WRITTEN QUESTION E-2073/99 by Agnes Schierhuber (PPE-DE) to the Commission. Cartels and WTO compatibility.
Date: 1999-11-12
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: GATT, OPEC, Uruguay Round, World Trade Organisation, agricultural product, export credit, international trade, restriction on competition

C 219 E/84

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

1.8.2000

(2000/C 219 E/100)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2072/99

by Klaus-Heiner Lehne (PPE-DE) to the Commission

Subject: Ban on tobacco advertising, freedom of the press

(12 November 1999)

Is it true that, in connection with the transposition of the directive concerning the prohibition of tobacco
advertising, the two Member States Britain and France intend, once this directive has been transposed in
their countries, to prohibit the distribution of magazines originating from countries in which there is no
ban on tobacco advertising or where the directive has not yet been transposed if these publications carry
tobacco advertising?

How does the Commission view this against the background of the guarantee of the freedom of the press?

Answer given by Mr Byrne on behalf of the Commission

(13 December 1999)

The Commission is not aware of the intentions of two Member States to restrict circulation of press
carrying tobacco advertising.

If such cases were brought to its attention, they would be considered in the framework of Directive 98/43/
EC of the Parliament and of the Council of 6 July 1998 on the approximation of the laws, regulations and
administrative provisions of the Member States relating to the advertising and sponsorship of tobacco
products (1).

However, concerning the press, this Directive has only to be transposed into national law until 30 July
2002.

(1) OJ L 213, 30.7.1998.

(2000/C 219 E/101)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2073/99

by Agnes Schierhuber (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(12 November 1999)

Subject: Cartels and WTO compatibility

1.

Is the OPEC oil cartel compatible with the WTO rules?

If so, what positions will the EU adopt at the WTO Millennium Round in opposing the market-

2.
distorting measures taken by the OPEC countries?

3. What view should be taken of the impact that government export organisations in New Zealand,
Australia and Canada to which or through which products must be sold (dairy boards, wheat boards, etc.)
have on world trade, and how are they compatible with the WTO?

4. What view should be taken of the impact on world trade of such measures as export credits, internal
transport subsidies and the fact that US states have different licensing procedures, and how are they
compatible with the WTO?

Answer given by Mr Lamy on behalf of the Commission

(22 December 1999)

1. and 2.
The problem of the compatibility of the Organisation of petroleum exporting countries
(OPEC) with World trade organisation (WTO) rules has never arisen in practice. While the Community
considers that future negotiations on competition should include commitments by governments to treat

1.8.2000

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Official Journal of the European Communities

C 219 E/85

cartels as a serious breach of competition law, it should be noted that government mandated restrictions
do not normally fall within the scope of such competition law disciplines. Of course, any such government
mandated restriction has to be in conformity with the existing framework of WTO rules.

3.
In order to be compatible with WTO rules, state trading enterprises (STEs), such as those operated by
New Zealand, Australia and Canada for certain agricultural commodities, have to respect the provisions
laid down in General agreement on tariffs and trade (GATT) Article XVII. In defining its approach to the
new round in relation to agriculture, the Community has indicated that the operation of STEs should be
examined, and in particular when the various forms of export support are addressed.

4.
The rules for export credits (cid:145)Arrangement on guidelines for officially supported export credits(cid:146) have
been fixed in a forum which has almost all Organisation for economic cooperation and development
(OECD) countries as members (e.g. Turkey and Mexico are not members). The point of view has always
been that those most interested in a strong discipline in this field, are probably those countries that give
export credits and export credit guarantees on insurance rather than those that primarily receive the
credits. The rules cover sales of capital goods on credit terms of two years or more. In September 1994 it
was, however, agreed that negotiations on credit terms for agricultural products would start as soon as the
Uruguay round was in place.

Article 10§2 of the Uruguay round agreement on agriculture foresaw the development of internationally
agreed disciplines to govern the provision of export credits, export credit guarantees or insurance
programmes, as part of the Marrakech deal on export competition commitments. Despite this provision,
it has proved impossible to reach, during the implementation period of the Uruguay round, an agreement
on such disciplines for agricultural products at the OECD, due to resistance from the United States.
Therefore, the Community has indicated in its mandate for Seattle that the issue of export credits to
agriculture also needs to be taken up in the framework of WTO as an example of non-implementation,
when addressing export competition measures for agricultural products.

As far as internal transport subsidies are concerned, to the extent that these relate to agriculture, they
would need to respect, and be notified under the relevant provisions of the agreement on agriculture.
However, it should be recalled that one of the more important schemes in this respect, the so-called (cid:145)Crow
Rate(cid:146) operated by Canada, which was a form of export subsidy, has now been withdrawn.

(2000/C 219 E/102)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2076/99

by Antonios Trakatellis (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(12 November 1999)

Subject: Public health hazard in Greece posed by high concentrations of arsenic in drinking water (cid:129) breach

of Community legislation

Recent measurements of drinking water quality carried out in the Chalastra area of Thessaloniki by the
Aristotle University of Thessaloniki have revealed extremely high concentrations of arsenic, 64 micro-
grammes per litre (µgr/l), which represents a direct risk to public health. Such a concentration is far
beyond the maximum acceptable EU limit of 50 µgr/l laid down by Directive 80/778/EEC (1) on water
quality, while the risk to public health is even greater if the new 1998 directive is taken into account
(Directive 98/83/EC (2) on the quality of water intended for human consumption, replacing the previous
directive) which lays down the maximum parametric value for arsenic at 10 µgr/l.