WRITTEN QUESTION E-1331/00 by Giovanni Pittella (PSE) to the Commission. Possibility of EU citizens bringing cases of violations of fundamental rights before the Court of Justice.
Date: 2000-04-27
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: appeals by private individuals, fundamental rights

C 72 E/46

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

6.3.2001

the transformation of the livestock sector, secondly specific recommendations to address public good and
strategic guidance on research and development with regard to livestock, environment, poverty, equity and
animal welfare issues, as well as public health;
in particular to design development strategies for the
positioning of livestock in the development process for use by research institutions, development agencies,
private and public funding institutions, and thirdly use of project outcomes by policy- and decision-makers
to be ensured by the Virtual Centre on research and development (integral part of the LEAD-initiative). The
Commission has prepared the necessary documents and is now in the process of proposing the study for
funding to various internal financial instruments (budget lines (cid:145)Environment(cid:146) or ALA-MEDA). It is expected
that the study will provide an original and innovative tool to policy- and decision-makers in choosing
national priorities and strategies, and to donors to better target their aid.

The Community is not supporting the creation or promotion of industrial animal farming in DCs. It is in
many instances private sector led while the Community aims first at helping poor small scale farmers.

(2001/C 72 E/050)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1331/00

by Giovanni Pittella (PSE) to the Commission

(27 April 2000)

Subject: Possibility of EU citizens bringing cases of violations of fundamental rights before the Court of

Justice

Following the entry into force of the Treaty of Amsterdam on 1 May 1999, Article 7 (TEU) now provides
for a procedure for determining the existence of a failure to respect and protect human rights by a
Member State and for penalising such failure.

Can the Commission state whether this procedure can also be invoked by individual citizens with a view
to penalising the Member State at fault?

Can an EU citizen bring cases of violations of fundamental rights within a Member State before the
European Court of Justice?

Answer given by Mr Prodi on behalf of the Commission

(18 July 2000)

The Commission would remind the Honourable Member that, under Article 7 of the Treaty on European
Union, only one third of the Member States or the Commission may present to the Council, meeting at the
level of Heads of State or Government, a proposal determining the existence of a serious and persistent
breach by a Member State of principles mentioned in Article 6(1).

Under the provisions of the EC Treaty relating to the Court of Justice (Article 220 (formerly Article 164) et
seq.), a private individual does not have any direct means of redress before the Court against acts of the
Member States. By contrast, requests for preliminary rulings may or, where appropriate, must be made to
the Court under Article 234 (formerly Article 177) of the EC Treaty by national courts, including in
disputes where a private individual
invokes a breach of fundamental rights as general principles of
Community law by a Member State acting within the scope of Community law.