ddrg/super_eurlex huggingface dataset:
WRITTEN QUESTION E-1945/99

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

(4 November 1999)

Subject: Monitoring Community regulations on drift nets during the last bonito fishing season

What were the results of the checks on the last bonito fishing season as regards drift nets?

How many cases of infringement were found, what were the reasons for these infringements, what were the names and origins of the vessels responsible and what penalties were imposed?

What is the Commission's general assessment of the last bonito fishing season, and the degree to which the Community regulations were complied with?

Answer given by Mr Fischler on behalf of the Commission

(10 December 1999)

Now the 1999 tuna fishing season has ended, the Commission is currently compiling the usual report on the application of the Community legislation on the use of drift nets in the Northeast Atlantic and the Mediterranean, based on all the information the Member States concerned are required to supply.

This report will be forwarded to the members of Parliament's Committee on Fisheries around 15 March 2000.
WRITTEN QUESTION E-2012/99

by Renato Brunetta (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(9 November 1999)

Subject: Tax deductibility of commission

Can the Commission ascertain and provide information on whether internal revenue authorities of EU countries may give tax deductible status to additional commission expenses that a company pays to unnamed third parties that do not reside in that company's country?

The fact that these expenses are tax-deductible in some countries and not in others could be seriously detrimental to free competition.

Answer given by Mr Bolkestein on behalf of the Commission

(2 December 1999)

In the absence of harmonisation measures, direct taxation falls within the Member States' sphere of competence, subject to observance of Community law and in particular the fundamental freedoms provided for by the Treaty.

As part of the efforts to combat corruption, the Council of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) adopted, in April 1996, a recommendation that its members should prohibit the tax deductibility of bribes paid to foreign public officials. The signing of the Convention of 17 December 1997 on combating bribery of foreign public officials in international business transactions has had a major impact on the revision of the contracting countries' legislation in implementation of the 1996 recommendation. In its communication of 21 May 1997(1) on the EU's anti-corruption policy, the Commission stated that it would raise the question of tax deductibility for bribes with the Member States in the appropriate fora, with a view to reaching consensus to abolish such provisions in the framework of a joint concerted move.

According to the information available to the Commission, all the Member States who still allowed firms to deduct bribes to foreign public officials from their profits have already amended their legislation or are about to do so in order to implement the positions taken by the OECD and the Commission on ending the deductibility of bribes.

(1) COM(97) 192 final.
WRITTEN QUESTION E-2588/99

by Marialiese Flemming (PPE-DE) to the Council

(3 January 2000)

Subject: Directive on the conservation of wild birds

On 1 March 1994 the Commission submitted a proposal(1) for a directive amending Council Directive 79/409/EEC of 2 April 1979 on the conservation of wild birds(2). As this proposal is based on Article 175 (ex Article 130s) of the EC Treaty, the cooperation procedure with the European Parliament applies. Parliament delivered its opinion on 15 February 1996(3). The Council has not yet adopted a common position on this subject.

Is this subject being dealt with in the Council?

If so, what progress has been made in the negotiations?

When will the Council adopt a common position?

(1) OJ C 100, 9.4.1994, p. 12.

(2) OJ L 103, 25.4.1979, p. 1.

(3) OJ C 65, 4.3.1996, p. 151.

Reply

(14 February 2000)

The Honourable Member is asked to refer to the reply given to Written Question 1676/99.
WRITTEN QUESTION E-2353/99

by Raffaele Costa (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(13 December 1999)

Subject: State aid granted to RAI by Italy

In its answer to Written Question E-1701/99(1) given by Commissioner Monti, the Commission stated that it had the duty to assess whether the funds granted by the state to RAI, both as licence fee and as other support measures, are proportionate to the net costs incurred by the undertaking to fulfil the public service obligations imposed by the state.

What is the Commission's view of the proportion between the net costs (which seem to be extremely high) and the licence fee and the other specific measures the state has granted and continues to grant to RAI?

(1) See page 28.

Answer given by Mr Monti on behalf of the Commission

(5 January 2000)

As already anticipated in its reply to Written Question E-1701/99(1) of the Honourable Member, the Commission has in place a formal investigation procedure regarding the licence fee and other additional aid measures granted to Radio Televisione Italiana (RAI) by the state and Istituto per la Ricostruzione Industriale (IRI).

At the present stage of the procedure, the Commission has not yet concluded its analysis on the nature of existing aid of the licence fee. As far as the other measures granted by the state and IRI are concerned, the Italian government has not yet submitted its observations.

An overall assessment of the proportionality of the aid granted to RAI with the costs incurred by the undertaking to fulfil the public service obligations imposed by the state will be possible only at the conclusion of the procedure currently in place.

