WRITTEN QUESTION No. 3544/97 by Gerardo FERNÁNDEZ-ALBOR to the Commission. Winter holiday programme for the elderly
Date: 1997-11-12
Institutions: European Parliament, FERNANDEZ ALBOR
Subjects: EU programme, Mediterranean region (EU), elderly person, holiday, hotel industry, staggering of holidays, tourism policy, tourist infrastructure, tourist profession

C 158/148

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

25. 5. 98

Answer given by Mrs Wulf- Mathies on behalf of the Commission

(22 December 1997)

The list of areas in Spain eligible under the Konver II Community Initiative (1995-99) has been published in the
Official Journal (1).

As  the  proposed  Spanish  operational  programme  under  this  Initiative  is  at  present  under  examination  the
Commission cannot provide information on the measures to be financed and amounts assigned to these.

This will be passed to the Honourable Member when the programme has been approved.

(1)  OJ C 402, 31.12.1994.

(98/C 158/196)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-3544/97

by Gerardo Ferna·ndez-Albor (PPE) to the Commission

(12 November 1997)

Subject: Winter holiday programme for the elderly

The success of the winter holiday programme for the elderly announced by the Spanish welfare authorities was
demonstrated by the fact that on the first day 80% of the available places were booked.

Given that this age group enjoys holidays every year, which, in addition to their recreation and leisure value,
provide a useful boost to the economies of tourist areas during the low season, it would be worthwhile to consider
extending such programmes to greater numbers of older people in other European Union countries.

Is the Commission in any way involved in the abovementioned winter holiday programme for the elderly in
Spain and does it believe this programme should be extended to other European countries to enable their elderly
citizens to enjoy the benefits of the mild southern climate during the winter?

Answer given by Mr Papoutsis on behalf of the Commission

(12 December 1997)

The  Commission  is  aware  that  the  seasonality  issue,  which  affects  many  tourism  destinations  experiencing
over-concentration in the peak season, is one of the principal challenges facing the tourism sector.

A  number  of  initiatives  have  been  taken  at  national  level  to  help  redress  some  of  the  problems  caused  by
seasonality, among which is the winter holiday programme for the elderly in Spain.

As for the possibility of extending the programme to other Member States, the Commission believes that this and
other similar initiatives could be usefully explored in the context of exchanges of experiences and co-operation
involving the Commission, the Member States and the industry.

(98/C 158/197)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-3546/97

by Gerardo Ferna·ndez-Albor (PPE) to the Commission

(12 November 1997)

Subject: Community funding for the high-speed train in Galicia

In the rail network in the Spanish region of Galicia, there are sections of the track where trains cannot travel faster
than 40 kilometres per hour. Two years ago, the region(cid:146)s autonomous parliament unanimously approved a plan
for the complete renovation of the rail network to make it suitable for high-speed trains.