WRITTEN QUESTION E-0467/00 by Luis Berenguer Fuster (PSE) to the Commission. Shortcomings in the transposition of Community legislation on health and safety at work into Spanish law.
Date: 2000-02-24
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: competence of the Member States, directive (EU), mining industry, national implementing measure, public works, safety standard, tunnel, working conditions

21.11.2000

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 330 E/167

Answer given by Mrs Reding on behalf of the Commission

(19 April 2000)

Budget heading B-1003 (cid:145)Preparatory measures for promotion of the linguistic diversity of the Community
in the information society(cid:146) is intended, according to the budget remarks, to promote the Community(cid:146)s
linguistic diversity, including regional and minority languages. It is also intended to cover the funding of
preparatory measures for the European Year of Languages (EYL).

The Commission originally asked for € 4 million to prepare for the Year. It now proposes to use all of the
€ 2 million finally awarded for these preparatory activities.

The limited budget available in 2000 will only be enough to cover urgent expenditure which cannot be
deferred until 2001,
i.e. the information campaign and launch events. These activities will be funded
respectively following a call for tenders for this contract and on the basis of proposals from those Member
States organising launch events. The Commission has always emphasised that many of the activities
associated with the Year will be neutral in target language terms. However, all the target languages defined
in the decision establishing the Year will be included.

The Commission plans to publish a call for proposals during the autumn to identify projects eligible for a
grant under the 2001 budget; the text of the call is currently being drawn up. The projects chosen will be
informed once the selection and financial commitment procedure has been completed. If necessary, a
second call will be published in 2001.

With regard to linguistic diversity in the information society, the Commission is planning to publish at the
end of April 2000 a call for proposals for preparatory measures intended to prepare the joint follow-up to
the Multilingual
in
principle, target all languages, including regional and minority ones, if their objectives are suitable and fit
within the framework of the call for proposals.

Information Society (MLIS) and INFO 2000 programmes. These measures could,

(2000/C 330 E/189)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0467/00

by Luis Berenguer Fuster (PSE) to the Commission

(24 February 2000)

Subject: Shortcomings in the transposition of Community legislation on health and safety at work into

Spanish law

Spain has adopted a number of provisions to transpose the Community laws aimed at guaranteeing
minimum levels of safety protection for workers into domestic law. These Community laws are Framework
Directive 89/391/EEC (1) and two individual directives ensuing from it (cid:129) Directive 92/104/EEC (2) on the
minimum requirements for improving the safety and health protection of workers in surface and under-
ground mineral-extracting industries, and Directive 92/57/EEC (3) on the minimum safety and health
requirements for workers at construction sites.

Spanish legislation on certain civil engineering projects, such as tunnels, does not conform to the
provisions of Directive 92/57/EEC, since in Spain such sites are also covered by the inspection of
safeguards established for mining and other extractive industries, in accordance with Royal Decree 1389/
97. Spanish Law 42/97 of 14 November 1997 stipulates that the labour and social security inspectorate is
not competent to deal with health and safety issues for any form of underground activity, regardless of
whether or not it involves mining.

The Commission has already received complaints from trade unions and professional organisations to the
effect that, rather than improving security levels as Community legislation requires, the irregular extension
of measures and monitoring for the mining sector to civil engineering projects involving the construction
of underground tunnels places workers at risk. The risks involved stem from the enforcement of safety and

C 330 E/168

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

21.11.2000

technical standards not intended for construction projects and the possibility that standards and instruc-
tions may contradict one another. With such legislation in force, Spain cannot hope to attain the required
safety levels laid down in Directive 92/57/EEC.

Has the Commission looked into the shortcomings in the transposition of Directive 92/57/EEC into
1.
Spanish law, which have resulted in the failure to conduct health and safety checks for underground
activities not involving mining and thus undermined the implementation of the Directive?

2. What measures does the Commission intend to adopt to ensure the proper transposition of Directive
92/57/EEC in Spain with regard to underground civil engineering projects?

(1) OJ L 183, 29.6.1989, p. 1.
(2) OJ L 404, 31.12.1992, p. 10.
(3) OJ L 245, 26.8.1992, p. 6.

Answer given by Mrs Diamantopoulou on behalf of the Commission

(3 April 2000)

The Commission has analysed the Spanish measures for the implementation of Directive 92/57/EEC and
considers it to have been correctly transposed into Spanish law.

This conclusion is not affected by the fact that Royal Decree 1389/1997 transposing Directive 92/104/EEC
on surface and underground mineral-extracting industries makes tunnelling activities of whatever nature
subject to the minimum requirements applicable to the mining sector. Royal Decree 1389/1997 lays down
that this shall be without prejudice to the rules applicable to the construction sector, namely the provisions
transposing Directive 92/57/EEC.

In so far as Directive 92/57/EEC was adopted on the basis of Article 137 of the EC Treaty (ex-Article 118a),
it lays down (cid:145)minimum requirements(cid:146) in the field of safety and health protection for implementation on
temporary or mobile work sites. The expression (cid:145)minimum requirements(cid:146) means that the Member States
are authorised to maintain or establish more rigorous measures than those which are the subject of
Community intervention, in accordance with the provisions of Article 137 (5) of the EC Treaty.

Examination of
the minimum requirements
established for the mining sector to certain construction activities such as tunnelling increases the level
of protection for workers laid down by Directive 92/57/EEC.

the Spanish legislation has shown that application of

It is the responsibility of the Member States to ensure proper monitoring and surveillance of the national
provisions transposing directives. In this regard, the appointment of the competent authorities is entirely a
matter for the Member States.

(2000/C 330 E/190)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0469/00

by Isabelle Caullery (UEN) to the Commission

(24 February 2000)

Subject: European Union measures in the ˛le-de-France region

Can the Commission provide synoptic tables and comprehensive statistical information concerning the
various aids and subsidies received by the ˛le-de-France and each of its departments for the period
1994-1999 from the various European funds (ESF, ERDF, EAGGF, etc.), from the EIB, from urban policy
resources and other financial instruments and from other sources?

Can it indicate the extent to which these numerous measures have affected employment levels in the
˛le-de-France region and give estimates or, if possible, precise figures, by sector of activity concerning the
number of jobs directly or indirectly created or saved as a result?