WRITTEN QUESTION No. 640/96 by Astrid LULLING to the Commission. Action taken by the Italian public prosecutor's office against the Brussels office of the provinces of Trentino and South Tyrol (Italy) and the Land of Tyrol (Austria)
Date: 1996-03-15
Institutions: European Parliament, LULLING
Subjects: Austria, European integration, Italy, cross-border cooperation, information centre, regional policy













EUR-Lex - 91996E0640 - EN






Avis juridique important




|



91996E0640

WRITTEN QUESTION No. 640/96 by Astrid LULLING to the Commission. Action taken by the Italian public prosecutor's office against the Brussels office of the provinces of Trentino and South Tyrol (Italy) and the Land of Tyrol (Austria)  


Official Journal C 305 , 15/10/1996 P. 0013 





WRITTEN QUESTION E-0640/96 by Astrid Lulling (PPE) to the Commission (15 March 1996)Subject: Action taken by the Italian public prosecutor's office against the Brussels office of the provinces of Trentino and South Tyrol (Italy) and the Land of Tyrol (Austria)The Italian public prosecutor's office has launched an investigation into the Brussels office of the provinces of Trentino and South Tyrol (Italy) and the Land of Tyrol (Austria) on the grounds of 'an attack on the inviolability' of the state (Article 241 of the Italian penal code).Does the Commission take the view that cross-border cooperation between regions serves the aims it pursues in its regional policy?Can the Commission confirm that cooperation at all levels in the Saarland/Luxembourg/Lorraine area has been a major factor in implementing cross-border programmes to promote these regions?Doers the Commission take the view that the fact that regions of different Member States which border each other establish joint administrative structures in Brussels to improve coordination of their activities, and to increase the efficiency of their joint projects in the field of regional policy, violates the letter and the spirit of the European Treaties and can be interpreted as an attack on the territorial integrity of the Member States in question?What action will the Commission take to help inform the public prosecutors in question of all the previous instances of cross-border cooperation, so that the investigations referred to above - which are certainly not conducive to the process of European integration - do not occur, or are halted, in future?Answer given by Mrs Wulf-Matthies on behalf of the Commission (16 April 1996)Further to the answer it gave to Mr Ebner's written question E-3107/95, ((OJ C 91, 27.3.1996. )) the Commission affirms its conviction that cross-border cooperation between local authorities and partnership between local authorities and socio-economic bodies, such as chambers of commerce, are crucial to the success of schemes for the structural development of border regions.Given that such cases do not normally impinge on the EC Treaty, it is not for the Commission to comment on whether local authorities or regional socio-economic bodies should be represented in Brussels or on the form taken by such representation.The Commission has on numerous occasions publicized what it believes to be good practice in the cross-border cooperation. Should the authorities concerned so wish, it is ready to provide more detailed explanations regarding the border areas referred to by the Honourable Member.