WRITTEN QUESTION E-3345/00 by Ursula Schleicher (PPE-DE) to the Commission. Driving licences in the European Union.
Date: 2000-10-25
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: European driving licence

C 151 E/142

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

22.5.2001

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

(4 December 2000)

The project mentioned by the Honourable Member appears to be covered by the class of projects listed in
No 12(c) of Annex II of Directive 97/11/EC which has modified Directive 85/337/EEC on the assessment
of the effects of certain public and private projects on the environment.

The Directive, provides that (Article 4, paragraph 2):

Subject to Article 2 (3), for projects listed in Annex II, the Member States shall determine through:

(a) a case-by-case examination, or

(b)

thresholds or criteria set by the Member State

whether the project shall be made subject to an assessment in accordance with Articles 5 to 10.
Member States may decide to apply both procedures referred to in (a) and (b).

The site ITB000006 Monte Russu is a proposed site of Community importance (pSCI), under Council
Directive 92/43/EEC on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora. With reference to
proposed sites of Community importance under Directive 92/43/EEC, Member States have to ensure that
the aims of the Directive are not jeopardised. Even in the absence of a Community list, Member States are
therefore advised at least abstain from all activities that may cause a site on the national list to deteriorate.

In the framework of the management of the LIFE project, the Commission has been informed that an
appropriate assessment of the implications of the project for the site, under Article 6, paragraph 3, of
Directive 92/43/EEC, is under way. As regards Community environmental impact assessment legislation,
on the basis of current information, the project has not been granted the definitive development consent.

However, the Commission will take the appropriate steps in order to gather detailed information about the
situation mentioned by the Honourable Member and ensure the observance of Community law.

Since the appropriate assessment under Article 6 of Directive 92/43/EEC has not been concluded, it is not
yet possible to identify problems of consistency between the project mentioned by the Honourable
Member and the LIFE project. Therefore, it is considered inappropriate to freeze the LIFE financing.

(2001/C 151 E/160)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-3345/00

by Ursula Schleicher (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(25 October 2000)

Subject: Driving licences in the European Union

With some 200 million driving licences issued in over 80 different formats in the European Union it is, in
the Commission(cid:146)s own words, difficult for the police on the spot to keep track of them all.

Is the Commission aware that in Italy in particular, German driving licences are being seized and

1.
retained in defiance of the legal position and that further inquiries elicit no information?

2. When an application is made to (cid:145)transpose(cid:146) a driving licence issued by another Member State into a
German driving licence, data have to be obtained from the registry of the other country concerned. Is the
Commission aware that in many cases it can take several months to provide such data, especially in cases
involving the Italian registry?

22.5.2001

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 151 E/143

Is the Commission aware that even the authorities in the Member States in some cases no longer

3.
recognise the (cid:145)old(cid:146) driving licences?

How does the Commission intend to provide more transparency and information for both the

4.
authorities and the public in the Member States?

Answer given by Mrs de Palacio on behalf of the Commission

(6 December 2000)

1.
The Commission has not been informed of any individual case, in which German driving licences
have been withdrawn in Italy contrary to Community law and not have been returned thereafter.
Moreover, the assessment of the withdrawal of driving licences depends on the national provision on
the basis of which the withdrawal is carried out. However, should the Commission be informed about such
violations of Community law, it will require the Member State to put an end to such a practice and in
case of a systematic and repeated violation will deal with the matter under the procedure provided
in Article 226 (ex Article 169) EC Treaty.

2.
It may be noted that the exchange of driving licences issued in another Member State is purely
voluntary since the entry into force of Council Directive 91/439/EEC of 29 July 1991 on driving
licences (1). The driving licence is exchanged only at the request of the licence holder (Article 8(1)). Such
is not to be regarded as an exception to the principle of mutual recognition
an exchange, however,
described in Article 1(2).
In principle, driving licences issued by other Member States have to be
recognised, irrespective of whether they are exchanged or not.

Article 12(3) of the Directive foresees that the Member States exchange, if necessary, information about
driving licences they register. This helps determine the validity of foreign driving licences as well as the
exact scope of the right (categories, restrictions). However, this exchange of information must not directly
or indirectly result in the practical creation of an obstacle to the free movement of licence holders or to a
questioning of the principle of mutual recognition.

3. Member States are bound to recognise all driving licence models described in Commission Decision
2000/275/EC of 21 March 2000 on the equivalences between certain categories of driving licences (2)
(which was adopted on the basis of Article 10(1) of the Directive). The Commission requested all Member
States expressly to inform their authorities about the scope of the obligation to recognise driving licences
issued in other Member States. So far, no systematic violations of the principle of mutual recognition have
in view of the large number of driving licences and different driving licence
been detected. However,
therefore
models, administrative uncertainties may occur in individual cases. The Commission will
continue to closely supervise the correct application of the principle of mutual recognition.

4.
In order to clarify the situation legally, the Commission adopted the above-mentioned decision.
Considering the complexity of the situation with over 80 different driving licence models valid in the
European Economic Area (EEA), the Commission will publish a manual with colour illustrations and exact
descriptions of all EEA driving licence models valid at present. The preparations for this book are in an
advanced stage. It will be addressed to administrative authorities in the Member States as well as to licence
holders and will guarantee the recognition of all driving licence models valid in the different Member
States as well as a uniform administrative practice.

An additional legal clarification of the situation at Community level could be achieved by a harmonisation
of the validity period of driving licences. The number of different models in circulation would decrease
gradually in the course of time.

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