WRITTEN QUESTION No. 2874/97 by Kenneth COATES to the Commission. Freedom of movement
Date: 1997-09-11
Institutions: COATES, European Parliament
Subjects: United Kingdom, equal treatment, free movement of persons, freedom of movement, holiday, job application, member country, self-employed person, social security, unemployment insurance

C 102/142

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

3. 4. 98

(98/C 102/213)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2874/97

by Kenneth Coates (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(11 September 1997)

Subject: Freedom of movement

Under  the  Jobseeker(cid:146)s  Allowance  in  the  United  Kingdom,  unemployed  people  may  only  continue  to  claim
benefit when they travel (cid:145)abroad(cid:146) elsewhere in the European Economic Area, if they go abroad specifically to
seek work. They cannot take a holiday elsewhere, in the EEA, or travel to attend a funeral of a member of their
family, and retain their benefit. No such restrictions apply to employed or self-employed persons.

What  can  the  Commission  do  about  this  discrimination  against  unemployed  citizens  of  the  European  Union
residing in the United Kingdom, which fails to conform with the provision (cid:145)to guarantee within the Community
equality of treatment under the various national legislations ...(cid:146)?

Answer given by Mr Flynn on behalf of the Commission

(15 October 1997)

Under the Job seeker(cid:146)s allowance regulations 1996, a claimant is permitted two weeks holiday without loss of
benefit or sanction, but this holiday is subject to conditions. In order to obtain this benefit, a person must be both
actively seeking employment and available for work. Under regulation (19(1)(p) ((cid:145)Circumstances in which a
person  is  to  be  treated  as  actively  seeking  employment(cid:146))  a  claimant  must  be  treated  as  actively  seeking
employment  for  a  maximum  of  two  weeks,  even  if  he  is  not  actually  seeking  employment  because  he  is  on
holiday, provided he remains available for work. Therefore, the employment officer must decide whether the
claimant is still available for work in order to continue to receive the job seeker(cid:146)s allowance and if the claimant
spends his holiday outside the United Kingdom he is not considered to be available for work.

The fact that the unemployed person may only claim unemployment benefit while looking for a job in another
Member State under the conditions laid down in Article 69 of Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71 on the application of
social security schemes to employed persons and their families moving within the Community (1) is in line with
the fundamental right of equal treatment and the freedoms foreseen by the EC Treaty (2).

(1)  Updated by Regulation (EC) No L 118/97 › OJ 28, 30.1.1997, lastly amended by Regulation (EC) No 1290/97 › OJ L 176, 1.7.1997.
(2) 

Judgement of the ECJ, 16.5.1991. Case C-272/90, Van Noorden, 1991, I, p. 2543.

(98/C 102/214)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-2876/97

by Olivier Dupuis (ARE) to the Commission

(1 September 1997)

Subject: Radio broadcasting of information for Tibetans

In the 1996 and 1997 budgets the European Parliament adopted item B7-702 (cid:145)Human rights and democracy in the
developing countries(cid:146), the remarks for which contained the following: (cid:145)this appropriation ... is also intended to
cover  the  financing  of  activities  connected  with  monitoring  respect  for  human  rights ...  and  information
promotion, in particular radio broadcasting, by Tibetans, both exiles and those living in Tibet, in support of any
non-violent initiative to secure the defence and promotion of human rights and of democracy and freedom in
Tibet together with the initiatives taken in that connection within the European Union(cid:146).

Can the Commission explain the reasons for its delay in adopting a decision on the projects submitted for the
1996 financial year, which were not followed up, and the projects submitted for the current financial year, in
respect  of  which  no  reply  has  yet  been  received,  these  being  projects  for  the  making  and  broadcasting  of
Tibetan-language information programmes intended for exiled Tibetans in India and Tibetans living in Tibet in
accordance with the guidelines laid down by the budgetary authority?