WRITTEN QUESTION No. 3551/97 by Gianni TAMINO to the Commission. Experiments on embryos
Date: 1997-11-12
Institutions: European Parliament, TAMINO
Subjects: EU Member State, EU programme, animal experimentation, bio-ethics, embryo and foetus, research and development

C 187/20

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

16. 6. 98

Whilst respecting the autonomy of governments to make their own decisions in the field of education, what is the
Commission(cid:146)s view of proposals of this nature?

Does it not agree that to abolish such a long-standing subject which overlaps so much with other subjects would
place a major obstacle in the way of learning about other people in a world in which globalization and the process
of European unification increases, rather than reduces, the need for knowledge about geography and about the
peoples inhabiting our planet, especially Europe?

Does it not agree that this proposal will result in the impoverishment of the cultural heritage of Italian children
compared to their peers elsewhere in the EU? How will they be able, in future, to identify and situate the regions
of our continent, with which they could have to form vital links, in their work, or for the purposes of tourism or
culture?

Joint answer
to Written Questions E-3550/97 and E-3802/97
given by Mrs Cresson on behalf of the Commission

(10 December 1997)

The Commission takes note of the fact that in its draft proposal for the revision of the curriculum of the first two
years of secondary school the Italian ministry of Education has not introduced the teaching of geography.

The Commission refers the Honourable Members to Article 126 of the EC Treaty which defines the action of the
Community in the field of education as (cid:145)fully respecting the responsibility of the Member States for the content
of teaching and the organisation of education systems(cid:146).

The revision of the curriculum, the choice of subjects and their distribution over the years of schooling are all
domains under national competence.

(98/C 187/32)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-3551/97

by Gianni Tamino (V) to the Commission

(12 November 1997)

Subject: Experiments on embryos

The media have widely reported that an English biologist, Jonathan Slaek, has produced headless frogs by means
of  manipulation  during  the  development  of  the  embryo.  This  method  makes  it  possible  to  develop  embryos
containing only certain organs. As Slaek himself states, it is hoped to extend this method to mammals, including
human beings, so as to obtain a kind of (cid:145)organ factory(cid:146) through the use of cloning.

Given that many researchers in various European states have said that similar experiments are being conducted in
their  laboratories,  will  the  Commission  state  in  what  research  centres  such  experiments  are  taking  place  and
whether such research work is compatible with the Convention on human rights and biomedicine, as adopted by
the Council of Europe in November 1996 and signed by nine EU Member States (Denmark, Finland, France,
Greece,  Italy,  Luxembourg,  Netherlands,  Portugal,  Spain  and  Sweden),  and  generally  with  EU  law  and  EP
resolutions?

Answer given by Mrs Cresson on behalf of the Commission

(30 January 1998)

The Commission is aware of the media attention being given to the experiments referred to by the Honourable
Member.

This  type  of  research  in  no  way  forms  part  of  the  Community  framework  research  and  technological
development  (TRD)  programmes  that  are  either  in  progress  (4th  Framework  Programme) (1)  or  awaiting  a
decision (5th Framework Programme) (2). The Commission feels that this type of research is incompatible with
basic ethical principles.