WRITTEN QUESTION E-1429/00 by Charles Tannock (PPE-DE) to the Commission. The procedure used by the Commission in determining its response to address a Treaty violation.
Date: 2000-05-05
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: Member of the European Parliament, access to EU information, appeal to the Court (EU), appeals by private individuals, legal person

20.2.2001

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 53 E/141

(2001/C 53 E/179)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1429/00

by Charles Tannock (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(5 May 2000)

Subject: The procedure used by the Commission in determining its response to address a Treaty violation

In order to protect the good name of the Commission and individual Commissioners from accusations of
political bias, will the Commission, when asked to investigate a possible Treaty violation either by an
aggrieved person or legal personality or by a member of this Parliament, take independent legal advice as
to the Commission(cid:146)s obligations, and publish that advice even if legal
immunity is provided to those
providing such advice?

Answer given by Mr Prodi on behalf of the Commission

(28 June 2000)

When the Commission receives a complaint regarding an alleged infringement of the EC Treaty,
it is
registered at the Secretariat-General and the file is sent to the Directorate-General concerned, with a copy
to the Legal Service.

The Commission decision regarding any alleged infringement of the EC Treaty is prepared by the
Directorate-General concerned in coordination with the other Directorates-General
involved, and the
Legal Service gives an opinion on it.

If the complaint is considered well-founded, the procedure then depends on the perpetrator: if it is a
Member State, the full Commission can take the decision to initiate proceedings under Article 226 (former
Article 169) of the EC Treaty.

The Legal Service opinion is not published, and the code of conduct relating to public access to
Commission documents does not give access to this type of document (Order of the President of the
Court of First Instance in Case T-610/97/R Carlsen [1998] ECR II- 485).

(2001/C 53 E/180)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-1430/00

by Charles Tannock (PPE-DE) to the Commission

Subject: Powers to audit the European Investment Bank

(3 May 2000)

Can the Commission explain the background to its decision to take the EIB to the European Court of
Justice earlier this year and does it believe that treaty changes should be introduced at the forthcoming
Intergovernmental Conference to allow the Court of Auditors power to oversee all of the EIB(cid:146)s activities?

Answer given by Mr Solbes Mira on behalf of the Commission

(8 June 2000)

Concerning the background to the action brought by the Commission against the European Investment
Bank (EIB) the Honourable Member is invited to refer to the detailed resumØ which has been published (1).

The audit procedures of the EIB with respect to operations financed on own resources are defined by its
statute in particular its Article 14 and Article 9. Article 14 describes the tasks of the EIB audit committee
and Article 9 stipulates that the annual report and balance sheet and profit and loss account are approved
by the board of governors. It would require a change of the EC Treaty if the statutory rules (the Statute is a
protocol annexed to the EC Treaty) should be adapted in order to allow the Court of auditors to audit
the EIB.