(1) See page 28.
WRITTEN QUESTION E-2094/99

by Brigitte Langenhagen (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(19 November 1999)

Subject: Slaughter premiums in 1998

What was the cost in euros to the European Union in 1998 for subsidies in the form of slaughter premiums or similar subsidies?

Do slaughter premiums and similar subsidies affect the extent to which live animals are transported in the European Union and in third countries?

Answer given by Mr Fischler on behalf of the Commission

(17 December 1999)

In the 1998 financial year the Community spent approximately 497 million on market measures connected with bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), of which 96 million in premiums went on the slaughter of young male calves, 116 million on the early slaughter of calves, 243 million on the United Kingdom's bovine slaughter programme and 42 million on compulsory selective slaughter in the United Kingdom, Portugal, France and Ireland.

163,8 million was spent to support the German, Spanish and Dutch markets following an outbreak of swine fever.

Slaughter expenditure in 1998 on veterinary measures in their strictest sense amounted to 34 million on the programmes to eradicate animal diseases and 38,5 million on the classical swine fever epidemic.

The Commission is not in a position to assess the effects of the above on animal transport levels in the Community, although they must have been slight given the type of aid involved and its allocation. This expenditure can have had no effect in third countries, since the aid is only intended for Community livestock.
WRITTEN QUESTION E-1854/99

by Carmen Fraga Estévez (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(13 October 1999)

Subject: Mauritanian inspectors and the Community fleet

For some months now, Community black hake fishermen working under the EU-Mauritania Fisheries Agreement have been protesting to the Commission about dubious Mauritanian inspection methods giving rise to totally unjustified fines.

The methods consist of weighing six of the fullest boxes of fish with Roman scales, the apparent purpose being to show that more fish are actually being caught than are recorded in the daily register, since the boxes in question are changed around until the inspectors obtain the weight they want.

No account is taken of the fact that not all boxes weigh the same, since four separate sortings are carried out on board, while boxes containing the earlier catches also contain a larger quantity of ice to keep them fresh. Furthermore, the use of Roman scales is completely unreliable under any circumstances, and quite unjustifiable on board a ship at sea. It should also be noted that these vessels catch an average 3 000 boxes, which means that the six boxes weighed account for only 0,2 of the total. Finally, black hake is not quota-bound.

What steps is the Commission going to take vis-à-vis the Mauritanian authorities to put an end to inspections of this kind?

Answer given by Mr Fischler on behalf of the Commission

(18 November 1999)

Mauritania holds exclusive competence for inspection at sea of fishing activities in waters under its sovereignty.

The Commission however, which has been several times notified of the procedures adopted, has already raised the matter with the Mauritanian authorities, the last occasion being in May 1999 when the Adviser to the Mauritanian Fisheries Minister visited Brussels.

The Community pointed out that monitoring and inspection procedures for fishing activities needed to be adjusted to ensure fair and equitable treatment.

The Commission will raise the matter again at the next meeting of the joint committee responsible for attending to proper working of the Agreement.
WRITTEN QUESTION E-2519/99

by Roberta Angelilli (UEN) to the Commission

(22 December 1999)

Subject: Bankruptcy of the IMEG company (Lucca)

The IMEG company (marble and granite industry) is one of the world's largest companies in the sector of marble excavation and processing. The firm holds a concession for quarries covering 60 % of the territory of Apuo-Versiliese and employs 180 workers in the districts of Carrara, Manciano and Massarosa.

On 2 April 1999 the company was declared bankrupt and the workers made redundant. No bids were received at the two auctions designed to sell the industrial complex as a single unit and on 30 November 1999 the company will be auctioned off as two separate lots.

1. Will the Commission say whether there are any Community rules to protect the unity of an industrial production cycle, with particular reference to the need to ensure that jobs are maintained?

2. Are there any financial instruments to assist the development and conversion of industrial concerns?

Answer given by Mr Barnier on behalf of the Commission

(16 February 2000)

1. Three directives might apply to the situation described in the question. Directive 77/187/EEC of 14 February 1977 amended by Directive 98/50/EC of 29 June 1998 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to the safeguarding of employees' rights in the event of transfers of undertakings, businesses or parts of businesses(1) provides for the protection of employees in the event of a change of employer, in particular by ensuring that their rights are safeguarded.

Directive 98/59/EC of 20 July 1998 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to collective redundancies(2) aims at protecting employees in the case of collective dismissal by providing that workers' representatives have to be informed and consulted before a decision on the dismissals is taken and that the authorities have to be informed about those planned dismissals. The overall purpose is to avoid collective dismissals.

Directive 80/987/EEC of 20 October 1980 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to the protection of employees in the event of the insolvency of their employer(3) guarantees payment of outstanding claims to employees in the event of the insolvency of their employer.

