WRITTEN QUESTION E-0580/01 by Salvador Garriga Polledo (PPE-DE) to the Commission. Television without frontiers.
Date: 2001-03-01
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: EU Member State, EU aid, EU programme, European television, audiovisual co-production, financial aid

C 93 E/6

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

18.4.2002

This year the Commission is also planning to propose a draft decision for the ratification of the Rotterdam
Convention and amendments to bring Regulation (EEC) No 2455/92 into line with the Convention. It is
also considering including in its proposed amendments a provision banning the export of certain
chemicals already banned within the Community, for example those of most concern.

Last but not least, the Commission intends in the next few months to propose a draft decision on the
conclusion of the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs), which will ban or restrict
the production and/or use throughout the world of 12 POPs, eight of them pesticides already banned in
the Community.

As for how the Community could support a label of the type advocated by the environmentalist Food First
Information and Action Network (FIAN), the Commission is currently studying the general and highly
complex question of various forms of labelling.

(1) OJ L 230, 19.8.1991.
(2) OJ L 123, 29.4.1998.
(3) OJ L 262, 27.9.1976.
(4) OJ L 33, 8.2.1979.
(5) OJ L 251, 29.8.1992.

(2002/C 93 E/005)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0580/01

by Salvador Garriga Polledo (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(1 March 2001)

Subject: Television without frontiers

With the 1997 ‘Television Without Frontiers’ Directive up for review in 2002, new ideas are already
emerging on key issues that the review ought to tackle, such as promoting the distribution and production
of European television programmes.

The coproduction of television programmes involving a number of Community Member States has been
somewhat neglected, and is a leading factor in moves to enable producers to encourage collaboration
between public and private networks and actors and other professionals who routinely work together in
the making of television productions.

Will the Commission say whether television producers have held preliminary discussions with a view to
encouraging genuinely European coproductions involving television networks and producers and other
professionals from the television industry across the Community?

Answer given by Ms Reding on behalf of the Commission

(11 May 2001)

The Commission would like to draw the Honourable Member’s attention to the MEDIA and MEDIA II
Programmes and to the MEDIA Plus Programme, which started on 1 January 2001. One of the aims of the
Media Programme is to promote the distribution and production of European television programmes. The
Media Programme supports European television productions (fiction, documentaries and animated films)
involving no less than two broadcasters, and preferably more, in several Member States participating or
cooperating in the programme, belonging to different language zones. The specific objective is to promote
in the Community and outside it, of European television programmes produced by
the movement,
independent companies by encouraging cooperation between broadcasters, on the one hand, and
independent European distributors and producers, on the other hand.

During the Media II Programme (1996-2000) the Community has supported in total 353 European
television co-productions with a total financial contribution of € 39 421 400.

18.4.2002

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 93 E/7

The main organisations representing professional producers and broadcasters have always been consulted
when the Commission has prepared the proposals for the various Media Programmes (MEDIA, MEDIA II
and MEDIA Plus).

A reexamination of the provisions of the ‘Television Without Frontiers’ Directive is planned for the end of
2002. In the meantime, the Commission will continue to hold consultations with the parties concerned in
a spirit of transparency. In particular, a study was recently launched on the evaluation of the impact of the
measures concerning the promotion of the distribution and production of television programmes in the
European audiovisual sector. As part of this study, two public symposia will be organised in order to give
all concerned an opportunity to make their contribution. In addition, at the beginning of 2002, the
Commission will publish a consultation document based, among other things, on the results of this study.
It will invite all the parties concerned to send it their comments in writing, and will conduct a series of
hearings in 2002.

(2002/C 93 E/006)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1032/01

by John Bowis (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(3 April 2001)

Subject: Commission workload

How many regulations and how many directives have been proposed by the Directorates-General for
Environment and for Health and Consumer Protection respectively since the current Commissioners took
office? How many regulations and directives have been superseded by those proposals and how many of
the proposals were subject to a statutory impact assessment?

Answer given by Mr Prodi on behalf of the Commission

(24 October 2001)

The Commission suggests that the Honourable Member refer to its very detailed answer to Written
Question P-841/01 by Mr Harbour (1). Providing an even more detailed answer to the Honourable Member
would entail carrying out additional research which would appear to be disproportionate to the results,
particularly considering the resources available.

(1) OJ C 40 E, 14.2.2002, p. 14.

(2002/C 93 E/007)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1220/01

by Konstantinos Hatzidakis (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(24 April 2001)

Subject: Cancellation of employment contracts by the Agrinion public cultural development company for a

project funded by the Commission

By decision 75 of 4 November 1999 the Agrinion public cultural development company (DEPAA in
Greece), as the body responsible for implementing the action for the establishment and operation of new
structures or new sections in existing crèches and/or day nurseries and/or children’s creative play centres
which is co-funded by the European Regional Development Fund and the European Social Fund,
announced a competition for filling the posts at
these establishments. On 18 December 1999 the
assessment board announced the candidates who fulfilled the conditions it had set and the contract for