WRITTEN QUESTION E-1327/00 by Daniel Hannan (PPE-DE) to the Council. Working groups.
Date: 2000-05-03
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: Community budget, EU body for police and judicial cooperation, access to EU information, administrative transparency, committee (EU), dissemination of EU information

18.4.2001

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 113 E/11

While Directive 98/70/EC does not contain any Article relating specifically to tax incentives, Directives 98/
69/EC and 1999/96/EC contain articles that permit Member States to apply tax incentives to encourage the
earlier introduction of vehicles that meet future mandatory emission standards and, in the case of Directive
1999/96/EC, a set of emission standards based on best available technology which define a category of
vehicle known as enhanced environmentally friendly vehicles (EEV). In addition all three directives contain
a number of recitals referring to the use of differentiated excise taxation as an incentive to encourage
actions having a positive effect on the environment (use of more advanced fuels, replacement of old
vehicles, etc.). Finally, the Commission made a proposal in March 1997 for a directive restructuring the
taxation of energy products (5) including diesel, but the proposed directive has not yet been adopted by the
Council.

The tax rate on diesel applied in Member States has traditionally been lower than that applied on petrol,
reflecting the fact that diesel is the main source of fuel used by commercial vehicles. However, in recent
years a number of Member States have modified these taxes to take account of other policy objectives
including the reduction of road transport emissions.

(1) OJ L 316, 31.10.1992.
(2) Directive 98/69/EC of the Parliament and of the Council of 13 October 1998, relating to measures to be taken
against air pollution by emissions from motor vehicles and amending Council Directive 70/220/EEC (OJ L 350,
28.12.1998).

(3) Directive 98/70/EC of the Parliament and of the Council of 13 October 1998 relating to the quality of petrol and

diesel fuels and amending Council Directive 93/12/EEC (OJ L 350, 28.12.1998).

(4) Directive 1999/96/EC of the Parliament and of the Council of 13 December 1999, on the approximation of the
laws of the Member States relating to measures to be taken against the emission of gaseous and particulate
pollutants from compression ignition engines for use in vehicles, and the emission of gaseous pollutants from
positive ignition engines fuelled with natural gas or liquefied petroleum gas for use in vehicles and amending
Council Directive 88/77/EEC (OJ L 44, 16.2.2000).

(5) OJ C 139, 6.5.1997.

(2001/C 113 E/010)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1327/00

by Daniel Hannan (PPE-DE) to the Council

(3 May 2000)

Subject: Working groups

There are hundreds of working groups assigned to harmonisation of legislation, formulation of common
policy and the advancement of European ideals.

These working groups are listed in the annual budget and the Annual Budget 2000 lists them on pages
480 and 504 of OJ L 40, 14.2.2000.

However, little is known of the activities or exact purpose of these bodies.

In the spirit of greater openness, and for the record, will the Council supply (cid:129) not piecemeal, but as a
single compiled block of data (cid:129) details on each committee, namely:

1. nature of national and Commission representation;

2.

the number of times it met over the last year;

3. what was on the agenda for each meeting;

4. what is presently on the agenda;

5. occasions on which ministers have been present at a meeting, if ever?

Will it also consider providing a mechanism, such as the internet, so that those who wish to discover what
is in the legislative pipeline can do so at an earlier moment in time?

C 113 E/12

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

18.4.2001

Further, will it supply as a matter of course material covered under 4. of the above to the European Select
Committees of the House of Common and House of Lords, and to the relevant committees of the
European Parliament?

Reply

(20 November 2000)

The Honourable Member refers in his question to the committees set up in accordance with Article 202 of
the EC Treaty, which are responsible for assisting the Commission in exercising its powers for the
implementation of certain rules.

The Council recalls the Council Decision of 28 June 1999 laying down the procedures for the exercise of
implementing powers conferred on the Commission. That decision lays down that
the (cid:145)European
Parliament shall be informed by the Commission of committee proceedings on a regular basis. To that
end, it shall receive agendas for committee meetings, draft measures submitted to the committees for the
implementation of instruments adopted by the procedure provided for by Article 251 of the Treaty, and
the results of voting and summary records of the meetings and lists of the authorities and organisations to
which the persons designated by the Member States to represent them belong. The European Parliament
shall also be kept informed whenever the Commission transmits to the Council measures of proposals for
measures to be taken.(cid:146)

In addition, the Council suggests that the Honourable Member address himself directly to the Commission
regarding its position on communication of documents. The Council must point out that the statements
made at the time of the Council Decision of 28 June 1999 were made available to the public in
accordance with the first subparagraph of Article 7(1) of the Council(cid:146)s Rules of Procedure, and appear on
the Council(cid:146)s internet home page.

However, in the case of committees set up by the Treaties themselves or committees and working parties
set up pursuant to the Council(cid:146)s Rules of Procedure to prepare the work of the Council or submit opinions
to it, the provisions concerning transparency of Council acts apply.

Pursuant to the Council Decision of 6 December 1999 (1), the Council General Secretariat therefore makes
available to the public on the Internet (http://ue.eu.int) a list of the items on provisional agendas for
meetings of the Council and its preparatory bodies which concern cases where the Council acts in its
legislative capacity within the meaning of Article 6 of its Rules of Procedure.

(1) OJ L 9, 13.1.2000.

(2001/C 113 E/011)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1347/00

by Christopher Heaton-Harris (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(4 May 2000)

Subject: Institutional reform

I am pleased that the Commission wishes to make itself a (cid:145)model employer(cid:146) that offers a (cid:145)good working
environment(cid:146) for all staff. With these stated wishes in mind, could the Commission please comment on the
thinking behind the recent closure of a Commission crŁche and the scrapping of reception services at one
of the DG buildings? I approve whole-heartedly of cost-cutting but hope very much that the Commission
would agree with me that,
in future, changes made to Commission services should go some way to
realising the projects and aspirations set out in the consultation document on Commission reform rather
than undermining them.