WRITTEN QUESTION No. 3015/98 by Nikitas KAKLAMANIS to the Commission. CEDEFOP and 'the principal working languages'
Date: 1998-10-02
Institutions: European Parliament, KAKLAMANIS
Subjects: Cedefop, budget, official language, rules of procedure

28.6.1999

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 182/39

Answer given by Mr Van Miert on behalf of the Commission

(12 November 1998)

A complainant already informed the Commission that the Austrian firm Anker applied for a state aid to the
ministry of social affairs. The Commission will ask the Austrian authorities for their comments and will also
investigate whether the company received any state aid in the past, and if so, whether the aid was provided in
accordance with an approved or existing scheme.

In general, rescue or restructuring aid to a large undertaking would require an individual notification to the
Commission. If any Member State grants state aid to an undertaking before the Commission has made its
position known, the Commission would without any delay initiate the procedure provided in Article 93 (2) of
the EC Treaty. If the Commission considers that such a state aid is not compatible with the common market
having regard to Article 92, the Commission would declare the aid illegal and the Member State would have to
recover the state aid.

(1999/C 182/049)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-3015/98

by Nikitas Kaklamanis (UPE) to the Commission

(2 October 1998)

Subject: Cedefop and ‘the principal working languages’

In his letter of 15 September 1998, which was objectionable in every respect, the Director of Cedefop,
Mr Johan Van Rens, informed me that the Centre was not, in his opinion, obliged to draft its documents in
Greek since, to quote his letter, ‘in all EU bodies the principal working languages (particularly at administrative
level) are English, French and German.’

This is a novel departure and, when taken together with the large number of anomalies and irregularities
within the Centre, it is regrettably prompting criticism not only of procedures but also its unconventional
senior staffing policy.

What view does the Commission take of the above observation by the Cedefop Director? Has the use of
‘principal working languages’ been formally adopted within the Community bodies, something which would
obviously exclude the use of all languages of the EU Member States on an equal footing?

Answer given by Mr Santer on behalf of the Commission

(10 December 1998)

Under Article 15 of Council Regulation (EEC) 337/75 of 10 February 1975 establishing a European Centre for
the Development of Vocational Training (1), the rules governing the languages of the European Communities
are applicable to the Centre. The Centre must therefore comply with Council Regulation No 1 of 15 April
1958 determining the languages to be used by the European Economic Community (2). Under Article 6, like
the institutions, the Centre may stipulate in its rules of procedure which of the languages are to be used in
specific cases.

With regard to relations with the other institutions, it would indeed have been preferable in the instance
referred to by the Honourable Member to send Parliament the information requested in all the official
languages. However, on account of budgetary constraints the Director of the Centre was obliged to send
Parliament the information in only three languages.

(1) OJ L 39, 13.2.1975.
(2) OJ 17, 6.10.1958.