WRITTEN QUESTION No. 1579/97 by Amedeo AMADEO to the Commission. ADAPT: call for new proposals for 1997
Date: 1997-05-06
Institutions: AMADEO, European Parliament
Subjects: Community budget, EU initiative, European Social Fund, competitiveness, industrial restructuring, job access, manpower planning, older worker, professional qualifications

22. 1. 98

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 21/73

Answer given by Mr Kinnock on behalf of the Commission

(25 June 1997)

The Commission is aware of the change in the conditions of movement for the carriage of goods on Sundays and
public holidays in France.

Before this decision, the banning of lorries over 7.5 tonnes total weight on the roads in France from Saturday
10  p.m.  to  Sunday  10  p.m.  and  on  public  holidays  was  accompanied  by  certain  general  exemptions.  These
exemptions were granted for urgent economic activities (the carriage of perishable goods, live animals) which
could  not  be  delayed  and  to  allow,  in  international  traffic  only,  French  or  foreign  vehicles  to  return  to  their
residence, their home base or their country of registration. The French authorities withdrew this latter exemption,
with effect from 24 March 1997.

France is neither the first nor the only Member State to prohibit the movement of lorries on Sundays and public
holidays. The prohibition has been justified by the French authorities on the grounds of improving road safety
and protecting local residents against excessive nuisance. It is not discriminatory since it applies to French lorries
as much as it does to all others.

However, the Commission is aware of the negative implications of the current situation regarding bans on night
and weekend driving for international road haulage in the Community. Therefore, it will discuss the general issue
of driving bans with Member States and the industry in order to assess whether Community action in this field
would be feasible and desirable.

(98/C 21/164)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1579/97

by Amedeo Amadeo (NI) to the Commission

(6 May 1997)

Subject: ADAPT: call for new proposals for 1997

The  Community  ADAPT  initiative  finances  projects  which  help  workers  to  adapt  to  changes  in  the  labour
market. It operates under the auspices of Objective 4 of the European Social Fund, which is aimed at improving
the qualifications and employment prospects of citizens who already have jobs. It is possibly the only EU fund
that is of particular importance to older workers.

ADAPT is being implemented in two stages: the first covers the period from 1995 to 1997 and the second covers
the period from 1997 to 1999. The budget is ECU 1500 million for five years, including 162 million for a new
priority project, ADAPT A.

There are five ADAPT projects focusing on older workers, in Belgium, the Netherlands, Austria (2) and Sweden.
Another  four  projects,  in  Germany,  France  and  the  UK  (2),  aim  to  involve  a  significant  proportion  of  older
workers. However, these nine projects account for only a very small percentage of the 1400 programmes funded
overall by ADAPT.

Can the Commission take care to ensure that the second round of funding applications results in a greater number
of projects specifically targeted at older workers?

Answer given by Mr Flynn on behalf of the Commission

(9 June 1997)

As stated by the Honourable Member, the purpose of the ADAPT initiative is to help workers adapt to industrial
change and to improve the functioning of the labour market with a view to ensuring growth, employment and the
competitiveness of Community businesses. The initiative covers the entire Community and has been allocated a
total budget of ECU 1 582 million for the period 1995-1999 (including a reserve, at 1996 prices).

As  regards  the  target  group,  ADAPT  is  aimed  more  particularly  at  workers  affected  by  industrial  change,
regardless of their age. All projects financed under ADAPT include or may include older workers among their
beneficiaries. In accordance with the principle of subsidiarity, the selection of projects is the responsibility of the
national authorities. The Commission, through the monitoring committees, checks that the selections made are
consistent with the principles and objectives of the initiative.