WRITTEN QUESTION E-2714/01 by Martin Callanan (PPE-DE) to the Commission. Sixth VAT directive.
Date: 2001-10-03
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: EC Directive, EU law, VAT rate, building insulation, direct selling, energy saving, tax exemption

18.7.2002

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 172 E/13

(2002/C 172 E/013)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2687/01

by Mario Mauro (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(3 October 2001)

Subject: Funding from Trade DG

Will the Commission provide a list of the projects which, in 2000 and 2001, were submitted by the Italian
Regions of Liguria, Lombardy, Piedmont and Valle d’Aosta for financing from the funds administered by
the Trade Directorate-General, and the names of those which were subsequently approved?

Answer given by Mr Lamy on behalf of the Commission

(31 January 2002)

The Trade Directorate General has received no request for funding projects from these regions, neither in
2000 nor in 2001.

(2002/C 172 E/014)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2696/01

by Mario Mauro (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(3 October 2001)

Subject: Funding from External Relations DG

Will the Commission provide a list of the projects which, in 2000 and 2001, were submitted by the Italian
Regions of Liguria, Lombardy, Piedmont and Valle d’Aosta for financing from the funds administered by
the External Relations Directorate-General, and the names of those which were subsequently approved?

Reply given by Mr Patten on behalf of the Commission

(31 January 2002)

No financing was allocated in 2000 or 2001 from the funds administered by the External Relations
Directorate-General for projects submitted by the Italian regions mentioned in the Honourable Member’s
question.

(2002/C 172 E/015)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2714/01

by Martin Callanan (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(3 October 2001)

Subject: Sixth VAT directive

The sixth VAT directive provides a lower rate of VAT for installed energy-saving materials, but excludes
energy-saving materials sold directly to consumers.

Would the Commission agree that this discrepancy sends out a mixed message regarding the importance
of tackling climate change?

C 172 E/14

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

18.7.2002

Answer given by Mr Bolkestein on behalf of the Commission

(20 November 2001)

The Honourable Member is referred to the Commission’s answers to Written Questions E-3018/00 from
Mr Ford (1) and E-2431/01 from Mrs McNally (2).

(1) OJ C 163 E, 6.6.2001.
(2) See page 7.

(2002/C 172 E/016)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2773/01

by Jonas Sjöstedt (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(9 October 2001)

Subject: Construction of external frontier posts on Poland’s eastern border

The construction of new border posts along Poland’s eastern boarder has been funded by the European
Union. On enlargement, strict border controls will have to be built up progressively on the eastern borders
of the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary and Romania.

How much was the EU contribution to improving Poland’s eastern border controls, and what are the
intended arrangements for financial contributions and planning assistance for establishing border controls
along the eastern frontiers of the other countries mentioned above?

Answer given by Mr Verheugen on behalf of the Commission

(3 December 2001)

The PHARE programme has made and continues to make substantial allocations both in terms of
investment and institutional building to improve eastern border management in all the candidate countries
mentioned by the Honourable Member. Clearly the emphasis is on improving management of those
borders that are likely to become the future Schengen external borders of the European Union. In this area,
the Commission co-operates very closely with the EU Member States for both the implementation and
monitoring of border projects. Both Commission and Member State experts carried out technical missions
in all candidate countries in 1998-1999 and in 2000-2001 for the identification of needs in the fields of
asylum, migration, border management and police & customs co-operation in the fight against organised
crime.

The core approach is to assist the candidates to adopt a legal framework consistent with the acquis. The
in this respect is the financing of twinning arrangements between EU Member States and
main tool
candidate countries. Each Twinning Covenant implies the secondment of, at least, one Pre-Accession
Advisor (PAA) from one Member State and for 12 months minimum duration. Each project covers also
training, study trips, equipment where necessary and short-term experts to complement the PAA. Another
substantial part of the allocations is directed towards investment, i.e. the supply of equipment (transport,
laboratory equipment, detection tools, etc. …) or the financing of the building/rehabilitation of appropriate
infrastructure (border crossing points mainly) for ensuring the enforcement of the JHA acquis.

The PHARE Horizontal Programmes (PHP) consist of multi-country sectoral projects focused on the
assistance to the establishment of strategies and on training, with a view to ensuring certain homogeneity
between the candidate countries in the transposition of
the acquis. Two PHARE JHA horizontal
programmes of € 10 million each have been established in 1996-1999 and then 2000-2003. They
concentrate in the fields of border management and control, training of judges, visa, asylum, immigration,
organised crime, judicial co-operation. In the field of drugs, another multi-country programme of € 10
million was developed in 1999, with the aim to developing an anti-drugs policy and strengthening the