WRITTEN QUESTION E-0635/00 by Ieke van den Burg (PSE) to the Commission. Plans for a child care cheque in Carinthia.
Date: 2000-03-03
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: Carinthia, discrimination on the basis of nationality, equal treatment, family benefit, migrant worker, social-security harmonisation

21.11.2000

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 330 E/195

On 21 January 2000 the committee for veterinary medicinal products (CVMP) having considered the
matter in detail reached an opinion in respect of Bayovac IBR marker vivum and Rhinobovin marker, as
authorised in Belgium, Germany, Spain, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal and United
Kingdom. The opinion requires variation of all marketing authorisations for all such products authorised in
different Member States to ensure additional quality controls in the manufacturing process to minimise
contamination with BVD. In addition, new methods of detecting potential contamination with BVD virus
are introduced into the production process, which will also be subject to the aforementioned variations.

This opinion was forwarded to the Commission on 11 February 2000 and the Commission is currently
preparing a binding decision in accordance with the procedure foreseen in Article 22 of Directive 81/851/
EEC. In accordance with that Article, the Member States and marketing authorisation holders will have to
comply with the Commission decision within 30 days following notification, hence lifting the suspensions
of the national marketing authorisations with the implementation of the requested variations. National IBR
eradication programmes may then be continued.

The Commission fully endorses the view expressed by the Honourable Members that a decision on a
Community referral should be taken quickly in order to avoid possible economic losses of interested
parties. The possibility to adopt such decision quickly is, however, limited by the binding procedures and
time limits foreseen in Community pharmaceutical legislation and the need to carry out a proper scientific
evaluation.

3.
The committee for veterinary medicinal products concluded that the adverse reactions seen in the
Netherlands and in Italy resulted from contamination of administered live IBR vaccine. Inactivated IBR
vaccines have not been under investigation. Nevertheless the Italian authorities opted for precautionary
reasons to suspend also the inactivated vaccine. Obviously, since the inactivated vaccine was not suspended
by the Belgian authority, cattle present in Belgium may have been vaccinated with the inactivated vaccine.

(1) Council Directive 81/851/EEC of 28 September 1981 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States

relating to veterinary medicinal products, OJ L 317, 6.11.1981.

(2000/C 330 E/225)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0635/00

by Ieke van den Burg (PSE) to the Commission

(3 March 2000)

Subject: Plans for a (cid:145)child care cheque(cid:146) in Carinthia

1.
Is the Commission aware that the Governor of Carinthia, J(cid:246)rg Haider, is planning to pay Austrian
mothers in Carinthia a monthly child allowance for the first six years of a child(cid:146)s life if they stay at home
to look after their children?

Does the Commission not feel that an arrangement of this kind is inconsistent with European rules
it must be seen as

2.
concerning the coordination of social security (EEC 1408/71 (1), etc.) and that
discriminating against non-Austrian women and other inhabitants of Carinthia?

Does the Commission not feel that denying migrants and non-Austrians (or non-EU citizens) this
3.
child allowance is at odds with the European tradition that measures relating to children and child care
must apply to all inhabitants?

(1) OJ L 149, 5.7.1971, p. 2.

C 330 E/196

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

21.11.2000

Answer given by Mrs Diamantopoulou on behalf of the Commission

(7 April 2000)

The Commission(cid:146)s attention has been drawn to the plan to which the Honourable Member is referring.

In the absence of social security harmonisation, each Member State is responsible for determining all the
specific characteristics of its social legislation as long as, in doing so, it respects Community law.

However, there are Community rules which coordinate the different national social security systems,
contained in Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71 (1) and its implementing Regulation No 574/72, and which aim
to eliminate obstacles to the free movement of workers and members of their families, by guaranteeing
certain fundamental principles such as equal treatment with nationals, exportability of social security
benefits within the Community, aggregation of insurance periods and the prevalence of one applicable
body of legislation.

The above-mentioned rules for coordinating Member States(cid:146) social security systems protect the rights of
migrant workers in so far as they are nationals of the European Union or the European Economic Area.
Moreover, Tunisian, Moroccan, Algerian and Turkish nationals who are legally residing in a Member State
also benefit from equal treatment with respect to social security due to agreements between their country
of origin and the Community. Nationals from non-member countries residing in Member States cannot
refer to Community law in order to receive equal treatment with nationals. As a result, when the Austrian
authorities introduce the conditions for entitlement and the new social security allowance, they will have
to respect the principle of non-discrimination on the grounds of nationality, which implies that Commun-
ity nationals and the nationals of the four above-mentioned countries will benefit from the allowance
under the same conditions as Austrian nationals.

In addition, in 1997, the Commission already proposed to extend the field of application of Regulation
(EEC) No 1408/71 and Regulation (EEC) No 574/72 to cover nationals of all non-member countries who
are insured under a Member State(cid:146)s legislation and who are legally residing in the Community. The Council
is still reviewing this proposal (2).

Furthermore, the Commission also recently adopted a proposal to simplify and reform the rules for
coordinating Member States(cid:146) social security systems (3), which covers every person insured by social
security legislation in a Member State and which also protects nationals of non-member countries. In
accordance with the co-decision principle, Parliament and the Council are currently reviewing this
proposal, which can only be adopted by a unanimous decision.

(1) Latest consolidated version: Regulation (EC) No 118/97 (OJ L 28, 30.10.1997).
(2) OJ C 6, 1.1.1998.
(3) OJ C 38, 12.2.1999.

(2000/C 330 E/226)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-0642/00

by Andre Brie (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(28 February 2000)

Subject: Commission(cid:146)s position regarding the arrest of Kurdish mayors in Turkey

At the European Parliament part-session on 1 December 1999, Commissioner G(cid:252)nter Verheugen, on
behalf of the Commission, gave a positive assessment of political developments within Turkey with regard
to the country(cid:146)s status as an applicant for accession.

In the light of the arrest of the Kurdish mayors of Diyarbakir, Siirt and Bing(cid:246)l, Feridun Celik, Selim (cid:214)zalp
and Feyzullah Kararslan, by the Turkish police and paramilitary special units on 19 February 2000:

1.

2.

does the Commission stand by its positive assessment?

does the Commission regard the intensified action by the Turkish authorities against democratically
elected Kurdish representatives and the Kurdish party Hadep as part of these (cid:145)positive(cid:146) developments?