WRITTEN QUESTION P-2836/01 by Dirk Sterckx (ELDR) to the Commission. Implementation of Directive 92/57/EEC on temporary and mobile construction sites.
Date: 2001-10-05
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: application of EU law, building industry, derogation from EU law, national implementing measure, occupational safety, public works, safety standard

16.5.2002

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 115 E/169

Framework 1994-1999. The deadline for legal commitments for this programme expired on 31 December
1999, while implementation and payments continue until 31 December 2001. For the abovementioned
programme and according to the existing rules, the Commission has paid to Greece the 1999 advanced
payment (about € 194 million), as well as a second advanced payment (about € 125 million). The Greek
authorities should submit their final claim for payment and closure of the programme by 30 June 2002.
About € 86 million of European Social Fund credits still remain to be paid.

According to information received by the Greek authorities, the delay of payments to teachers is due to
the exhaustion of the budget of the measure concerning initial vocational training in the end of 1999 and
the difficulty of the Ministry of Education to find national resources. The new operational programme
2000-2006 and national credits will cover the implementation cost for 2000 and 2001. In the meantime,
in March 2001 the Commission approved the new operational programme ‘Education and Initial
Vocational Training’ for the period 2000-2006 and made an advanced payment to Greece. The Ministry of
Education believes that all outstanding payments to teachers will have been made by January 2002.

The Commission is not aware of any misappropriation of credits with regard to initial vocational training
in the framework of the programme ‘Education and Initial Vocational Training’. The Commission will take
all necessary steps to verify the validity of rumours concerning this matter.

(2002/C 115 E/176)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-2836/01

by Dirk Sterckx (ELDR) to the Commission

(5 October 2001)

Subject: Implementation of Directive 92/57/EEC on temporary and mobile construction sites

In accordance with Article 3 of the eighth individual Directive 92/57/EEC (1) of the Council of the
European Communities of 24 June 1992 on minimum safety and health requirements at temporary or
mobile constructions sites, a safety coordinator must be appointed for any construction site on which
more than one contractor is present. On smaller sites, such as reconstruction of individual family houses,
that can mean a substantial extra cost that, on some estimates, can run to as much as 5 % of the total cost
of the work.

Can a Member State issue an exemption from appointing a safety coordinator for the construction or
renovation of individual family houses, on the grounds that the requirement imposed by the directive
would result in excessive extra costs to individuals?

Does the directive, while still enforcing the appointment of a safety coordinator, nevertheless allow
Member States the option, in the case of individual family house construction or renovation, of granting
exemptions from the requirements of drawing up a safety plan and work-completion file or maintaining a
coordination journal?

What is the position with regard to the directive’s implementation in Member States?

(1) OJ L 245, 26.8.1992, p. 6.

Answer given by Ms Diamantopoulou on behalf of the Commission

(12 November 2001)

Article 3 of Council Directive 92/57/EEC of 24 June 1992 on the implementation of minimum safety and
health requirements at temporary or mobile construction sites (eighth individual Directive within the
meaning of Article 16(1) of Directive 89/391/EEC) (1) requires the client or project supervisor to appoint
one or more coordinators for safety and health matters, as defined in the Directive, for any construction
site on which more than one contractor is present.

C 115 E/170

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

16.5.2002

‘Construction site’ is defined in Article 2(a) as any construction site at which building or civil engineering
works are carried out, a non-exhaustive list of such works being given in Annex I (2).

This means that the construction of private housing is also covered by the provisions of the Directive.
Consequently, a Member State cannot grant exemptions from the obligation to appoint a safety
coordinator for the construction or renovation of private dwellings if several contractors are present on
the site.

However, it should be pointed out that this obligation would not automatically involve substantial extra
costs at this type of site. The coordinator may well be the client or the project supervisor. Moreover, it is
unusual for there to be a large number of contractors present on such sites.

As for the requirement to draw up a safety and health plan, Article 3(2) of the Directive requires the client
or project supervisor to ensure that a safety and health plan is prepared before a construction site is set up.
This requirement applies to any construction site covered by the definition given in Article 2 of the
Directive. However, the second paragraph of Article 3(2) of the Directive allows for derogations. Under this
Article, the Member States may, after consulting both management and the workforce, allow derogations
from the provisions of the first paragraph, except where the work concerned involves particular risks as
listed in Annex II or where the work requires prior notice under Article 3(3).

With regard to the implementation of Directive 92/57/EEC, all the Member States have to inform the
Commission of their national measures transposing the directive. To the Commission’s knowledge, there
have been no infringements or any other special problems concerning the directive’s implementation.

(1) OJ L 245, 26.8.1992.
(2) Annex I:

‘Non-exhaustive list of building and civil engineering works referred to in Article 2(a) of the Directive
1. Excavation. 2. Earthworks. 3. Construction. 4. Assembly and disassembly of prefabricated elements. 5. Conversion
or
fitting-out. 6. Alterations. 7. Renovation. 8. Repairs. 9. Dismantling. 10. Demolition. 11. Upkeep.
12. Maintenance C painting and cleaning work. 13. Drainage’.

(2002/C 115 E/177)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2840/01

by Ursula Schleicher (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(17 October 2001)

Subject: The use of bibliographical data in pharmacological research

Progress in medical science means that expensive research projects must also be carried out on active
pharmacological substances which are already on the market, in order to:

C record the latest findings on their effectiveness and safety for the existing indication

C develop fields of application in addition to the existing indication or

C demonstrate their effectiveness in certain groups of patients (for example children or high-risk groups).

In particular, this involves clinical trials which can often incur costs of several million euros each.

As the European Court of Justice established some time ago, however, data on out-of-patent active
substances can also be used at any time by third-party firms for the approval of their own products,
without these firms having to contribute to the sometimes high financial cost of producing the data.

1. Which existing rules does the Commission believe promote the objective laid down in Directive
1999/83/EC (1), fourth recital?

2. What measures does the Commission consider necessary to protect firms engaged in research with
regard to the use of bibliographical data by third parties in approval procedures?