WRITTEN QUESTION E-2936/01 by Juan Naranjo Escobar (PPE-DE) to the Commission. Aeroplanes displaying the EU logo.
Date: 2001-10-24
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: European symbol, air transport, aircraft, transport regulations

C 205 E/14

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

29.8.2002

(2002/C 205 E/013)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2927/01

by Hiltrud Breyer (Verts/ALE) to the Commission

(24 October 2001)

Subject: Cost of

conference

‘Life Sciences

and Biotechnology (cid:30) A Strategic Vision’ held on

27-28 September 2001 in Brussels

On 27 and 28 September 2001, the Commission held a conference in Brussels entitled ‘Life Sciences and
Biotechnology (cid:30) A Strategic Vision’.

Will the Commission provide a breakdown of the costs involved in holding this event?

Answer given by Mr Prodi on behalf of the Commission

(28 November 2001)

The Commission’s stakeholder conference ‘Life Sciences and Biotechnology (cid:30) A Strategic Vision’ was an
integral part of the Commission’s preparation of a policy paper by the end of 2001 as announced in
March 2001 in its report to the Stockholm European Council (23-24 March 2001). The Commission
launched on 4 September 2001 a broad public consultation with the publication of a comprehensive and
detailed consultation document (1).

The conference was held over two days on 27-28 September 2001, organised into six separate conference
sessions (including four parallel workshops on selected topics), for a broad coverage of relevant subjects.
Nearly 40 persons took an active role as session chairs or members of discussion panels, including several
members of the European Parliament and national parliaments. The conference gathered approximately
320 participants representing a broad range of views. They included scientific experts, consumer and
environmental
interest groups, technology providers and other industries, healthcare providers, science
communicators and the media, experts and policy makers from Community institutions and Members
States, as well as experts from third countries, including developing countries.

The resulting workshop reports, together with the consultation document, have been published on a new
dedicated website on the EUROPA server (http://europa.eu.int/comm/biotechnology) which also offers a
possibility for submission and publication of comments from the public.

The total direct costs of the conference amount to about € 104 000, composed of € 78 000 for travel and
subsistence costs for private experts from the Union and third countries, € 16 000 for participation of
governmental experts from Member State and candidate countries, and € 10 000 for conference logistics.
The cost of this conference compares favorably with costs of similar events organized by the Commission
in the past.

(1) COM(2001) 454 final.

(2002/C 205 E/014)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2936/01

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

(24 October 2001)

Subject: Aeroplanes displaying the EU logo

Certain airlines in certain Member States display the European Union logo on their planes, although most
of them continue to ignore this identifying symbol which contributes so effectively to propagating a sense
of EU identity.

It is obvious that the display of the logo will not become standard practice as long as this is left up to the
discretion of the airlines. Some other way of ensuring that all the Union’s airlines display the Community
symbol is therefore called for.

29.8.2002

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 205 E/15

Does the Commission believe that it should submit a legally binding proposal which would, when adopted
by the relevant Community authority, oblige Community planes to carry the European symbol?

Answer given by Mrs de Palacio on behalf of the Commission

(29 November 2001)

The Commission shares the Honourable Member’s view that the Union’s logo, i.e. the flag with yellow
stars, helps in a positive manner and in many different contexts to make the European identity known
throughout the world. The Commission is therefore pleased to see a number of airlines displaying the logo
on their aircraft.

However, as the Commission has already pointed out in previous answers, the Commission does not take
the view that the use of the Union’s logo by European airlines should be made compulsory.

Moreover, the use of the logo is in all cases subject to prior authorisation in accordance with the
agreement concluded between the European Community and the Council of Europe which is the legal
owner of the logo.

(2002/C 205 E/015)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2960/01

by Samuli Pohjamo (ELDR) and Mikko Pesälä (ELDR) to the Commission

Subject: Promoting the position of people with disabilities

(25 October 2001)

Article 1 of Council Directive 2000/78/EC (1) of 27 November 2000 states that ‘The purpose of this
Directive is to lay down a general framework for combating discrimination on the grounds of religion or
belief, disability, age or sexual orientation as regards employment and occupation …’. Article 5 of that
directive (Reasonable accommodation for disabled persons) also states that
‘In order to guarantee
compliance with the principle of equal treatment in relation to persons with disabilities, reasonable
accommodation shall be provided. This means that employers shall take appropriate measures, where
needed in a particular case, to enable a person with a disability to have access to, participate in, or advance
in employment, or to undergo training, unless such measures would impose a disproportionate burden on
the employer’. The implementation of this directive is of vital importance because people with disabilities
still suffer from negative attitudes both at work and in society as a whole. On 17 June 1999 the Council
took up a position on this matter when it adopted a resolution (2) in which it urged the Member States to
place particular emphasis on the promotion of employment opportunities for people with disabilities.

How will the implementation of this directive be ensured? In this connection we are interested
1.
particularly in eliminating discrimination against people with disabilities as regards employment and
occupation and in appropriate measures to apply the above-mentioned Article 5.

2. What exactly is meant in Article 5 by ‘unless such measures would impose a disproportionate burden
on the employer’? If an employer has a unilateral right to determine what imposes a disproportionate
burden on him, how is it possible to prevent unjustified discrimination against people with disabilities on
these grounds, for example in a recruitment situation?

3. What are the measures, referred to in Article 26 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU,
designed to ensure the independence, social and occupational integration of disabled people and their
participation in the life of the community? How have these measures been implemented thus far and is
there room for improvement in their implementation?

Are any projects as described above, aimed at improving the position of disabled people, planned in

4.
the near future, and if so, of what kind are they?

(1) OJ L 303, 2.12.2000, p. 16.
(2) OJ C 186, 2.7.1999, p. 3.