do-me/EUR-LEX huggingface dataset:
WRITTEN QUESTION No. 1369/96 by Nikitas KAKLAMANIS to the Commission. The Athens Acropolis
Date: 1996-05-22
Institutions: European Parliament, KAKLAMANIS
Subjects: Central Greece, EU aid, Structural Funds, air quality, cultural heritage, heritage protection, tourism













EUR-Lex - 91996E1369 - EN






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91996E1369

WRITTEN QUESTION No. 1369/96 by Nikitas KAKLAMANIS to the Commission. The Athens Acropolis  


Official Journal C 305 , 15/10/1996 P. 0088 





WRITTEN QUESTION P-1369/96 by Nikitas Kaklamanis (UPE) to the Commission (22 May 1996)Subject: The Athens AcropolisThe Acropolis in Athens is rightly considered one of the most representative monuments of Greece and European culture.For the City of Athens it is also the main focus of tourism. This very ancient monument is, however, now being threatened by the passage of time and environmental pollution.Work to preserve this monument is progressing very slowly owing to a lack of funds.Will the Commission say what scope there is for providing emergency financial aid, and what procedures Greece must follow to attain this important objective?Answer given by Mr Oreja on behalf of the Commission (26 June 1996)The Commission would inform the Honourable Member that due to the exceptional importance of the Acropolis in historic, cultural and architectural terms, the Community has been contributing since 1983 to the conservation and restoration works carried out by the Greek authorities, with a financial contribution in recent years of 400 000 ECU a year.The slow progress of the conservation and restoration projects is due to the complex and delicate nature of the works rather than to lack of financial resources.In addition to this contribution, the Operational programme (OP) tourism-culture provides for the restoration of historic monuments liked to the development of tourism.The structural funds are willing to examine a plan to restore the Acropolis if the Greek authorities propose it and if it falls within the framework of the culture part of the tourism-culture OP.
WRITTEN QUESTION No. 1392/96 by Yves VERWAERDE to the Commission. Reduced rates of VAT for certain cultural products
Date: 1996-05-22
Institutions: European Parliament, VERWAERDE
Subjects: VAT, VAT rate, application of EU law, audiovisual equipment, book trade, cultural policy, goods and services, single market, tax harmonisation













EUR-Lex - 91996E1392 - EN






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91996E1392

WRITTEN QUESTION No. 1392/96 by Yves VERWAERDE to the Commission. Reduced rates of VAT for certain cultural products  


Official Journal C 322 , 28/10/1996 P. 0059 





WRITTEN QUESTION P-1392/96 by Yves Verwaerde (PPE) to the Commission (22 May 1996)Subject: Reduced rates of VAT for certain cultural productsBearing in mind that certain products such as videocassettes, CD-roms, etc., which contain productions of cultural works (films, plays, concerts, etc.) are subject to the standard rate of VAT, while other cultural products such as books, theatre tickets, etc., are subject to a reduced rate of VAT,1. will the Commission soon amend Annex H to Directive 77/388/EEC of 17 May 1977 ((OJ L 145, 13.6.1977, p. 1. )) so as to allow all cultural products to be taxed at the reduced rate of VAT?2. will the European Commission create categories of goods ('cultural goods' for example) to which a single rate of VAT will apply?Answer given by Mr Monti on behalf of the Commission (2 July 1996)The Commission does not at present have any plans to amend Annex H to the Sixth VAT Directive (77/388/EEC), which lists the goods and services eligible for a reduced rate of VAT, so as to include all cultural products. Nor is there any plan to create a category of 'cultural goods' to which a single rate of VAT would be applicable.It should be pointed out in this respect that, in order to guarantee the principle of tax neutrality in respect of the various means and carriers used to provide access to culture, identical provisions should be applied to goods and services of the same nature which are supplied on identical terms. However, unlike books or concert/cinema tickets, which are eligible for a reduced rate of VAT, the contents of CD-roms, video cassettes and sound carriers are not directly accessible since the consumer must first acquire specific equipment in order to be able to use them.The Commission will in any case review all matters relevant to the scope of reduced rates of VAT in a biannual report. This will include a fresh analysis of the application of the reduced rate, taking into account all the policies concerned, including the cultural dimension, from the point of view of the proper functioning of the single market and the harmonization which is necessary for the transition to the definitive arrangements for taxing intra-Community trade.