WRITTEN QUESTION E-1227/01 by António Campos (PSE) and Paulo Casaca (PSE) to the Commission. Wine fraud in Portugal.
Date: 2001-04-26
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: Portugal, consumer protection, food inspection, foodstuffs legislation, fraud, fraud against the EU, wine

14.2.2002

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 40 E/27

framework for equal treatment in employment and occupation expressly state that they shall be
applied without prejudice to national provisions laying down retirement ages. Applying article 74 to
all auxiliary agents, including auxiliary conference interpreters, avoids discrimination amongst those
agents.

(cid:129) Officials of the European Communities working in all EU Institutions are covered by the recruitment,

employment, and retirement provisions of the Staff Regulations referred to above.

(1) OJ L 76, 25.3.2000.

(2002/C 40 E/025)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1227/01

by Ant(cid:243)nio Campos (PSE) and Paulo Casaca (PSE) to the Commission

Subject: Wine fraud in Portugal

(26 April 2001)

On 29 March 2001 the Portuguese press reported that 25 million litres of wine had been confiscated by
the Portuguese authorities on grounds of serious presumption of fraud.

Did the Portuguese authorities inform the EU institutions of this? Has the Commission monitored this
procedure? Could it provide an estimate of the volume of suspected adulterated wine held by the company
in question? Can it guarantee that this company will not be granted any Community subsidy so long as
such strong suspicions remain or in the event that they are confirmed?

Does the Commission not consider that this case has further highlighted the urgent need for immediate
administrative and legislative action to be taken to combat fraud and adulteration of foodstuffs, such as
milk, wine, oil and meat, given that such activities have taken on enormous proportions and had an
extremely harmful effect on consumers, farmers, the Community budget and the reputation of Community
institutions worldwide?

Supplementary answer
given by Mr Fischler on behalf of the Commission

(10 September 2001)

The European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) says that it asked the Portuguese authorities on 10 April 2001 for
further particulars following various reports in the Portuguese press in March. The Portuguese authorities
replied that the information in their possession led them to conclude that the case did not involve any
Community monies; they also pointed out that the case was (cid:145)sub judice(cid:146). The case did not need to be
communicated under Council Regulation (EEC) No 595/91 of 4 March 1991 concerning irregularities and
the recovery of sums wrongly paid in connection with the financing of the common agricultural policy
and the organisation of an information system in this field and repealing Regulation (EEC) No 283/72 (1).
The Regulation stipulates that, during the two months following the end of each quarter, Member States
are to communicate to the Commission a list of irregularities which have been the subject of initial
administrative or legal findings.

Member States have the prime responsibility for ensuring that payments under the European Agricultural
Guidance and Guarantee Fund (EAGGF) (cid:129) Guarantee Section have been made correctly and that a given
benficiary does not constitute an excessive risk. That entails, if necessary, taking the measures provided for
in Council Regulation (EC) No 1469/95 of 22 June 1995 on measures to be taken with regard to certain
beneficiaries of operations financed by the Guarantee Section of the EAGGF (2) and Commission Regulation
(EC) No 745/96 of 24 April 1996 laying down detailed rules for the application of Council Regulation
(EC) No 1469/95 (3).

C 40 E/28

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

14.2.2002

The risk of fraud and abuse is constantly borne in mind when drafting Community legislation and
implementing rules. All regulations setting up aid schemes define the products or beneficiaries eligible for
aid and stipulate the type and frequency of controls to be carried out by Member States. A balance always
has to be struck between a scheme(cid:146)s estimated risk and the control provisions to be laid down. In some
instances 100 % control rates may be justified, and these are in fact occasionally imposed. This would
clearly not be justified as a general rule, however, as the cost would far outweigh the benefit.

Under the common agricultural policy (CAP),
legislation (cid:129) including control provisions (cid:129) has been
improved over time to reduce the risk of fraud and abuse. Control rates are clearly defined and some
schemes (such as aid for liquid skimmed milk used in feed and consumption aid for olive oil) have been
abolished inter alia because of their inherent risk. It should be pointed out that there are instances in
which the outcome of negotiations at the Council has been to alter the initial Commission proposal such
that the legislation finally adopted is more open to abuse than if the Commission proposal had been left
unchanged.

The radical shift in the CAP towards far more direct aid to farmers and far less aid through market
measures has also made it possible to set up the highly effective Integrated Administration and Control
System (IACS).

The above points demonstrate how the Commission takes fraud prevention into account and, where
necessary, proposes the requisite legal and administrative measures. Although the Commission does not
share the Honourable Members(cid:146) view that there is an urgent need to take further measures, it continues to
pay close attention to preventing fraud and product adulteration.

(1) OJ L 67, 14.3.1991.
(2) OJ L 145, 29.6.1995.
(3) OJ L 102, 25.4.1996.

(2002/C 40 E/026)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1242/01

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

(26 April 2001)

Subject: Telemedicine in Europe

The application of the technology of the information society to medicine was the theme of the first
International Congress on Telemedicine held in Madrid recently.
Initial results show that the use of
teleconsulting via videoconference reduces visits to hospital for appointments by 75 %, and visits to
emergency departments by up to 90 %.

Since 1999 an experiment has been conducted at the Severo Ochoa Hospital
in Madrid, with the
participation of a group on bioengineering and telemedicine from the city(cid:146)s Complutense University, on
telemedicine and home dialysis, as part of the Attract project financed by the European Union. This
experiment is the first of its kind in Europe, although countries such as the United States and Canada
frequently use telemedicine in a wide range of areas.

What are the Commission(cid:146)s views on the use of telemedicine in Europe to date? How does it intend to
encourage more widespread use of telemedicine, to enable Europe to catch up with North America?

Answer given by Mr Liikanen on behalf of the Commission

(3 September 2001)

Analysis of the state of play of the (civil) implementation of cost-effective telemedicine services in North
American countries and in Europe leads the Commission services to the conclusion that the European
position in this domain is encouraging as compared to that in North America.