2. The Structural Funds can part-finance industrial conversion projects as mentioned by the Honourable Member provided they are located in eligible zones, and also training of unemployed workers to help them re-enter the labour market. For Objective 2 embracing such aid the Commission awaits a revised proposal from the Italian authorities under the regulatory provisions(4) in force for the 2000-2006 programming period.

(1) OJ L 201, 17.7.1998.

(2) OJ L 225, 12.8.1998.

(3) OJ L 283, 28.10.1980.

(4) OJ L 161, 26.6.1999.
WRITTEN QUESTION E-2405/99

by Karl-Heinz Florenz (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(16 December 1999)

Subject: Suspension of payment of structural funding

In how many cases, and in what instances, has the Commission made the allocation of structural fund appropriations dependent on the Member States in question complying with requirements of Community environmental legislation? In which of these cases has the Commission suspended payment of structural funding?

Answer given by Mr Barnier on behalf of the Commission

(25 January 2000)

Compliance with the whole body of Community legislation constitutes one of the conditions for granting Structural Fund aid. This is, moreover, laid down in the standard clauses included in the various decisions granting Community aid. Non-observance of Community legislation, including that on the environment, can therefore lead to the suspension, or even cancellation of assistance.

The procedure for establishing an infringement of Community law is separate from the procedure for suspending and cancelling aid.

However, for reasons of consistency, payment of Community aid is, as a matter of principle, suspended after the infringement procedure is initiated (formal notice to the Member State). An aid cannot be suspended on the basis of a complaint or following a simple request to the Member State for information. The Commission can cancel the payment when it establishes, by reasoned opinion, that there has been an infringement of Community law.

It should, finally, be stressed that Community aid can be suspended following the formal notice to the Member State (in order to allow investigation of the infringement without putting the Commission in a contradictory situation), whereas cancellation of aid is never decided automatically.

Infringements of Community environmental law have led to the suspension of European Regional Development Fund assistance, inter alia, in the following cases: the joint project by Germany and the Netherlands in the Aachen/Heerlen industrial area; a dam at Abrilongo in Portugal; the protection of the Caretta caretta turtle in Greece; and a road project in Algeciras in Spain. With regard to aid from the Guidance Section of the European Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund, no payment has been suspended for non-observance of environmental rules.

However, there may be certain specific conditions within plans or programmes which are not in themselves grounds for suspension but do affect eligibility. For example, in the single programming document of the Spanish region Aragon for Objective 5b, the eligibility of irrigation work in sector VIII is conditional upon an agreement between the Commission and those responsible for the measure at national and regional level guaranteeing compliance with Council Directives 79/409/EEC of 2 April 1979 on the conservation of wild birds(1) and 92/43/EEC of 21 May 1992 on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora(2).

(1) OJ L 103, 25.4.1979.

(2) OJ L 206, 22.7.1992.
WRITTEN QUESTION E-2852/99

by Bartho Pronk (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(18 January 2000)

Subject: Medical insurance in the European Union

In his answer of 22 January 3294/98(1), Mr Flynn said that the Commission expected to give its conclusions once answers to supplementary questions had been received from the Dutch Government.

1. Now, almost a year later, has the Dutch Government provided answers to the supplementary questions?

2. If so, what conclusions does the Commission draw from the answer?

3. If not, when can an answer from the Dutch government be expected?

(1) OJ C 320, 6.11.1999, p. 40.

Answer given by Mrs Diamantopoulou on behalf of the Commission

(3 March 2000)

After examining the information provided by the Dutch authorities, the Commission concludes that private health insurance schemes existing in the Netherlands are not to be considered as statutory schemes within the scope of Council Regulation EC No 118/97 of 2 December 1996 amending and updating Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71 on the application of social security schemes to employed persons, to self-employed persons and to members of their families moving within the Community and Regulation (EEC) No 574/72 laying down the procedure for implementing Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71(1).

(1) OJ L 149, 5.7.1971, last amended by OJ L 28, 30.1.1997.
WRITTEN QUESTION E-1429/99

by Dana Scallon (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(1 September 1999)

Subject: Rail links in the island of Ireland

Social, industrial and tourist activity in Western Ireland requires modern rail links as a means to remedy depopulation and bring about renewed economic life.

What part do the rail needs of Western Ireland play in the strategy of the European Commission for rail links within Ireland and within Europe?

Answer given by Mrs de Palacio on behalf of the Commission

(18 October 1999)

Under Article 154 (ex Article 129b) of the EC Treaty the Community contributes to the establishment and development of the trans European network in the field of transport and takes account of the particular need to link island, landlocked and peripheral regions with the central regions of the Community. This objective is reflected in Decision No 1692/96/EC of the Parliament and of the Council of 23 July 1996 on Community guidelines for the development of the trans-European transport network(1). The Community recognised the strategic importance of the rail links in the west of Ireland through the identification within Annex I of the guidelines of the conventional rail lines between and to Sligo, Tralee, Galway and Limerick as part of the Trans European network.

