WRITTEN QUESTION No. 1820/98 by Marie-Paule KESTELIJN- SIERENS to the Commission. Access to European databases via gateways
Date: 1998-06-03
Institutions: European Parliament, KESTELIJN-SIERENS
Subjects: EU policy, cost-benefit analysis, database, exchange of information, information network, information user, promotion of the European idea

C 50/98

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

22.2.1999

(1999/C 50/141)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-1820/98

by Marie-Paule Kestelijn-Sierens (ELDR) to the Commission

Subject: Access to European databases via gateways

(3 June 1998)

Did the Commission perform a cost-benefit analysis before deciding that access to the databases should no longer
be provided via gateways but that they should be accessible free of charge via the Internet? Does it have any
indication of the type (members of the public/professional people) and number of users of the databases accessing
them via the Internet? Is it sure that the information currently available via the Internet is updated quickly enough
to meet the needs of professional people and that adequate assistance is available to them? Have the gateways
now become totally superfluous?

Answer given by Mr Oreja on behalf of the Commission

(8 July 1998)

The Honourable Member has rightly noted the trend within the Commission towards providing free access to
Community databases, particularly over the Internet, where this can ensure a wide and effective promotion of
Community policies. There is very limited customer information available on users of databases on the Internet
and no detailed study has been carried out yet.

The change from a gateway service to an Internet service does not alter the speed of updating information.

The future of gateways is not yet certain; but it is expected that there will still be a market for value-added
services.

(1999/C 50/142)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-1822/98

by Stanislaw Tillich (PPE) to the Commission

(3 June 1998)

Subject: Offsetting the UK(cid:146)s share of costs from the BSE crisis against the (cid:145)British rebate(cid:146)

Can the Commission say whether, and if so how, it has offset the costs charged to the UK as a result of the BSE
crisis against (or deducted them from) the (cid:145)British rebate(cid:146), which is being renegotiated at present?

How large were the sums involved in 1997 and 1998?

Answer given by Mr Liikanen on behalf of the Commission

(30 June 1998)

As can be seen from the table sent direct to the Honourable Member and the Secretariat of Parliament (extract of
working document for preliminary draft budget for 1999), the cost of the measures occasioned by this crisis can
be put at some ECU 4 300 million for the period 1996-99, of which 1 300 million relates to 1997 and 800 million
to 1998. For that period, the costs (whether paid or to be paid) attributable to bovine spongiform encephalopathy
(BSE) in the United Kingdom can be assessed at around ECU 1 800 million including approximately 450 million
in 1996, 550 million in 1997 and 400 million in 1998 and 1999.

There is an established definition on the expenditure taken into consideration in the determination of the British
rebate. This definition is provided in a document approved unanimously by the Council and known as (cid:145)mode de
calcul(cid:146). BSE expenditure, like all other agricultural expenditure, is included in the calculation of the British
rebate. In 1997 ECU 550 million was allocated to the United Kingdom in relation to the BSE crisis. Consequently,
this has reduced the imbalance on which the British rebate is calculated by this amount, and the rebate itself by
approximately ECU 320 million.

However, BSE expenditure is undertaken in other Member States and this affects the total volume of expenditure
on which the British rebate is based as well as the British share in it. The aggregate BSE expenditure in 1997
amounted to ECU 1 303 million, of which ECU 753 million was spent in Member States other than the United
Kingdom. Since the United Kingdom receives none of the ECU 753 million expenditure, this causes an increase