WRITTEN QUESTION No. 528/98 by Concepció FERRER to the Council. Poverty 4 programme
Date: 1998-02-27
Institutions: European Parliament, FERRER
Subjects: Community budget, EU programme, European social policy, United Kingdom, aid to disadvantaged groups, marginalisation, poverty, socially disadvantaged class

17. 7. 98

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 223/177

(98/C 223/231)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0528/98

by Concepcio· Ferrer (PPE) to the Council

(27 February 1998)

Subject: Poverty 4 programme

When the Poverty 3 programme ended on 30 June 1994, a new programme was drawn up which has yet to be
adopted  by  the  Council.  Bearing  in  mind  that  the  programme  was  intended  to  finance  measures  to  improve
housing  conditions  and  the  integration  of  the  homeless,  will  the  Council  say  when  it  intends  to  adopt  this
programme?

Answer

(11 May 1998)

As the Honourable Member has just stated, the Commission submitted to the Council in 1994 a proposal for a
Council Decision establishing a medium-term pilot programme to combat economic and social exclusion and
promote solidarity. The programme was intended to cover the period 1994-1999. The unanimity on this proposal
required by the legal basis (Article 235 of the TEC) could not be reached at Council level on 24 June 1994.

No further talks have been held by the Council since then on the proposal for a Decision on the programme to
combat economic and social exclusion.

The Honourable Member is no doubt aware that the United Kingdom since brought an action before the Court of
Justice  (1  April  1996)  against  the  Commission  seeking  the  annulment  of  the  decisions  referred  to  in  the
Commission Press Release of 23 January 1996 on the grounds that the Commission could not incur expenditure
within the framework of appropriations entered in the budget (cid:150) under the heading of action to combat poverty (cid:150)
without lawful authority, if the Council has not adopted a decision to that effect. The case in question is Case
C-106/96 (1). The Court(cid:146)s judgment is pending.

(1)  OJ C 145, 18.5.1996, p. 7.

(98/C 223/232)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-0548/98

by Luigi Vinci (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(19 February 1998)

Subject: Trawling regulations in Italy

Since 1990 a number of Italian shipowners have submitted requests for a Community financial contribution, via
the Directorate-General for Fisheries of the Ministry for the Mercantile Marine, towards the building of certain
fishing units to be used for the (cid:145)pelagic one-boat trawling(cid:146) system (subject to withdrawal of other fishing vessels
used for trawling). The Ministry(cid:146)s finance committee had already given a favourable opinion on various requests
for similar funding, within the meaning of Reg. (EEC) 4028/86 (1). In this case the Ministry gave its approval for
the granting of a licence in respect of both bottom trawling and pelagic one-boat trawling. Both the Ministry and
the shipowners in fact considered that the latter was basically equivalent to bottom trawling.

However, in 1996 the Ministry informed the shipowners concerned that this licence could be deemed contrary to
the EEC Regulation and withdrew it accordingly.

As building work on the new vessels had already reached an advanced stage, those concerned asked for a review
of the situation. The Ministry(cid:146)s Fisheries DG then asked for the EC(cid:146)s opinion, but only in respect of vessels
already in use, and not those under construction which were covered by the same Community funding. The EC
responded favourably, on an exceptional basis, to the Italian authorities(cid:146) request and to the granting of such a
licence to (cid:145)bottom trawling(cid:146) only in respect of vessels already in use.