has the Council taken steps to inform the Colombian authorities of its disapproval and the need to suspend immediately the alternative development programmes in those areas as soon as the operation is launched?

How does the Council intend to try and ensure that the fumigation is not carried out and officially request that the operation be suspended all over Colombia?

Reply

(29 September 2003)

1. Whilst it is for the Government of Colombia to decide which concrete measures it considers appropriate in the fight against illicit drugs and narcoterrorism, the EU has maintained close contacts with Colombia, at all levels, with a view to ensuring that areas with EU-supported programs for alternative production are not fumigated.

2. To this end, EU, Colombia and the USA have agreed last year to reinforce their respective consultations on the spot as well as among capitals.

So far, these efforts seem to be successful, the Peace Laboratory in the Magdalena Medio region has not reported incidents.

3. In the light of this encouraging experience the EU is considering further projects of this kind, as support for the Peace process.
WRITTEN QUESTION E-2331/03

by Olivier Dupuis (NI) to the Commission

(16 July 2003)

Subject: Vote on a freedom-annihilating law

On 9 July 2003, the Hong Kong Legislative Council was asked to definitively adopt an anti-subversion law designed to incorporate into the former British colony's legislation the same repressive measures the Chinese authorities use against the Falun Gong, clandestine churches and political opponents. According to

press agencies, the key points of this law are: life imprisonment for anyone found guilty of high treason, sedition, secession or subversion; strengthening of security force powers to stop and search suspicious persons; banning of any organisations already outlawed in mainland China.

What further information does the Commission have on this provision? What will it do to avert the adoption of a law against which hundreds of thousands of Hong Kong citizens have demonstrated in recent days? Does it not agree that by acting in this manner the Chinese authorities are renouncing the tenuous idea of one country, two systems, thereby seriously jeopardising the possibility of Hong Kong remaining a case apart from the rest of China in terms of respect for basic human rights?

Answer given by Mr Patten on behalf of the Commission

(12 August 2003)

The Commission is closely following Hong Kong's adoption of national security laws under Article 23 of the Special Administrative Region's Basic Law. It has gathered extremely detailed information from various sources since the process first began.

Although it does not contest the constitutional obligation to legislate that Article 23 places on the Hong Kong Government, the Commission would like future legislation to protect the fundamental rights of Hong Kong citizens as enshrined in the Basic Law and to respect the Special Administrative Region's international obligations particularly as regards the two United Nation Covenants on human rights.

The European Union has made known its concerns about certain measures initially proposed by the Hong Kong Government such as the prescription of local association and the very vague definition of crimes of subversion, sedition and state secrets through four successive statements. The Hong Kong authorities have been made aware of these positions during the many approaches by the Troika of heads of mission.

In its latest statement of 16 July the European Union welcomes the three new amendments introduced by the Hong Kong Government and deferment of the tabling of the draft law before the Legislative Council to allow calmer discussion of the matter by Hong Kong society. The European Union also reiterates its desire to see Hong Kong eventually introduce universal suffrage which is the ultimate aim of the Basic Law.

The Commission will continue to closely monitor events concerning Article 23 both as regards further public consultation and the adoption and future implementation of the law and their compatibility with the principle of One country, Two Systems.
WRITTEN QUESTION E-1270/03

by Marianne Eriksson (GUE/NGL) to the Council

(3 April 2003)

Subject: Human rights violations in Burma

The Burmese army is using rape as a weapon of war along the Thai-Burma border, especially directed towards the Shan minority in Burma. The situation has worsened since the release of the report Licence to rape by the Shan Human Rights Foundation and the Shan Women's Action Network in May 2002. The report documents 173 cases of sexual violence, involving 625 women and girls, committed by the Burmese army between 1996 and 2001. I would like to request that the Council sends a fact-finding mission to investigate all human rights violations carried out by the Burmese army. Is the Council intending to do so?

Reply

(2 October 2003)

1. The Council shares the Honourable MEPs' serious concerns over human rights violations in Burma, and in particular over allegations that the Burmese army is systematically using rape as a weapon in the internal conflict along the border with Thailand.

2. The EU has on several occasions in meetings with the Burmese authorities raised its human rights concerns, and will continue to do so. The Council has also publicly declared in its conclusions adopted in mid-April 2003 that the EU is gravely concerned over the ongoing serious violations of human rights in Burma, and over the reports of rapes and other forms of sexual violence persistently carried out by members of the Burmese armed forces.

3. The Council considers that an EU fact-finding mission to Burma would have little chance of being admitted into the country by the Burmese authorities. The Council will therefore continue to support the initiative of UN Human Rights Rapporteur, Amb. Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, in this regard. A full and speedy investigation by Amb. Pinheiro and his team into the allegations of rape is deemed to be the most appropriate way to address this issue.

4. Consequently, at its meeting on 16 June in Luxembourg the Council adopted conclusions referring to its decision, following the events of May, to implement without delay the strengthened sanctions originally envisaged to enter into force by October 2003. The Council also decided to monitor closely the further evolution of the situation in Burma/Myanmar, and reaffirmed its readiness to react proportionately to future developments. The Council further decided to postpone the Troika visit on a political level previously scheduled to take place before the end of October 2003.
WRITTEN QUESTION E-2358/03

by Maurizio Turco (NI), Marco Pannella (NI),Marco Cappato (NI), Benedetto Della Vedova (NI), Gianfranco Dell'Alba (NI)and Olivier Dupuis (NI) to the Commission

(17 July 2003)

Subject: Violation of religious freedom in China further arrests of priests of the clandestine Catholic Church

International press sources report that five priests belonging to the clandestine Chinese Catholic Church were arrested on Thursday 3 July at Baoding, in the northern republic of Hebei, about 100 kilometres south of Beijing. According to reports by the Cardinal Kung Foundation, a Catholic human rights organisation based in Connecticut, the priests Kang Fuliang, Chen Ghuozen, Pang Guangzhao, Joseph Yin and Wang Lijun, all of them between 25 and 31 years old, were arrested whilst on their way to visit another member of the clandestine church, Lu Genjun, who had recently been released after three years' forced labour. Furthermore, Father Lu Xiaozhou, another member of the Roman Catholic church was also arrested last June.

Can the Commission say whether it has any further information about these serious incidents? What kind of diplomatic pressure will it bring to bear to put a stop to this violent campaign against Catholic clerics, who are guilty only of recognising the authority of the Pope?

Does it intend to convey to the government in Beijing its firm condemnation of these acts of intimidation and, more generally, the systematic restrictions of religious freedom imposed on Chinese citizens, together with a forceful request to respect Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights which recognises every individual's freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance?

Answer given by Mr Patten on behalf of the Commission

(12 August 2003)

The Commission takes note of the events reported by the Honourable Members.

Freedom of religious belief is one of the topics discussed in the EU-China bilateral dialogue on human rights.

The European Union will make the Chinese authorities aware of its concerns about the situation of the five Chinese Catholic priests arrested on 3 July in Baoding through this dialogue, as it has often done in similar cases in the past.