WRITTEN QUESTION P-3997/00 by Charles Tannock (PPE-DE) to the Commission. The Charter of Fundamental Rights (legal status).
Date: 2000-12-13
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: EU Charter of Fundamental Rights, legal status

C 174 E/212

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

19.6.2001

In accordance with Article 141 and Council Directive 76/207/EEC of 9 February 1976 on the implemen-
tation of the principle of equal treatment for men and women as regards access to employment, vocational
training and promotion, and working conditions (3), redundancy pay provided for by national legislation
must be granted without discrimination to both male and female employees in the same situation. This
obligation to comply with the principle of equal treatment also applies where the Member State is the
employer.

6. to 8.
In transposing Council Directive 87/344/EEC of 22 June 1987 on the coordination of laws,
regulations and administrative provisions relating to legal expenses insurance (4), the German legislator has
chosen option (b) of Article 3 (2) for the management of claims in respect of legal expenses insurance
(VAG, Section 8a). Under this option, such claims are managed by an undertaking with separate legal
personality which does not manage claims in other insurance branches at the same time. This requirement
applies to any legal expenses insurance undertaking with its registered office on German territory.

Where the method laid down in Article 3 (2) (c) of Directive 87/344/EEC has to be applied by a legal
expenses insurance undertaking in accordance with the legislation of its Member State of origin, the
insured party may entrust the management of a claim to a lawyer of his or her choice. Where the method
laid down in Article 3 (2) (c) of the Directive is applied and the insured party entrusts the management of
a claim to a lawyer of his or her choice, the insurer must cover the ensuing costs. The insurance
undertaking may in some cases set a ceiling for reimbursement of the chosen lawyer(cid:146)s fees and expenses.
Whether the party taking out legal expenses insurance is a natural or legal person or a non-profit
organisation should not make any difference in this respect.

(1) OJ L 283, 28.10.1980.
(2) ECR 1990 I-1889.
(3) OJ L 39, 14.2.1976.
(4) OJ L 185, 4.7.1987.

(2001/C 174 E/225)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-3997/00

by Charles Tannock (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(13 December 2000)

Subject: The Charter of Fundamental Rights (legal status)

the British Minister for Europe,

Does the Commission agree with Keith Vaz,
the Charter of
Fundamental Rights, if agreed to by representatives of the Member States at Nice but not incorporated
into the treaties, would constitute merely a declaratory document with the same legal status as (cid:145)The Beano(cid:146)
(a well-known children(cid:146)s comic), and, if not, does the Commission concur with the view that if the Charter
were not to be incorporated into the European Treaties that the Court of Justice would be acting both
unwisely and outside its powers if it were to attempt to alter the balance of rights and duties within the
European Union or to restrict the freedom of individuals or companies or the prerogatives of sovereign
nation states on the basis of reference to the Charter if the Court had not expressly been authorised to do
so by international treaty?

that

Answer given by Mr Vitorino on behalf of the Commission

(23 January 2001)

The Charter of Fundamental Rights of the Union was proclaimed jointly by the President of the Council,
the President of Parliament and the President of the Commission in Nice on 7 December 2000 on the
occasion of the European Council meeting.

19.6.2001

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 174 E/213

The Charter makes visible to citizens the fundamental rights they already enjoy but which in some cases
are buried in a variety of source instruments not readily accessible to ordinary citizens. The Commission
therefore thinks it highly likely that the Court of Justice will refer to the Charter when handing down
judgments in the future.

The Commission set out its views on this point in the communication it adopted on 11 October 2000 (1)
which was sent to Parliament and in which it stated that the Charter is an instrument to verify respect for
fundamental rights by the institutions and the Member States when they act under Union law.

(1) COM(2000) 559 final.

(2001/C 174 E/226)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-4003/00

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

(21 December 2000)

Subject: Abolition of the current system of vehicle retail monopoly

The Commission is currently drawing up a directive designed to increase competition by abolishing the
current vehicle retail monopoly, to come into force at the end of next year. How will the entry of new
players hitherto unconnected with the business of vehicle retail, benefit this market? How does the current
system limit and stifle competition? Would the Commission actually claim that in the field of vehicle
distribution in Europe, the situation as regards competition is imperfect, and therefore, in the last analysis,
prejudicial to consumers(cid:146) pockets? Does the Commission believe that the current system (cid:129) which in the
case of the Spanish market, for example, guarantees access to 49 makes, 235 models and over 2 200
versions of vehicles, in addition to providing professional service to the user (cid:129) actually prejudices the
interests of consumers to such an extent that we should allow superstores to enter a market sector which
in Spain alone involves 10 000 largely small and medium-sized undertakings, and employs some 150 000
people?

Answer given by Mr Monti on behalf of the Commission

(9 February 2001)

Commission Regulation (EC) No 1475/95 of 28 June 1995 on the application of Article 85(3) of the
Treaty to certain categories of motor vehicle distribution and servicing agreements (1) will expire on
30 September 2002. The Commission has recently adopted the report evaluating the application of this
Regulation (2). This Report is a factual analysis of the current regulatory regime. It does not contain any
proposal for the future legal framework for motor vehicle distribution, but will form an essential basis for
the discussion which will start in 2001 about the future regime.

The question of effective competition in the motor vehicle industry has been one of the issues treated in
the report, as it is one of the assumptions underlying the current Regulation. The Commission believes
that currently effective inter-brand competition exists in the Community. The report identifies however
certain factors limiting intra-brand competition within a Member State or across the Community between
dealers of the same brand. The question of whether the sector and consumers should benefit from the
emergence of other distribution channels, such as e-commerce and sales via supermarket chains, will
indeed have to be assessed in the analysis which will be carried out in 2001 in view of determining the
future regime for motor vehicle distribution.

(1) OJ L 145, 29.6.1995.
(2) See IP/00/1306 of 15.11.2000. The Report has been published in the internet under the following address:

http://europa.eu.int/comm/competition/car sector.