European funding of transport infrastructure has in the past five years been focussed on projects on Trans European network routes and hubs in all modes. For rail this has meant significant investment in infrastructure, particularly track and signalling. In western Ireland, 50 % of the £30 million cost of replacement track for the Galway and Sligo lines is being funded by the Community, as well as 85 % of the £4 million cost of resignalling them.

These infrastructure improvements are being complemented by the commissioning of new rolling stock (diesel locomotives and carriages) also supported by the structural funds, which should provide a greater level of comfort and safety for patrons of the service.

Most of western Ireland (the Border, Midlands and Western Region) will continue to receive funding from the European regional development fund (ERDF) as a region with full objective 1 status in the period 2000-2006. The Irish government is at the moment preparing the national development plan, which will form the basis for the negotiations with the Commission for the use of the structural funds in 2000-2006. No doubt infrastructure investments will be one of the major spending priorities under the next round of structural and cohesion funding to further improve the relative position of western Ireland.

(1) OJ L 228, 9.9.1996.
WRITTEN QUESTION E-2348/99

by Salvador Jové Peres (GUE/NGL) and Pedro Marset Campos (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(13 December 1999)

Subject: Tomato imports from Morocco

Why has the Commission not taken the necessary action to ensure that Morocco adheres to the monthly breakdown of the quota and the permitted 20 % overshoot, as laid down in Article 3 to Protocol 1 to the Association Agreement?

Joint answer to Written Questions E-2344/99, E-2345/99, E-2346/99, E-2347/99, E-2348/99 and P-2483/99 given by Mr Fischler on behalf of the Commission

(20 January 2000)

The Commission is closely monitoring developments in fresh tomato imports from Morocco.

Having noted that the quantities agreed on for the 1998/1999 marketing year were being exceeded, the Commission drew the Moroccan authorities' attention to the importance of respecting those quantities if the Community market was to remain in equilibrium.

During the current marketing year, developments in imports in October 1999 prompted the Commission to request urgent talks with the Moroccan authorities. Those talks were held in Rabat on 22 December 1999 but did not lead to a solution guaranteeing that the granted quota would not be exceeded. Accordingly, and without prejudice to future talks, the Commission, by Regulation (EC) No 2767/1999, introduced an import licence system, in accordance with the exchange of letters between the Community and the Kingdom of Morocco on 22 December 1994.

The Commission would remind the Member States that they are responsible for the correct application of the rules in force concerning imports, including the setting of customs duties due.
WRITTEN QUESTION E-2737/99

by Michl Ebner (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(18 January 2000)

Subject: Unfair competition in the grape-based eau-de-vie sector

When diluted to less than 86 % volume raw alcohol produced from grapes can become, on the basis of a broad interpretation of certain Community norms, eau-de-vie made from grapes which, once brought into Italy, could be sold, albeit unlawfully, as grappa.

Eau-de-vie made from grapes produced in this way is considerably cheaper than grappa since raw alcohol is eligible for a Community contribution of 140 000 lire per hectolitre compared with 78 000 lire for grappa.

This difference of 62 000 lire constitutes an incentive to counterfeit this most Italian of eau-de-vie. Not only does this lead to serious financial losses for producers but it also results in consumers being deceived.

Can the Commission say whether it intends to take steps to equalise the Community contribution for grappa with that for raw alcohol, thereby removing the unfair competition in the grappa sector and protecting consumers?

Answer given by Mr Fischler on behalf of the Commission

(14 February 2000)

The Commission has been informed of the use of raw alcohol in grappa production, contrary to the rules in force.

At a recent management committee meeting the Member States in question were asked to give attention when granting aid to the destination of the distillation product. It is of course up to these Member States' supervising bodies to ensure compliance with Community rules.

The Commission is at present reviewing the distillation aids for grape marc spirits and raw alcohol in the context of the reform of the common market organisation for the wine sector due to enter into force from the next wine year (1 August 2000).
WRITTEN QUESTION E-2838/99

by Eija-Riitta Korhola (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(18 January 2000)

Subject: Seasonable variability and regional fluctuations within analyses of climate change

What analysis has been undertaken by the Commission or research projects supported concerning the seasonal variability and regional fluctuations occurring within analyses of natural climate variability and of climate change?

Answer given by Mr Busquin on behalf of the Commission

(11 February 2000)

Several current and newly funded projects (e.g. Provost and Demeter) deal with seasonal and regional variability of climate. Fourth framework programme projects have developed an unique predictive capability and have for the first time forecast El Nino occurrence and its impacts in Europe.