WRITTEN QUESTION P-2613/00 by Hiltrud Breyer (Verts/ALE) to the Commission. Live transport of farm animals.
Date: 2000-07-25
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: animal production, animal welfare, application of EU law, competence of the Member States, transport of animals

C 103 E/198

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

3.4.2001

Answer given by Mr Vitorino on behalf of the Commission

(25 September 2000)

It is up to the national authorities to protect the welfare of minors and to safeguard them against
disappearance or abduction, for which one of the parents is often responsible. This is why the issue of
passports for minors generally requires both parents(cid:146) consent.

The Commission believes that this practice is in accordance with Community law. In cases where the
parents disagree, it is up to the national courts to judge the situation and rule whether or not the passport
should be issued, if one of the parents is liable to abuse his or her rights.

(2001/C 103 E/227)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-2613/00

by Hiltrud Breyer (Verts/ALE) to the Commission

(25 July 2000)

Subject: Live transport of farm animals

Recent replies from the Commission to questions on the live transport of animals have indicated that the
Food and Veterinary Office (FVO) is very aware of the animal welfare problems that continue to exist as a
result of a failure of many Member States to take their enforcement responsibilities seriously. More
inspections by the FVO, specifically on the welfare of animals during transport and to establish the extent
to which Directives 91/628/EEC (1) and 95/29/EC (2) are being enforced, could well improve the situation.

In view of the fact that the number of such inspections and the number of inspectors working in this field
have been woefully inadequate in recent years, could the Commission please answer the following
questions:

1. What initiatives will the Commission take regarding the non-compliance of Member States with

Directives 91/628/EEC and 95/29/EC?

2. What steps has the Commission taken to increase the number of inspections on animal transport?

3. How many inspections have taken place in the first six months of this year (please specify where,

when, by whom and exact number of inspections?

(1) OJ L 340, 11.12.1991, p. 17.
(2) OJ L 148, 30.6.1995, p. 52.

Answer given by Mr Byrne on behalf of the Commission

(28 September 2000)

In the last year a working group of the standing veterinary committee, with representatives from
1.
each of the Member States, has focused on the difficulties arising from the proper enforcement of current
Community legislation in the field. The Commission will continue with this and similar initiatives in order
to improve the level of co-operation between Member States on this issue and to increase the level of
enforcement of Council Directive 91/628/EEC of 19 November 1991 on the protection of animals during
transport and amending Directives 90/425/EEC and 91/496/EEC (as amended by Council Directive 95/29/
EC of 29 June 1995). Day-to-day enforcement of the Directive is the responsibility of the Member States.
The Commission veterinary inspectors carry out periodic on-the-spot checks to ensure that the require-
ments of these texts are being properly enforced. Incidents of non-compliance with the directives are
brought to the attention of the Member State concerned at the end of each inspection mission and more
formally in the subsequent mission report. Similarly, if animal welfare societies or, indeed, members of the

3.4.2001

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Official Journal of the European Communities

C 103 E/199

public, bring incidents of non-compliance with the directives to the attention of the Commission, it is the
normal practice of the Commission to intervene with the authorities of the Member State involved. If the
Member State fails to take rapid action to bring to an end the alleged infringements the Commission may
decide to open infringement proceedings under Article 226 (ex Article 169) of the EC Treaty.

The Commission has recently increased to four the number of inspectors specifically dedicated to
2.
animal welfare issues,
including the transport of animals. It is anticipated that a total number of ten
dedicated animal welfare inspection missions will be carried out by the inspectors in the year 2000, as
compared to seven in 1999. Three of the five missions planned for the second half of this year will focus
exclusively on animal transport and another will cover welfare at the time of slaughter together with
animal transport.

In addition, animal welfare forms part of the wider inspection activities of the Commission. For instance,
inspections of border inspection posts cover aspects such as the staffing and facilities provided to ensure
that animals are examined for fitness for import, and route plans are verified during these missions. In
addition to public health issues, the inspections of abattoirs also include aspects of animal welfare during
transport.

3.
Five Commission missions devoted specifically to animal welfare have been carried out already
in 2000. Of these, one focused exclusively on animal transport and another covered some elements
of transport. The missions were to the United Kingdom (5 days in February/March with 2 inspectors and
a national expert, concerning the welfare of pigs and calves on farm); Sweden (5 days in April with
2 inspectors and a national expert, concerning the welfare of pigs and calves on farm); Denmark
(5 days in May with 2 inspectors and a national expert, concerning the welfare of pigs and calves on
farm) Spain (5 days in May/June with 2 inspectors and a national expert, concerning animal transport and
staging points) and Austria (5 days in June with 2 inspectors and a national expert, concerning the welfare
of pigs and calves on farm and some aspects of animal transport). In addition, 2 inspectors held two
separate three-day meetings specifically devoted to animal transport with the authorities of Greece and
Italy in February 2000.

(2001/C 103 E/228)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2615/00

by Anna Karamanou (PSE) to the Council

(1 September 2000)

Subject: Immigration and development

With a view to the informal meeting of the Council of Ministers for Justice and Home Affairs to be held in
Marseille on 28/29 July 2000, where one of the topics on the agenda will be immigration and asylum, and
bearing in mind that mass immigration is a phenomenon that will not decline until the economic, political
and social conditions in underdeveloped countries improve, will the Council support the cancellation of
Third World debt and urge the Member States to allocate 0,7 % of GDP to the poor countries, in line with
the commitments they have given? In view of the demographic development predicted by UN reports for
the next 50 years, would it not be appropriate to draw up an integrated European policy on asylum and
immigration, based on European humanitarian values, with transparent rules governing the entry and
residence of third country nationals and including the prospect of legal immigration?

Reply

(10 November 2000)

The Council has, on 8 November 1999, adopted conclusions supporting the debt relief initiative for highly
indebted poor countries (HIPC) launched by the IMF and the World Bank in September 1996.