WRITTEN QUESTION P-1158/01 by Amalia Sartori (PPE-DE) to the Commission. The Commission's assessment of the IPI contract.
Date: 2001-04-03
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: EU industrial policy, Italy, information network, information policy, invitation to tender, small and medium-sized enterprises

18.9.2001

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 261 E/229

(2001/C 261 E/261)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-1158/01

by Amalia Sartori (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(3 April 2001)

Subject: The Commission(cid:146)s assessment of the IPI contract

(cid:129) The Italian Ministry for Industry(cid:146)s Institute for Industrial Promotion (IPI) has published a Europe-wide
invitation to tender, with a 24 April 2001 deadline and for a value of ITL 1 400 000 000 (€ 723 040),
to carry out a feasibility study on the establishment of an International Network of SMEs (INSME).

(cid:129) The project was submitted to the OCSE in Bologna in June 2000.

(cid:129) Many OCSE countries expressed serious doubts about the project, which is being funded by the Italian

Government.

(cid:129) One of the members of the INSME(cid:146)s Steering Group is the European Commission.

(cid:129) The Commission already has a large number of SME networks, covering all the countries affected by
the INSME. Under the 2001-2005 European Multiannual Programme, it intends to coordinate them
with the support of the Euro Info Centre Network.

(cid:129) The IPI hosted a Euro Info Centre for a number of years. However, having failed to pass a Commission

quality control test, it lost its own Euro Info Centre and kept an (cid:145)associated(cid:146) second-category centre.

(cid:129) The INSME,

its activities and the feasibility study simply duplicate the Commission(cid:146)s programme

policy, thereby causing public funds to be wasted.

How does the Commission intend to clarify this situation in order to avoid being involved in activities and
feasibility studies which have been carried out before? How can it justify this waste of public resources,
given that there already exists a network of Euro Info Centres which covers all the regions concerned by
these services and surveys?

Answer given by Mr Liikanen on behalf of the Commission

(4 May 2001)

The feasibility study launched by the IPI (Istituto per la promozione industriale) on the establishment of an
International Network of SMEs (INSME), which is supported by the OECD and its member states, and in
which the Commission does not play a direct role, is very different from the Commission(cid:146)s project, the
purpose of which is to rationalise and streamline the existing Community business support networks, as
described in the communication of 13 February 2001 (1).

Indeed, the INSME initiative is very different in terms of its nature (virtual web network), its geographical
coverage (all OECD countries) and its purpose (to create a new international network without necessarily
integrating the national or regional networks).

The Commission would like to point out to the Honourable Member that it is not involved in the project
financially or in terms of human resources, but it is naturally following this project very closely in order to
ensure that it remains complementary to Community initiatives.

IPI has been a member of the Euro Info Centre network (EIC) since 1990. Following evaluations of its
performance relative to its contractual obligations, carried out in 1996 and 1997 by an independent audit
team, IPI was obliged to change its status. Since 1998, the organisation has changed from a standard EIC
to an associate member, a profile which takes better account of its particular characteristics.

C 261 E/230

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

18.9.2001

The Commission will continue to support the Euro Info Centre network. This is not a virtual network but
an actual network, established at local level as close as possible to businesses in order to respond to their
needs, offer them tailor-made assistance and communicate their concerns to the Commission so that it can
adapt its legislation and programmes accordingly.

(1) Progress report and future lines of the initiative to rationalise and streamline the existing Community business

support networks. Communication from Mr Liikanen, SEC(2001) 261.

(2001/C 261 E/262)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-1159/01

by Raffaele Costa (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(3 April 2001)

Subject: Use of preservatives and additives in the production of cheeses of protected designation of origin

Will the Commission state whether the addition of preservatives and additives not expressly provided for
in product specifications is authorised in the production of cheeses of protected designation of origin?

Will the Commission also state whether the use of milk which does not comply with the criteria laid down
in Annex A, Section 4 of Directive 92/46/EEC (1) is authorised in the production of cheeses of protected
designation of origin, made from raw milk, which have matured for more than 60 days?

(1) OJ L 268, 14.9.1992, p. 1.

Answer given by Mr Fischler on behalf of the Commission

(2 May 2001)

The Commission reassures the Honourable Member that only products that comply with all the horizontal
Community rules in force, in particular covering animal health, can be granted registration as protected
designations of origin (PDOs) under Council Regulation (EEC) No 2081/92 of 14 July 1992 on the
protection of geographical
indications and designations of origin for agricultural products and food-
stuffs (1).

Furthermore, the specifications for certain PDOs may contain provisions that are more restrictive than
those laid down by the Community legislation. In such cases, those more restrictive provisions must be
complied with.

(1) OJ L 208, 24.7.1992.

(2001/C 261 E/263)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-1197/01

by JosØ Ribeiro e Castro (UEN) to the Commission

(4 April 2001)

Subject: Failure of the EU/Morocco fisheries agreement negotiations: extraordinary aid for fleet conversion

The recent failure of the European Union and Morocco to reach agreement on renewing the Fisheries
Agreement with Morocco has left many hundreds of Portuguese and Spanish fishermen unable to fish;
moreover, the entire fleet which traditionally fished in Moroccan waters has been tied up since the end of
1999.