WRITTEN QUESTION E-2509/00 by Nicholas Clegg (ELDR) to the Commission. Spanish and Italian wine in Calais.
Date: 2000-08-02
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: beer, excise duty, exemption from customs duties, import, sale, single market, wine

C 113 E/110

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

18.4.2001

spectrum issues, together with the possibility for the identification of best practices and their application
throughout the Community in the proposed spectrum decision (6), will contribute to safeguarding the
Community interest in this field.

The Commission has been working since before the adoption in 1998 of its proposal for a UMTS
5.
Decision (7) to ensure the timely and co-ordinated introduction of third generation mobile systems in the
Community. Its analysis of the economic impact of third generation mobile licensing procedures will
naturally take account of these priority objectives and should not have any distortive effect on competi-
tion.

The Commission will continue to monitor the provisions relating to access for third parties to mobile
fair competition

6.
networks in the Member States with a view to encouraging the development of
throughout the Community.

7.
The Commission draws attention to the fact that, under the regulatory framework, regulatory tasks
may be carried out by bodies other than the separate regulatory agency set up in the Member State
concerned. Accordingly, in the case of the Netherlands it is for the authorities of that Member State to
decide on the division of regulatory tasks as between the bodies designated under national law, while
ensuring that the principle of Community law of the structural separation of such bodies from activities
associated with ownership or control of a telecommunications operator is complied with. The Commi-
ssion, for its part, has no reason to believe that that principle has not been respected in the Netherlands.

(1) OJ C 89 E, 20.3.2001.
(2) OJ L 192, 24.7.1990.
(3) OJ L 162, 26.6.1999.
(4) OJ L 117, 7.5.1997.
(5) COM(2000) 407 final.
(6) COM(2000) 393 final.
(7) Decision 128/1999/EC of

the Council of 14 December 1998 on the co-ordinated
introduction of a third-generation mobile and wireless communications system (UMTS) in the Community (OJ L 17,
22.1.1999).

the Parliament and of

(2001/C 113 E/110)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2509/00

by Nicholas Clegg (ELDR) to the Commission

(2 August 2000)

Subject: Spanish and Italian wine in Calais

Would the Commission regard the import of duty-paid beers and wines from France to the UK as a serious
problem for the single market if it affected Member States other than France and the UK?

Is the Commission aware that the proportion of Italian and Spanish wines sold to UK shoppers in France is
around half the proportion of UK domestic sales of wine from those countries?

Would the Commission agree with UK brewing industry estimates that Spain is losing approximately
7 million litres of wine sales per year as a result of duty-paid imports from Calais to Dover and Italy over
10 million litres per year?

Will the Commission be reviewing these facts as part of the research project into excise duty differentials
which will be completed by external consultants at the beginning of next year?

18.4.2001

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 113 E/111

Answer given by Mr Bolkestein on behalf of the Commission

(14 September 2000)

The Commission has not received any information about the scale of a possible reduction of sales of
Spanish and Italian wines in the United Kingdom as a result of increased cross-border purchases of wine
by British customers in France. As a consequence, the Commission cannot express itself on the figures
cited by the British brewing industry.

As part of its next report on the levels of the minimum excise duty rates and the excise duty rates applied
by Member States, which the Commission intends to submit at the beginning of 2001, the Commission
has to examine these rate levels in the light of the proper functioning of the internal market. To the extent
that data are available, phenomena such as that cited by the Honourable Member will be addressed in this
report as well as in the study that has been commissioned from external consultants. This study will deal,
more in particular, with the issue of competition between different categories of alcoholic drinks and will
try to identify and explain trends in their consumption. The Commission would therefore invite the
Honourable Member to submit any relevant information he has on this issue.

(2001/C 113 E/111)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2510/00

by Glyn Ford (PSE) to the Commission

(2 August 2000)

Subject: Discrimination by Italian banks

Will the Commission confirm that it is illegal for Italian banks to discriminate against EU citizens who
want to open a bank account in Italy by offering them (cid:145)foreign(cid:146) accounts at disadvantageous terms?

Answer given by Mr Bolkestein on behalf of the Commission

(2 October 2000)

The free movement of capital as provided for in Article 56 (ex Article 73b) of the EC Treaty is one of the
cornerstones of the single market. However, Article 58 (ex Article 73d) of the EC Treaty explicitly sets out
the Member States(cid:146) right to maintain or introduce certain measures for reasons of taxation (different
treatment of residents and non-residents) as well as for statistical and administrative reasons. However,
such measures may not be discriminatory.

information for establishing their balance of payments, most
Given the necessity to obtain statistical
Member States impose certain reporting requirements on their banks and financial institutions. Certain
transactions from and/or to a non-resident account as well as cross-border transactions in general have to
be notified to the authorities. This is the case in Italy.

Hence, operating a non-resident account calls for additional administrative procedures for the credit
institutions under present Italian legislation. If a provider decides to levy additional charges in order to
cover the cost of the necessary manual handling, this decision is made on the basis of profitability and
hence a commercial decision;
it is not a discriminatory decision. Neither national authorities nor the
Commission can intervene in the banks(cid:146) price policy.

Furthermore, should a provider decide that these additional administrative procedures are too burdensome
to enable the provision of non-resident accounts on a commercially viable basis, the provider is under no
obligation to provide such a service

It should be noted that there is also a tax issue to be considered in this context. Residents in Italy are
subject to Italian income tax on the interest from their bank accounts. Non-residents, on the contrary, are
not subject to Italian income tax on such income, but normally in their country of residence.