WRITTEN QUESTION No. 2629/97 by Gijs de VRIES to the Commission. Crédit Lyonnais
Date: 1997-09-01
Institutions: DE VRIES, European Parliament
Subjects: European Commission, France, State aid, bank, control of State aid, emergency aid, terms for aid

3. 4. 98

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 102/77

(98/C 102/112)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2626/97

by Alfonso Novo Belenguer (ARE) to the Commission

(1 September 1997)

Subject: Cancellation of agricultural subsidies for Valencia

On 30 June 1997 the Valencian regional government officially announced that PTA 808 million of Community
funding were being cancelled, of which PTA 115.4 million corresponded to the co-financing by the Ministry of
Agriculture of aid from the EAGGF-Guarantee Fund, while the remaining PTA 692.6 million came directly from
subsidies  granted  by  the  European  Union.  These  funds  were  mainly  earmarked  for  the  (cid:145)afforestation  of
agricultural land(cid:146). The resolution setting out the loss of these subsidies, which was announced on 30 June 1997
by the Commission for Economy and Finance of the Generalitat of Valencia, is dated 31 December 1996 and
affects last year(cid:146)s budget.

Is the Commission aware that this line of credit providing aid for agriculture in Valencia, and more specifically
for the reafforestation of agricultural land, has been cancelled?

If so, what exactly are the reasons why it has been cancelled?

Can the Commission state to what use the cancelled funds will now be put?

Answer given by Mr Fischler on behalf of the Commission

(9 October 1997)

According to information from the national and regional authorities, the funds referred to by the Honourable
Member were not cancelled in 1996 but will be used under the 1997 budget. Intended to cover the set of measures
accompanying the reform of the common agricultural policy (CAP), the funds in question were not utilised in
1996 since there were fewer applications than anticipated.

This failure to utilise the funds should not affect the overall implementation of programmes according to those
authorities, who expect demand to rise in 1997 and subsequent financial years.

(98/C 102/113)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2629/97

by Gijs de Vries (ELDR) to the Commission

(1 September 1997)

Subject: Cre·dit Lyonnais

According to The Economist (July 5 1997), (cid:145)Important details of the last rescue sanctioned by Brussels, back in
1995, were never respected(cid:146).

Is this allegation correct? If so, what specific initiatives did the Commission undertake to have Cre·dit Lyonnais
comply with the 1995 Commission decisions?

Answer given by Mr Van Miert on behalf of the Commission

(22 September 1997)

In  1995,  the  Commission  approved  the  restructuring  aid  to  Cre·dit  Lyonnais  amounting  to  FF  45  billion
(MECU 6,800). The particularly complex aid scheme included a capital injection by the French State and the
hiving-off of FF 135 billion (MECU 20,400) of Cre·dit Lyonnais’ assets into a special vehicle covered by the state
guarantee.  The  Commission  gave  its  approval  subject  to  a  set  of  conditions  to  be  fulfilled  by  the  French
authorities (1).  These  conditions  included  the  full  application  and  implementation  of  the  restructuring  plan
submitted to the Commission, the reduction, by the end of 1998, of the Cre·dit Lyonnais commercial presence
outside France to an extent equal to 35% of the bank’s presence abroad at the end of 1994, the issuing of a zero
coupon  loan  by  Cre·dit  Lyonnais  to  the  benefit  of  EPFR  (Etablissement  public  de  financement  et  de
restructuration) and some conditions on the relations between Cre·dit Lyonnais and the vehicle which took over
the assets hived-off from Cre·dit Lyonnais.