WRITTEN QUESTION E-1595/00 by Olivier Dupuis (TDI) to the Council. Pre-trial detention.
Date: 2000-05-24
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: France, Treaty of Amsterdam, detention before trial, industrial counterfeiting, paper money, right to justice

13.3.2001

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 81 E/57

Answer given by Mrs de Palacio on behalf of the Commission

(4 July 2000)

Commission Decision 2000/275/CE of 21 March 2000 on equivalences between certain categories of
driving licences (1) is based upon the first paragraph of Article 10 of Council Directive 91/439/EEC of
29 July 1991 on driving licences (2). It determines the equivalences between categories of licences, which
have been issued before entry into force of Directive 91/439/EEC, and the categories defined in Article 3
thereof.

The above Commission Decision defines driving licence model (cid:145)Germany 1(cid:146) as a model of licence which
was issued in the (cid:145)Federal Republic of Germany(cid:146) before 1 April 1986. As regards driving licence models
which have been issued in Germany before 1945 and by the Allied Forces after 1945, the following
applies.

Driving licences, which were issued before 1945 were declared void for the territory of the former German
Democratic Republic (GDR) by virtue of a national law adopted in 1949 and had to be exchanged for a
new GDR-model. For holders of such licences, the equivalences of one of the models described in the
above Decision apply.

With respect to the territory of the partioned Federal Republic of Germany, the system of categorising
remained unchanged after 1945. Therefore, equivalences identical with those laid down for the model
(cid:145)Germany 1(cid:146) apply to all driving licences issued by the German authorities before 1945 and those issued
thereafter by the Allied Forces, in those cases where the licences have not been exchanged. The only
difference may be that some of those models do not contain (cid:145)Klasse 5(cid:146) entitlements. The equivalence for
this category may thus not be granted.

The German authorities have no knowledge of a single model of the above licences still being in
circulation. For this reason they were unable to supply the necessary licence models to the Commission.
Holders of such licences presumably have exchanged them in the meantime. Should such a licence appear,
the German issuing authorities may be contacted in accordance with the general rule laid down in the first
paragraph of the Commission Decision describing German models (1).

(1) OJ L 91, 12.4.2000.
(2) OJ L 237, 24.8.1991.

(2001/C 81 E/066)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1595/00

by Olivier Dupuis (TDI) to the Council

(24 May 2000)

Subject: Pre-trial detention

On 6 July 1997 Jean-Jacques Pitalugue, Gilles Benhayoun, Jean-Luc Della Justina and Maxime Briat were
arrested for having produced colour photocopies of banknotes to a value of FF 20 800, some of which
were put into circulation (to a value of FF 3 500) despite their poor quality.

The men were arrested and charged and are currently being detained at Fresnes remand prison under a
detention order of limited duration dated 6 July 1997 and an order of 30 June 1998 extending their pre-
trial detention as from 6 July 1998, renewed again on 4 January 1999 as from 6 January 1999.

On 6 January 2000 all four accused were committed for trial at the Assize Court in the department of
Loiret on charges of forgery or counterfeiting of banknotes that are legal tender in France, by order of the
Orleans Indictments Division, although they were discharged on the count of conspiracy. The four accused
are now in their thirty-fifth month of pre-trial detention.

C 81 E/58

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

13.3.2001

Does the Council not consider that the criteria generally applied as regards the length of pre-trial detention
have not in fact been complied with in this case? If this is so, does it not consider that it should intervene,
within the framework of its new powers in the area of justice under the Amsterdam Treaty, to secure
compliance with reasonable periods for pre-trial detention and judgments or, failing that, the release of
defendants under Article 5(3) of the European Human Rights Convention?

Reply

(29 September 2000)

The questions raised by the Honourable Member of Parliament are not within the Council(cid:146)s competence.

(2001/C 81 E/067)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1597/00

by Adriana Poli Bortone (UEN) to the Commission

(19 May 2000)

Subject: Milk quotas

The basic principle underlying all Community rules on milk quotas is that the purchaser is to all intents
and purposes the main (cid:145)actor(cid:146) in the system and is required to keep analytical accounts enabling each
Member State to quantify quickly and accurately the production marketed during a given period and thus
meet its commitments to the European Union. Does the Commission not think it would be useful to
suggest a technical solution to Member States whereby (cid:145)intelligent accounting(cid:146) could be used to enable
purchasers to notify an information system of each milk delivery made by producers?

The existence of surpluses would become apparent in real time enabling the administration to open the
levy procedure so as to discourage production surpluses.

Answer given by Mr Fischler on behalf of the Commission

(23 June 2000)

Community legislation on milk quotas leaves it to Member States to select where certain matters are
concerned the procedures most appropriate to their specific production conditions and administrative
systems.

The Honourable Member(cid:146)s suggestion of imposing (cid:145)intelligent accounting(cid:146) (direct purchaser inputting to
the Member State(cid:146)s central
information system of each producer(cid:146)s delivery figures) would certainly be
advantageous for rapid and reliable determination of the national delivery figure but clashes with operation
of the subsidiarity principle as indicated above.

Community legislation does however require Member States to take all necessary action to ensure
collection of the levy on quantities in excess of the guaranteed total quantity.

(2001/C 81 E/068)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-1603/00

by Concepci(cid:243) Ferrer (PPE-DE) to the Council

(15 May 2000)

Subject: Local elections in Equatorial Guinea

In the light of the announcement that local elections are to take place in Equatorial Guinea on 28 May
2000, it is worth bearing in mind that the last round of elections in that country failed to provide a
minimum level of transparency or the most basic democratic guarantees.