WRITTEN QUESTION E-3354/00 by Juan Naranjo Escobar (PPE-DE) to the Commission. Right of mobility for students.
Date: 2000-10-27
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: EU Member State, EU programme, education policy, student, student mobility

C 163 E/96

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

6.6.2001

The European fisheries sector is concerned both at the agreement of the DG for Fisheries to take a back
seat in the process of reaching fisheries agreements in the Pacific and at the stalled negotiations on
agreements with countries in the region. It is critical of the Commission(cid:146)s lack of interest and failure to
produce results.

Will the Commission say what aims and strategy it is pursuing in order to obtain fishing opportunities for
our fleet in the Pacific?

What steps is it taking to reach a fisheries agreement with Kiribati?

Answer given by Mr Fischler on behalf of the Commission

(30 November 2000)

Since its third sitting in June 1998, the Commission has taken an active part in the (cid:145)Multilateral High Level
Conference(cid:146) (MHLC) meetings on behalf of the Community, in particular to express its wish to be fully
involved in the work and become a fully fledged member of the Convention on the Central and Eastern
Pacific. The Commission also asked to take part in the interim arrangement to be implemented whilst
waiting for the bodies laid down in the Convention to be established. In addition, the Community made
sustained efforts to convince the states taking part in the negotiations of its intention to cooperate and
make a positive contribution to the conservation and management of resources in the Western Central
Pacific.

The Commission is the first to regret that its efforts did not yield the expected results. At the 6th meeting
of the MHLC held in April 2000, the 16 members of the Fisheries Forum Agency (FFA), a regional
organisation which encompasses the Pacific island states, as well as Australia and New Zealand, adopted
a resolution. As the resolution excluded all new parties from the negotiation process of
the new
Convention, such as the interim arrangement, the Community was unable to continue its action. Under
these conditions, and since the 7th sitting of the MHLC in September 2000 to formally adopt the text of
the Convention had essentially been already agreed at the previous sitting, the Community considered that
there was no need for it to take part in this final sitting.

However, the Commission does not intend abandon efforts to contribute effectively to conservation and
resources management in the area, and to defend the interests of the Community fleet operating or that
might operate there. The Commission must also review its options and devise a strategy accordingly,
acting in compliance with its obligations under international maritime law. It will ensure that the Member
States and Parliament are informed of its proposals.

With regard to a possible bilateral agreement with Kiribati, and in light of the above, the Commission is
considering the details of the case and analysing the implications for the entire Western Central Pacific
region.

(2001/C 163 E/104)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-3354/00

by Juan Naranjo Escobar (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(27 October 2000)

Subject: Right of mobility for students

Article 149 of the Treaty on European Union defines and specifies the role of the European Union in the
field of education. The Union can and must supplement the action of the Member States in developing
their educational policies, with the aim of attaining a level of quality education for all citizens. Success in
this field is a pre-requisite for medium-and long-term economic well-being and social cohesion.

The declarations by the Lisbon European Council of 23/24 March supporting European education as an
important means of achieving a more competitive and dynamic economy, lasting economic growth with
better jobs in larger numbers and greater social cohesion should be seen as tying in precisely with this aim.

6.6.2001

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Official Journal of the European Communities

C 163 E/97

The same applies to all of the assessment-related cooperation involved in producing the first European
Report on Quality of Education, which was presented to the most recent Conference of Education
Ministers in Bucharest last June and identifies 16 quality indicators.

The use of common indicators to assess students in the various Member States, an increase in national
budgetary allocations, the organisation of six-month university courses and the widespread introduction of
the status of part-time lecturer are just some of the 43 measures provided for in the Action Plan for
Mobility drawn up by EU education ministers at an informal seminar in Paris on 30 September last.

However, the actual results achieved by programmes such as Erasmus demonstrate that, although some
efforts have been made, we have yet to progress beyond good intentions and fine words. We must
translate words into deeds and statements into action, and ensure that ideals come to take the form of fully
exercised rights.

Mobility is a key factor in this regard.

What effective measures does the Commission intend to take to enable an undergraduate to exercise the
right to choose a university in any EU Member State, not simply in his or her own? Would it not be
advisable, as a first step, to foster student mobility within Member States themselves? Has the Community
come up with any kind of initiative to promote this aspect of mobility?

Answer given by Mrs Reding on behalf of the Commission

(11 December 2000)

With regard to student mobility within each Member State, it is important to note that, according to
Article 149 (ex-Article 126) of
the Community(cid:146)s role is to promote
cooperation between Member States. Promoting mobility ties in with this. The Community carries out
this role by means of the Socrates programme, for example, and in particular the Erasmus action; that
Erasmus plays an essential role in developing mobility in Europe is now widely acknowledged.

the EC Treaty on education,

It was as a result of this experience and that gained through the Leonardo and Youth programmes that the
Commission presented a proposal for a recommendation calling on Member States to take action to
remove the various obstacles which continue to hamper the development of mobility among students,
persons undergoing training, teachers and volunteers (1). The Council has just adopted the text of a
common position based on the results of the first reading in Parliament. Parliament helped to improve the
initial Commission proposal on various points.

The Council has also adopted a resolution on an Action Plan for Mobility, presented by the French
Presidency in conjunction with the Commission.

With regard to the mobility of students in their own Member State, it is important to note that, according
to the EC Treaty,
the organisation of education and the education system are matters of national
jurisdiction. The conditions which national regulations impose on students in choosing a university are
therefore outside the scope of Community action in the field of education.

As for the mobility of students outside their own Member State,
it is important to know that when
choosing the university in the host Member State, the applicant must in principle fulfil the same conditions
which apply to nationals, in so far as these do not discriminate on the basis of nationality. If the host
Member State imposes a (cid:145)numerus clausus(cid:146) in certain disciplines or conditions related to the number of
places available per university, the applicant must submit to these. These conditions may therefore affect
the student(cid:146)s initial choice.

With regard to mobility under the programmes, the Commission would remind the Honourable Member
that Erasmus students may choose to carry out their period of study in one of the institutions with which
their university has an agreement. On the other hand, it is up to their university of origin to choose the
institutions with which it wishes to conclude agreements.

(1) COM(1999) 708 final.