WRITTEN QUESTION No. 3615/97 by Eva KJER HANSEN to the Commission. Protection of the Community's financial interests
Date: 1997-11-06
Institutions: European Parliament, KJER HANSEN
Subjects: EU Member State, European treaties, corruption, fight against crime, financial interests of members, fraud, ratification of an agreement

30. 4. 98

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 134/177

(98/C 134/242)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-3615/97

by Eva Kjer Hansen (ELDR) to the Commission

(6 November 1997)

Subject: Protection of the Community(cid:146)s financial interests

What specific initiatives does the Commission intend to take in the light of the changes made by the Amsterdam
Treaty to Article 209a?

Will  the  Commission  re-examine  the  Convention  on  the  protection  of  the  European  Communities(cid:146)  financial
interests (which no Member State has yet ratified), given that parts of the Convention can be adopted under the
new Article 209a?

Answer given by Mrs Gradin on behalf of the Commission

(8 December 1997)

The Commission welcomes the changes made to Article 209A of the EC Treaty by the Amsterdam Treaty. This
Article will become Article 280 of the EC Treaty and it will constitute a legal basis for proposals concerning the
protection of the financial interests of the Community, with a more active role for the Parliament (co-decision
procedure).

The Treaty still needs to be ratified by the Member States. Although the Commission is currently examining the
potential of the new Article 280, it is too early at this stage to decide on concrete initiatives.

As indicated in its answer to the written question E-3349/97 by Mrs Torres Marques (1), the Commission is aware
that  no  Member  State  has  yet  ratified  the  Convention  on  the  protection  of  the  financial  interests  of  the
Communities. The Justice and home affairs Council of 28 April 1997 introduced the target date of mid 1998 for
this  ratification,  with  the  subsequent  approval  of  the  European  Council  of  Amsterdam.  The  Commission
considers ratification to be a matter of urgency and continues to follow closely the situation in each Member
State. After the adoption of the two protocols to the Convention on the protection of the financial interests as well
as the adoption of the Convention on the fight against corruption, Member States not willing to start separately
the ratification procedure for each instrument drawn up on the basis of Article K.3 of the Treaty on European
Union can now ratify them all together.

(1)  OJ C 117, 16.4.1998, p. 177.

(98/C 134/243)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-3665/97

by Maria Berger (PSE) to the Commission

(10 November 1997)

Subject: Directive on package travel, package holidays and package tours

Does the Commission plan to amend the Directive on package travel, package holidays and package tours
1.
so that hoteliers too are obliged to take out appropriate cancellation insurance or insurance against loss incurred
through insolvency, which is said to be already possible in all the Member States on a voluntary basis? Practices
such as withholding passports or luggage do not seem to be appropriate measures to settle problems and are
surely not in accordance with the intentions of the directive.

2.
Does  the  Commission  plan  to  define  more  closely  in  the  directive  the  (cid:145)necessary  costs  for  the  return
journey(cid:146) so as to prevent a situation in which for example hotel guests have to pay tourist taxes and their hotel bill
twice just in order to be able to leave the hotel?