WRITTEN QUESTION No. 2922/97 by Klaus REHDER to the Commission. Development of the fruit and vegetable in the European Union
Date: 1997-09-17
Institutions: European Parliament, REHDER
Subjects: Germany, agricultural production, fruit, production surplus, tax, taxpayer, vegetable, withdrawal from the market

16. 4. 98

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 117/101

(98/C 117/128)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-2919/97

by Bertel Haarder (ELDR) to the Commission

(5 September 1997)

Subject: Implementation of the Directive on the business of credit institutions

With reference to Council Directive 89/646/EEC (1) on the coordination of laws, regulations and administrative
provisions relating to the taking up and pursuit of the business of credit institutions, will the Commission explain
how and when the provisions in Article 16 of that directive concerning the parties involved and professional
secrecy were implemented by the Member States?

(1)  OJ L 386, 30.12.1989, p. 1.

Answer given by Mr Monti on behalf of the Commission

(8 October 1997)

The Commission is sending direct to the Honourable Member and Parliament’s Secretariat a table containing
references to the national measures implementing the Second Banking Directive (89/646/EEC).

As  regards  the  way  in  which  Article  16  has  been  transposed,  the  Commission  is  currently  carrying  out  a
wide-ranging study analysing in detail the transposal into national law of the provisions of the Second Directive.
This study will be completed towards the end of the year.

(98/C 117/129)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2922/97

by Klaus Rehder (PSE) to the Commission

(17 September 1997)

Subject: Development of the fruit and vegetable in the European Union

According to the union of consumer associations (AgV), since 1990 (as at 1994) a total of nearly DM 15 billion
has  been  spent  in  the  European  Union  on  the  production  and  disposal  of  fruit  and  vegetable  surpluses;
DM 4.5 billion of that sum came from the German taxpayers(cid:146) pocket. In the 1993-94 financial year alone some
2.5 million tons of fruit and vegetables were bought in and destroyed using taxpayers(cid:146) money (direct cost in the
EU  DM 1.2 billion,  360  million  of  which  in  German  taxes).  This  destruction  would  probably  be  costing  the
German taxpayer a further DM 4-5 billion.

1.
How  much  has  been  paid  out,  on  the  Commission(cid:146)s  calculations,  between  1990  and  today  on  the
destruction of surpluses and withdrawals from the market in the individual Member States and by the European
Union?

In that process, what quantities of intervention stocks have been processed into alcohol, used as animal feed

2.
or dumped?

Answer given by Mr Fischler on behalf of the Commission

(24 October 1997)

1.
Tables  are  being  sent  directly  to  the  Honourable  Member  and  to  Parliament’s  Secretariat  showing  the
amounts,  by  Member  State  and  budget  year,  paid  out  since  1990  in  compensation  for  withdrawn  fruit  and
vegetables.

They also show, for the 1970/71 to 1992/93 marketing years (the last for which figures are available) the

2.
quantities withdrawn and give a percentage breakdown of what was done with these.