WRITTEN QUESTION E-1241/01 by Juan Naranjo Escobar (PPE-DE) to the Commission. Reducing private transport use in cities.
Date: 2001-04-26
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: European cultural event, common transport policy, environmental protection, means of public conveyance, sustainable mobility, urban transport

C 350 E/98

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

11.12.2001

Answer given by Mr Nielson on behalf of the Commission

(28 June 2001)

The Commission welcomes the interest of the Honourable Member for the Commission(cid:146)s proposals for
accelerated action against the major communicable diseases including tuberculosis (TB) and wish to
reassure the Honourable Member that the Commission supports the recommendations of the World Health
Organisation (WHO) and the expansion of the DOTS approach.

The Commission has produced two recent Communications to guide an accelerated response. The first (1)
detailed the global impact of the three diseases, and highlighted underused interventions with potential for
greater use. The document did not address the detail of specific interventions but in the case of TB
highlighted the Stop TB initiative and its agenda for action of which DOTS is a crucial component. The
second Communication (2), the Framework for action, defined how the Commission would meet the
challenges of this ambitious agenda.

DOTS is undoubtedly a key part of any successful national strategy to address TB and needs to be nested
in a strong health system. Other priorities include the development of new diagnostics, drugs and an
effective TB vaccine and action to increase the affordability of second line drugs, needed to treat resistant
strains of tuberculosis. The Commission Programme for Action envisages action in all these areas.

(1) COM(2000) 585 final.
(2) COM(2001) 96 final.

(2001/C 350 E/106)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1240/01

by Graham Watson (ELDR) to the Commission

(26 April 2001)

Subject: Safe Harbour

Given that so few US companies have signed up to Safe Harbour, what impact will this have on the
European Commission(cid:146)s forthcoming six-month review of the agreement? How does the Commission plan
to assess the Safe Harbour agreement and its implementation and which criteria will it look at?

Answer given by Mr Bolkestein on behalf of the Commission

(26 June 2001)

The fact that fewer companies have joined the Safe Harbour so far than the American Department of
Commerce originally expected has no impact on the Commission(cid:146)s undertaking to the Parliament to make
an interim report this year on how the Safe Harbour works. The Commission is collecting factual
information from a number of Community and American sources, with a view to determining whether all
the elements foreseen in the arrangement are in place and whether there is any evidence that the Safe
Harbour is either not providing the level of protection foreseen for data subjects or not providing the
security and simplifying effect that it should for those involved in making data transfers.

(2001/C 350 E/107)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1241/01

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

Subject: Reducing private transport use in cities

(26 April 2001)

The European Union is in favour of reducing the use of private transport in cities. In Madrid recently, the
Environment Commissioner, Margot Wallstr(cid:246)m, and ministers from various EU Member States launched

11.12.2001

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 350 E/99

the campaign for a European Car-Free Day on 22 September 2001, to which the European Commission
will contribute € 1 million. It is predicted that this year the event will have a larger impact, since so far
two new countries, Holland and Hungary, have decided to join the initiative. It is also possible that
countries outside the Union may be called on to take part.

Such initiatives are one part of the effort that the EU must make to combat the effects of climate change,
but they are far from sufficient. In view of this, what other kinds of initiatives does the Commission intend
to take to halt the deterioration of the environment towards which, at the moment, we seem to be on an
almost irreversible course? Is the Commission planning other measures designed to promote a climate
favourable to public transport or to other less polluting means of transport?

Answer given by Mrs Wallstr(cid:246)m on behalf of the Commission

(21 June 2001)

The over-arching principle for action in this respect is that of integrating the environment into the sectoral
policies with the aim of achieving sustainable development (Article 6 of the Amsterdam Treaty). In the
transport sector, this process is being backed up by the joint Transport and Environment Expert Group
which is jointly chaired by the two Directorates-General for Transport and Energy, and for Environment.
The expert group has produced an analysis and recommendations for action in connection with the
integration strategy of the Council (Transport). Its latest report is available on the Internet (1).

Concerning actions on modal shift towards public transport and other less damaging modes of transport,
one has to distinguish between urban and inter-urban transport. With regard to the latter, the recent
adoption of the (cid:145)railway package(cid:146) (2) should help to achieve the stated Commission goal of revitalising the
railways. The Commission is at an advanced stage of preparing a White Paper on the Common Transport
Policy in which further action in this area will be laid out. Concerning urban transport, further to the
awareness-raising activities in connection with the Car-Free Day, the Commission(cid:146)s competences are
limited by subsidiarity. Actions include the exchange of best practice on urban transport (3) and the
initiative (4). The
financing of demonstration projects through the City-vitality-Sustainability (Civitas)
Commission(cid:146)s thinking on urban transport will be further developed through a forthcoming communi-
cation in the field of alternative fuels including a proposal for a directive establishing a requirement to use
a certain percentage of bio-fuels and a forthcoming Communication on Clean Urban Transport that is
foreseen for the end of 2001.

(1) http://europa.eu.int/comm/environment/trans/.
(2) OJ L 75, 15.3.2001.
(3) http://www.eltis.org/.
(4) http://europa.eu.int/comm/energy_transport/en/cut_en/cut_civitas_en.html.

(2001/C 350 E/108)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1245/01

by Francesco Turchi (UEN) to the Commission

(26 April 2001)

Subject: Pilot project to combat child exploitation

In connection with the 2001 budget the European Parliament has voted in favour of allocating 3 million
euros to finance, during its first year of operation, a pilot project to combat child exploitation (heading
in
B5-804),
particular, paedophilia in the 15 Member States.

in particular by financing an information campaign to combat child exploitation and,

Would the Commission say what has been done so far and what is to be done in the future in order to
implement the above project, and what is the intended timetable?