WRITTEN QUESTION P-3608/00 by Georg Jarzembowski (PPE-DE) to the Commission. MEDIA II grants for cinemas.
Date: 2000-11-15
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: EU aid, EU programme, film industry, terms for aid

6.6.2001

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 163 E/177

(2001/C 163 E/202)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-3606/00

by Michl Ebner (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(22 November 2000)

Subject: Antibiotics in eggs

In its reply to Written Question E-1093/00 (1), the Commission referred to a report on the monitoring
scheme which had not yet been forwarded to it by the Italian authorities. Would the Commission state
whether it has obtained a copy of the report yet, and if so, what findings it contains in relation to the issue
raised in that earlier Written Question? Would the Commission also state what action it has taken or
intends to take?

(1) OJ C 72 E, 6.3.2001, p. 18.

Answer given by Mr Byrne on behalf of the Commission

(16 January 2001)

Council Directive 96/23/EC of 29 April 1996 on measures to monitor certain substances and residues
thereof in live animals and animal products and repealing Directives 85/358/EEC and 86/469/EEC and
Decisions 89/187/EEC and 91/664/EEC (1) requires the Member States to submit an annual report on
residue monitoring in food of animal origin which includes eggs. The Member States can select each year
which specific substances they will target for residue testing.

The Commission received the 1999 report from Italy in June 2000.
quinolones or sulfonamides.

In 1999,

Italy did not target

Moreover the Italian authorities informed the Commission that they could not follow up the study carried
out by (cid:145)Altro Consumo(cid:146) because of a lack of precise information on the origin of the eggs and the
analytical methods applied.

In 2000, Italy has included these groups of substances in their residue plan for eggs. Results will be
available as from April 2001.

(1) OJ L 125, 23.5.1996.

(2001/C 163 E/203)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-3608/00

by Georg Jarzembowski (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(15 November 2000)

Subject: MEDIA II grants for cinemas

A Hamburg cinema, which meets the requirements for a grant under the MEDIA II programme that
expires this year, has tried in vain to obtain financial support in accordance with the programme criteria. It
failed because it is not a member of a European cinema network. It was unable to join a network because
there is an unlimited moratorium on further members.

Can the Commission answer the following:

1. The MEDIA II programme only supports cinema operators who are members of a cinema network.

What conditions must an applicant fulfil in order to participate in a network?

2. How does the Commission ensure that cinema operators who deserve support obtain access to the

networks without being subject to discrimination?

3.

If the Commission cannot safeguard such access, does it give preference when selecting networks to
those which provide access and allocate funds free from discrimination?

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6.6.2001

4. How can the Commission ensure that an applicant deserving of support obtains a grant if the

applicant is unable to join a network?

5.

In the new MEDIA Plus programme, will cinema operators who have not received a grant so far get a
chance, from 2001 onward, to apply for support? Is it only possible to apply via networks or is direct
support also possible?

Answer given by Mrs Reding on behalf of the Commission

(9 January 2001)

In order to encourage the screening of European films in cinemas in Europe and to promote the exchange
of information and cooperation between cinemas showing these films, the Commission provides funding
under the MEDIA II programme for cinema networks showing a significant percentage of European films,
in particular non-national films.

Every year the Commission publishes a call for proposals for these networks, and the guidelines of these
calls are established in agreement with the MEDIA programme(cid:146)s management committee. Every year the
Commission also submits to the MEDIA Committee a list of the networks it proposes to select.

1. With the dual objective of funding cinemas which screen a significant percentage of European films
and encouraging the creation of networks, the Commission funds cinema networks which meet the criteria
set out in the call for proposals, on the basis of these networks(cid:146) guidelines. Every year the cinema networks
which receive funding select new cinemas which can join the network, in accordance with the financial
contribution allocated by the Commission in conjunction with the MEDIA Committee. Similarly, every
year they exclude member cinemas which do not fulfil, or no longer fulfil, the obligations set out in their
guidelines, thus allowing new cinemas to join the network.

