WRITTEN QUESTION P-3627/01 by Sebastiano Musumeci (UEN) to the Commission. Measures to support crisis distillation in Sicily.
Date: 2002-01-08
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: Sicily, State aid, agricultural situation, distillation, vinification, viticulture

20.6.2002

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 147 E/213

Council Directive 89/105/EEC of 21 December 1988 relating to the transparency of measures regulating
the prices of medicinal products for human use and their inclusion in the scope of national health
insurance systems (1) requires there to be a certain transparency of national decisions on prices of
medicinal products and their reimbursement within the Community.

It is envisaged to proceed in 2002 with an evaluation of this Directive in order to investigate whether it
needs to be amended.

(1) OJ L 40, 11.2.1989.

(2002/C 147 E/224)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-3627/01

by Sebastiano Musumeci (UEN) to the Commission

Subject: Measures to support crisis distillation in Sicily

(8 January 2002)

The wine-growing sector in Sicily is going through a serious crisis because of the problems facing
cooperative wine-growers’ associations and individual producers.

Distillation can provide an immediate, albeit temporary, solution to the problem that will ward off a total
collapse of the sector pending the necessary specific and definitive measures to secure the future of wine-
growing in Sicily, which can compete in terms of quality but is penalised by fierce competition from Spain
in terms of cost and quantity.

The Italian government has asked the European Commission for authorisation to introduce crisis
distillation for 8 million hectolitres of wine.

Does the Commission not consider that
it should authorise the Italian Ministry of Agriculture to
supplement the intervention price with a national subsidy to bring it up to the price for optional
distillation?

Answer given by Mr Fischler on behalf of the Commission

(31 January 2002)

The Commission has already been informed of the difficulties on the wine market in Sicily and thanks the
Honourable Member for drawing its attention to the seriousness of the situation. On 17 January 2002 the
Italian authorities asked the Commission to open crisis distillation. This request will be closely examined in
the light of the information needed to take a decision on the matter.

As regards the state aid referred to by the Honourable Member, designed to increase the Community
distillation price should crisis distillation take place, the Commission can only take a decision after
considering the facts of the case. As a general rule the Commission considers aids of this kind to be an
operating aid, i.e. one that is incompatible with the single market and interferes with the mechanisms
governing the common organisation of the markets.

(2002/C 147 E/225)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-3630/01

by Hans-Peter Martin (PSE) to the Council

(8 January 2002)

Subject: President of the Convention

Is the correct that at the EU summit in Laeken the Council took only a few minutes to discuss and agree
on the appointment of Mr Valéry Giscard d’Estaing as president of the Convention and is it also true that
only one name was put forward for the office of president and that the name of Wim Kok was therefore
not even mentioned?