WRITTEN QUESTION E-2305/00 by Carmen Cerdeira Morterero (PSE) to the Commission. The Leader+ programme and Ceuta.
Date: 2000-07-11
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: Ceuta, EU programme, fund (EU), rural development

C 113 E/84

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

18.4.2001

Three of the accession countries are listed in part I of the Annex of the above Decision (the so-called (cid:145)fully
harmonised(cid:146) list) and are covered by a specific decision under Council Directive 91/493/EEC of 22 July
1991 laying down the health conditions for the production and the placing on the market of fishery
products (2). Poland is expected to join Part I soon on the basis of a favourable mission by the Commission
and guarantees received from the Polish authorities.

All the other candidate countries except two are listed in Part II of the Annex (the so-called (cid:145)pre-listed(cid:146)
countries) meeting the terms of Article 2(2) of Council Decision 95/408/EC of 22 June 1995 on the
conditions for drawing up, for an interim period, provisional lists of third country establishments from
which Member States are authorized to import certain products of animal origin, fishery products or live
bivalve molluscs (3). The validity of the latter Decision is being extended from the end of this year to
31 December 2003. Bulgaria and Slovakia are not on the Community list and imports of fishery products
from those countries are not permitted at present.

None of
these candidate countries are currently listed among the 14 countries in the Annex to
Commission Decision 97/20/EC of 17 December 1996 establishing the list of third countries fulfilling
the equivalence conditions for the production and placing on the market of bivalve molluscs, echinoderms,
tunicates and marine gastropods (4).

Considering that candidate countries generally accept the Community fisheries acquis, the Commission
considers that the central issue in the enlargement negotiations on fisheries is the establishment by the
applicant countries of adequate administrative structures to implement the common fisheries policy. Pre-
in
accession instruments are available to contribute to institution-building in the applicant countries,
particular assistance through the PHARE programme. Funding with respect to the fisheries sector can be
considered, even though the limited resources imply focusing on priorities.

In the light of the limited budgetary resources dedicated to fisheries in candidate countries, their existing
national aid schemes only represent a very small fraction of the public aid available to the fisheries sector
in existing Member States. The national aid schemes must necessarily be in conformity with Community
state aid rules upon accession.

(1) OJ L 122, 14.5.1997.
(2) OJ L 268, 24.9.1991.
(3) OJ L 243, 11.10.1995.
(4) OJ L 6, 10.1.1997.

(2001/C 113 E/082)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2305/00

by Carmen Cerdeira Morterero (PSE) to the Commission

Subject: The Leader+ programme and Ceuta

(11 July 2000)

Can the Commission estimate the amount of funding to be assigned to the Spanish region of Ceuta under
the Leader+ programme in the next programming period?

Answer given by Mr Fischler on behalf of the Commission

(7 September 2000)

The Spanish Government has not yet submitted any proposals to the Commission for the Leader+
Initiative in Spain.

The Commission cannot yet tell the Honourable Member whether the Spanish authorities will present a
Leader+ programme for the region of Ceuta.