2.
As part of the annual calls for proposals issued by the Commission, the cinema networks submit the
list of cinemas which are members of the network, together with the list of cinemas they propose to
exclude from the network and the list of new cinemas to be included in the network. The criteria for
joining the networks have to be objective, and the Commission checks their objectivity and their
application. However, the addition of new cinemas to networks in receipt of funding depends particularly
on the budget available to the Commission for the funding of cinemas: as in all calls for proposals, the
limited overall budget available to the Commission requires the granting of aid to be selective and
therefore the number of new applications accepted by funded networks is restricted. Between 1996 and
2000, the funding awarded to cinema networks increased from € 3 500 000 to € 4 900 000, and the
number of cinemas receiving funding via the networks rose from 189 in 1996 (a total of 466 screens) to
424 in 2000 (a total of 1 041 screens). Inclusion in the networks also depends on the priorities defined by
the Commission and the MEDIA Committee in the guidelines of the call for proposals. In view of this, and
in order to comply with the provisions of the Council Decision establishing the MEDIA II programme,
according to which the Commission (cid:145)will ensure that the professionals participating in the programme
reflect a balanced representation of Europe(cid:146)s cultural diversity(cid:146), priority in selecting new member cinemas
must be given to towns and regions not yet covered by the network. Therefore, given that three cinemas
(eight screens) in Hamburg already receive funding from the existing networks, priority was given to
German applications from new cities or from cities still under-represented in the networks (such as
Leipzig, Ludwigsburg or Essen).

On this point, the Commission would like to draw the Honourable Member(cid:146)s attention to the fact that
there is no (cid:145)unlimited moratorium(cid:146) on further members. Following a period in which the funded networks
expanded significantly, the Commission decided that for the year 2000, given the programme(cid:146)s limited
budget resources, it would suspend the expansion of the relevant networks (except for the addition of new
cinemas to replace those excluded from the networks for not fulfilling their obligations).

3.
In the light of the conditions set out in the previous paragraph, the Commission gives preference,
when selecting networks for funding, to those which ensure fair access for new cinemas by assessing new
applications objectively.

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Given the budget limitations, the Commission cannot guarantee that all applicants which fulfil the
4.
minimum criteria set out in the guidelines will receive funding. The Commission ensures that the selection
procedure put in place by the cinema networks which receive funding is transparent and objective, and
that it is implemented in accordance with the approved guidelines for these networks.

5.
Funding for cinemas which screen European films is included in the actions planned for the MEDIA
Plus programme, as is funding for cinema networks. The methods for this action (direct funding or funding
via networks) will be defined in conjunction with the MEDIA Plus Programme Committee, which is
required to give its opinion on the matter as a management committee.

(2001/C 163 E/204)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-3610/00

by Reinhold Messner (Verts/ALE) to the Commission

(15 November 2000)

Subject: Tourist infrastructure in Valsesia and on Monterosa

Talks currently under way between the authorities of the Piedmont region and the autonomous region of
the Valle d(cid:146)Aosta should soon lead to the conclusion of a memorandum of understanding on the
construction of a cableway between Valsesia and the Valle di Gressoney aimed at stepping up tourism
and skiing in the two valleys.

The project, which is apparently to be financed by Finpiemonte and the European Union, involves the total
overhaul of the facilities at Alagna Valsesia and the construction of a new transport link to the Punta
Indren glacier, described as a (cid:145)servizio di trasporto pubblico in concessione(cid:146) (concessionary public transport
service), to be built by Monterosa 2000 S.p.A.

The Upper Valsesia, the southern glaciers on Monterosa and the Valle d(cid:146)Aosta glacier area have been
designated sites of Community importance pursuant to Directive 92/43 (1).

The above project poses a potential threat to the collection of Natura 2000 sites around Monterosa, both
from an environmental and landscape viewpoint and in terms of road and town-planning requirements.

Among other things, the project:

(cid:129) makes no provision for parking facilities or road improvements, despite the large number of tourists

likely to be brought in by the new facilities;

(cid:129) makes no mention of where the water required for the artificial snow machines is to be collected;

(cid:129) does not include a study into where the waste water is to be discharged;

(cid:129) makes no mention of the electricity supplies required to operate the new ski lifts.

Does the Commission really intend to finance the construction of a cableway between Valsesia and the
Valle di Gressoney?

Can it take action to ensure that the aforementioned sites of Community importance are not threatened by
the project?

Can it ensure that the project complies with the Community environmental impact assessment directives?

(1) OJ L 206, 22.7.1992.