WRITTEN QUESTION E-3030/00 by Stefano Zappalà (PPE-DE), Generoso Andria (PPE-DE), Francesco Musotto (PPE-DE), Guido Viceconte (PPE-DE), Antonio Tajani (PPE-DE), Giorgio Lisi (PPE-DE), Giuseppe Nisticò (PPE-DE), Mario Mauro (PPE-DE), Raffaele Lombardo (PPE-DE), Umberto Scapagnini (PPE-DE), Raffaele Costa (PPE-DE), Amalia Sartori (PPE-DE) and Francesco Fiori (PPE-DE) to the Commission. Flood in Calabria.
Date: 2000-09-26
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: Calabria, disaster area, environmental risk prevention, flood, natural hazard, sensitive area

8.5.2001

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 136 E/163

(cid:129) this trend will have inflationary repercussions on the cost of road transport, which covers 60 % of

present-day demand, a percentage which is not likely to fall in the short term;

(cid:129) the reactions of road hauliers will force governments to take measures to prevent protests;

(cid:129) the provisions in force at European level do not permit tax reductions to be granted to the road

transport sector alone;

(cid:129) this situation makes it difficult to introduce measures to reduce taxation because of the high cost it

generates;

(cid:129) the introduction of a trade price for diesel oil might appear to be the best solution to reduce inflation

and prevent distortions of competition;

does the Commission intend swiftly to adopt a directive introducing a trade price for diesel oil for the road
transport sector?

Answer given by Mr Bolkestein on behalf of the Commission

(7 November 2000)

In the context of defining coordinated action at Community level following the significant increase in
petroleum prices, the Commission has repeatedly expressed its opinion on the selective reduction of excise
duties, in particular on diesel for commercial vehicles.

The Commission considers that a reduction in excise duties and VAT for road transport must not go
against the objectives of Community transport, energy and environmental policy. The medium-term
priorities must instead be the redistribution of transport modes, the development of a real internal energy
market and the promotion of energy saving. The much-needed economic restructuring of the road
transport sector should not be postponed.

The Commission must determine whether specific excise derogations are in line with tax (1) and competi-
tion rules before Member States grant them.

(1) Council Directive 92/81/EEC of 19 October 1992 on the harmonisation of the structures of excise duties on

mineral oils (OJ L 316, 31.10.1992).

(2001/C 136 E/191)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-3030/00

by Stefano Zappal(cid:224) (PPE-DE), Generoso Andria (PPE-DE),
Francesco Musotto (PPE-DE), Guido Viceconte (PPE-DE), Antonio Tajani (PPE-DE),
Giorgio Lisi (PPE-DE), Giuseppe Nistic(cid:242) (PPE-DE), Mario Mauro (PPE-DE),
Raffaele Lombardo (PPE-DE), Umberto Scapagnini (PPE-DE), Raffaele Costa (PPE-DE),
Amalia Sartori (PPE-DE) and Francesco Fiori (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(26 September 2000)

Subject: Flood in Calabria

In view of the following facts:

(cid:129) on 10 September 2000 in Soverato, a commune of the region of Calabria in Italy, events caused by
bad weather conditions led to the deaths of at least five disabled people and a number of volunteers
and tourists, about 15 people in total, and more than twenty other people were left injured;

(cid:129) this disaster also affected the environment as a whole, causing heavy pollution as the result of the

scattering of waste from garbage dumps;

(cid:129) a deluge of water and detritus inundated a camp site which, although authorised, would seem to be

located in an area defined as at high environmental risk, i.e. on the shore of a watercourse;

C 136 E/164

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

8.5.2001

(cid:129) Italian territory has for some time been subject to a series of natural disasters resulting in loss of life,
disasters which were moreover foreseeable and often indirectly caused by a lack of preventive action
by the relevant public bodies;

can the Commission answer the following questions?

(cid:129) Has the Italian Government published a map of areas at environmental risk?

(cid:129) Are those areas receiving the attention of, and being monitored by, the Commission?

(cid:129) Are the Italian national authorities properly carrying out their duty to ensure the safety of European

citizens and protect the national territory?

Answer given by Mrs Wallstr(cid:246)m on behalf of the Commission

(10 November 2000)

The Commission deplores the loss of human life, injuries and environmental damage caused by the recent
floods at Solverato in Calabria.

The Commission is not empowered to act in this area and regrets that it does not have in its possession
the information requested.

However, the Commission would like to inform the Honourable Members that, under the Community
support programme for the Mezzogiorno during the 1994-1999 programming period, the Calabria region
received a contribution from the European Regional Development Fund amounting to € 57 million for
environmental-safeguard activities, one of which concerned the prevention of this type of hazard.

(2001/C 136 E/192)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-3031/00

by Erik Meijer (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(26 September 2000)

Subject: Shortage of capacity in Dutch hospitals and refusal by health insurers to pay for admission to

hospitals in other Member States

1.
The Commission recently revealed that the Netherlands has a poor record regarding the number of
heart and liver transplants carried out and likewise regarding the number of surgeons, gynaecologists and
cardiologists. Is the Commission also aware that, as a result of these shortages, which arise partly from past
cuts in spending on health care and a big reduction in the number of hospital beds, waiting lists for
various types of medical treatment at Dutch hospitals (endarterectomy, open-heart surgery, lung diseases,
general surgery, neurology and dental surgery) have grown so long that many patients seek treatment
abroad?

2.
Does the Commission agree that every Member State of the European Union, and in principle every
region within the Member States too, should itself be able to provide adequate hospital treatment for its
residents, rather than relying on neighbouring countries to provide it instead, and that it is not acceptable
if over a long period of time, due to inadequate capacity, the number of residents requiring hospital
treatment abroad exceeds the capacity simultaneously available for treating patients from abroad?

3.
Is the Commission aware, moreover, that health insurers in the Netherlands refuse to reimburse the
cost of hospital treatment outside the Netherlands which it is desirable for patients to undergo on account
of the inadequate capacity at home, or agree to reimburse it only in a few exceptional cases where the
hospitalisation was not predictable, and that they do not accept the argument that the treatment provided
abroad will be better or will be made available significantly earlier, so that only those who can afford to
pay for the treatment themselves and those who have taken out costly policies providing additional cover
for examination and treatment abroad are eligible for such treatment?