WRITTEN QUESTION E-3001/01 by Christos Folias (PPE-DE) to the Commission. CSF and operational programmes for Greece.
Date: 2001-10-29
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: Community support framework, EU initiative, Greece, Structural Funds, operational programme, payment

C 160 E/54

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

4.7.2002

(2002/C 160 E/060)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-3001/01

by Christos Folias (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(29 October 2001)

Subject: CSF and operational programmes for Greece

Of the projects jointly financed from the Structural Funds under the CSF and the Community initiatives for
Greece for the period 1994-1999, most of the operational programmes should have completed their
payment schedule by 31 December 2001.

1. What is Greece’s position relative to the other Objective 1 Member States in terms of take-up from
the Community budget to date?

2. What is the total amount of appropriations disbursed to date for Greece per structural fund and
operational programme under the CSF and Community initiatives for 1994-1999?

3. What is the exact balance (per structural fund and operational programme under the CSF and
Community initiatives for 1994-1999) to be disbursed for Greece from 2001 to 2003?

Is the sum of

the answers to questions 2 and 3 equal

4.
to the total amount of Community
appropriations approved for Greece (at current prices)? If not, for which operational programmes and from
which structural funds have Community appropriations already been released and what is the amount of
those appropriations?

Can the Commission confirm the Greek Government’s view that ‘not a single euro will be lost’ from

5.
the operational programmes under the CSF and Community initiatives?

If not, does the Commission have data from which it can calculate the total amount of Community

6.
appropriations which the Member States, and Greece in particular, may have lost?

Answer given by Mr Barnier on behalf of the Commission

(28 February 2002)

For all Funds and over the whole of the period, payments to Greece under Objective 1 for the 1994-

1.
1999 programming period totalled 91,9 % of the amounts decided by 15 January 2002.

At that date, payments to the other Member States averaged 92,45 % of the amounts decided, taking all
Funds and all financial years together.

At 15 January 2002, total appropriations for that period paid to Greece under the four Structural

2.
Funds and the Community Initiatives (CI) amounted to € 13,6 billion (1).

This was broken down as follows:

; European Regional Development Fund: € 9 229 billion;

; European Social Fund: € 2 315 billion;

; European Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund: € 1 902 billion;

; Financial Instrument for Fisheries Guidance: € 0 128 billion.

The Commission is sending the Honourable Member and the Secretariat-General of Parliament a detailed
table giving information for each operational programme (OP).

That table also shows the exact amount which will be paid out to Greece in 2002 and 2003, by

3.
Structural Fund, OP and CI.

4.7.2002

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 160 E/55

4.

The amounts already received by Greece correspond to the Community appropriations approved.

5. and 6.
The date of eligibility of expenditure incurred for the projects under the Community support
framework for Greece for 1994-1999 was 31 December 2001 and the Member States were required to
make final applications for payment and provide related documents for approval by 30 June 2002. At this
stage, the Commission is therefore unable to state whether Greece will lose any appropriations for that
period.

(1) These are the figures given by the Commission’s Sincom accounting tool. They do not include Interreg initiatives

and other payments made in Greece on the initiative of the Commission (technical assistance, etc.).

(2002/C 160 E/061)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-3015/01

by Jens-Peter Bonde (EDD) to the Commission

(29 October 2001)

Subject: Referendums in the applicant countries

In which of the applicant countries is it planned to hold referendums on accession to the European Union?

Answer given by Mr Verheugen on behalf of the Commission

(29 November 2001)

In the framework of their future ratification of the Accession Treaty, a number of candidate countries may
hold referendums on accession, in line with the constitutional and legal requirements and practice in each
country. According to the information currently available to the Commission, there is a constitutional
obligation to hold a referendum in Romania and Slovakia before the Accession Treaty can be ratified. In a
number of other candidate countries where there is no constitutional obligation, there is a declared
political will to organise a referendum, although no formal decision has as yet been taken.

(2002/C 160 E/062)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-3020/01

by María Sornosa Martínez (PSE) to the Commission

Subject: Need to ban the use of silver iodide against hailstorms

(29 October 2001)

The practice of fumigating with silver iodide to prevent hailstorms (by spraying from aeroplanes or firing
rockets) has been shown to be extremely damaging to the Spanish environment; specifically, it is causing
major damage in León, Soria, Valencia and other Spanish regions and provinces. However, it is subsidised
by the Ministry of Agriculture.

In its reply to questions E-3764/00 and E-4006/00 (1) on the use of silver iodide against hail, the
Commission stated that:

; silver iodide is not a priority substance in the relevant European Union reference lists;

; the substance does not fall within the scope of Directive 91/414/EEC (2) (on pesticides), since it is not

deemed a phytosanitary substance;

; the Spanish authorities had not informed the Commission of the subsidies granted for iodide.