WRITTEN QUESTION E-0988/01 by Emmanouil Bakopoulos (GUE/NGL) to the Commission. EASA.
Date: 2001-03-30
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: EU office or agency, air safety, air transport, common transport policy, international transport

13.11.2001

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 318 E/171

Given the fact that there is considerable variance of emissions between the iron ore sintering installations
and since a lot of data from several Member States are still missing, the Commission considers to:

(cid:129) carry out Dioxin emission measurements at iron ore sintering plants still not tested in order to be able

to decide whether immediate actions for reduction of emissions would be necessary;

(cid:129) promote the use of Best Available Dioxin reduction Techniques in the iron and steel

industry;
polychlorinated dibenzo-p-Dioxins/polychlorinated dibenzofurons (PCDD/F) emissions from sintering
plants may be reduced considerably by primary measures (optimisation regarding strand speed,
chloride input, bed height, millscale oil content, (cid:133)). The Commission will help to spread this
knowledge to the respective contacts in the Iron and Steel industry.

(2001/C 318 E/184)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0988/01

by Emmanouil Bakopoulos (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(30 March 2001)

Subject: EASA

At the end of last year the Commission issued a proposal for a Regulation setting up the EASA (European
Aviation Safety Authority). However, the fifteen Member States of the Union are also members of the
ICAO which means that the text of the EASA Convention must not be contrary to their obligations under
the Chicago Convention.

Will the Commission say whether in drawing up the proposal for a Regulation in question:

1.

It checked whether the provisions of this Regulation clashed with the provisions of the Chicago
Convention?

2.

It has reached a preliminary understanding with the ICAO?

Answer given by Mrs de Palacio on behalf of the Commission

(10 May 2001)

The purpose of the proposal for a regulation (1) to which the Honourable Member is referring is to confer
on the Community the task of exercising its Member States(cid:146) responsibilities in respect of air safety and the
environmental compatibility of aviation, so as to ensure a uniform level of protection in the single market.
In so doing, the Community will of course have to make sure it meets the Member States(cid:146) international
commitments, particularly those under the Convention on International Civil Aviation, known as the
Chicago Convention.

The Commission(cid:146)s proposal contains two key elements.

Firstly, Articles 5 and 6 introduce into Community legislation the standards adopted by the International
Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) in the areas in which the Community will initially exercise executive
powers (certification of aeronautical products); as the Community, pursuant
to Article 7, gradually
broadens the scope of those powers, it will have to see that it continues this practice. Third countries
which are Parties to the Chicago Convention will thus be assured that aeronautical products certified in the
Community offer a level of safety and environmental compatibility at least as high as that required by the
ICAO.

Secondly, Article 4(2) stipulates that application of the Regulation and of the acts implementing it must be
without prejudice to the rights of third countries under current international conventions, including the
Chicago Convention. Certificates and approvals issued by third countries in accordance with ICAO
standards are therefore certain to be accepted for the purpose of overflying or stopping over in Member
State territory covered by the EC Treaty.

C 318 E/172

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

13.11.2001

Accordingly, the Commission believes its proposal is in line with international law. Contacts with ICAO
representatives on this matter have given no reason to think there is any doubt as to its compatibility with
the Chicago Convention.

(1) Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on establishing common rules in the field

of civil aviation and creating a European Aviation Safety Agency (COM(2000) 595 final).

(2001/C 318 E/185)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0990/01

by Emmanouil Bakopoulos (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(30 March 2001)

Subject: EU delegations, representations and offices in non-member countries

The European Union(cid:146)s Interinstitutional Directory shows that a fair number of the EU delegations,
representations and offices in third countries do not have a head. Will the Commission say why these
posts remain vacant and what it intends to do to fill them?

Answer given by Mr Patten on behalf of the Commission

(8 May 2001)

Vacancies at the level of Head of Delegation appear regularly as a result of the transfer or retirement of
officials in the External Service. This is a normal feature of any administration with a rotation requirement
for its staff. At present eight Delegations are without a Head of Delegation. Seven of these posts are in the
process of being filled. This, however, takes time. The selection procedure involves in depth interviews of
candidates at Director General level. At times specific publication for particular posts is needed. Selected
candidates then have to be confirmed by the Appointing Authority. Following that the nomination is
referred to the Council and only after that can agreement be sought from the accrediting country. From
request for publication to the Head of Delegation actually arriving in post can take several months.

For four of the seven posts referred to above the new Head of Delegation has already been nominated. In
the case of the eighth Delegation, Burundi, there is no proposal to fill the post at present.

(2001/C 318 E/186)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0992/01

by Geoffrey Van Orden (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(30 March 2001)

Subject: Funding for Bulgaria

What progress has been made towards complying with the request made by the European Parliament over
five months ago in its resolution of 4 October 2000 on Bulgaria(cid:146)s application for membership of the EU
(A5-0241/2000):
(cid:145)to provide Parliament with a detailed and comprehensive breakdown of all recent
funding to Bulgaria at the earliest possible opportunity, along with an assessment of the contribution of its
assistance programmes to the achievement of substantive economic and administrative progress in
Bulgaria(cid:146)?

Answer given by Mr Verheugen on behalf of the Commission

(8 June 2001)

The Commission is sending direct to the Honourable Member and to Parliament(cid:146)s Secretariat a detailed
description of the programming framework and the projects supported in Bulgaria under the Phare