WRITTEN QUESTION E-0342/02 by Pierre Jonckheer (Verts/ALE) to the Commission. Subsidies and open-cast mines in the district of Alto Carrión, Palencia (Spain).
Date: 2002-02-12
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: EU financing, Spain, State aid, aid for restructuring, coal industry, redevelopment aid

C 205 E/122

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

29.8.2002

(2002/C 205 E/131)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0338/02

by Christopher Heaton-Harris (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(12 February 2002)

Subject: Tobacco subsidies

Could the Commission please provide a breakdown of funding for tobacco subsidies, Member State by
Member State, for the past 5 years.

Answer given by Mr Fischler on behalf of the Commission

(22 March 2002)

The following table sets out
Guarantee Fund, Guarantee Section, declared by the Member States in the period 1997-2001.

the tobacco premiums from the European Agricultural Guidance and

Belgium

Germany

Greece

Spain

France

Italy

Austria

Portugal

Tobacco premium (B1-171)

2001

3,1

33,7

376,4

115,5

77,0

338,3

1,0

19,0

Total

963,9

2000

3,6

36,3

374,8

115,6

79,7

357,4

0,8

16,7

984,8

1999

3,6

23,2

374,9

70,7

70,1

348,4

0,7

18,3

909,8

1998

3,2

29,5

365,8

107,4

79,8

260,0

0,7

19,8

866,2

(Million €)

1997

3,2

27,0

355,9

122,3

84,2

394,2

0,6

17,9

1 005,3

(2002/C 205 E/132)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0342/02

by Pierre Jonckheer (Verts/ALE) to the Commission

(12 February 2002)

Subject: Subsidies and open-cast mines in the district of Alto Carrión, Palencia (Spain)

With reference to question E-2270/01 (1)
province of Palencia), would the Commission answer the following questions:

(operation of open-cast mines in the Alto Carrión district,

6 How much Community funding has been granted by way of coal aid to the Spanish Government?

6 Under what heading was such funding allocated?

6 Who acted as intermediary in the funding procedure?

6 Has Unión Minera del Norte SA (Uminsa) 6 the company responsible for operating the open-cast
mines in the Alto Carrión district 6 received any EU funding, or has it been allocated any state aid?

6 If it has, how much aid or funding has it received, under what heading and in what connection?

(1) OJ C 115 E, 16.5.2002, p. 48.

29.8.2002

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 205 E/123

Answer given by Ms de Palacio on behalf of the Commission

(27 March 2002)

The Commission has approved, under Article 56 of the ECSC Treaty, the granting of aid for the retraining
of miners amounting to € 18 517 million in 1998, € 11 828 million in 1999, € 7 220 million in 2000 and
€ 19 165 million in 2001. This aid was granted for miners affected by the restructuring of the Spanish coal
industry.

The company Unión Minera del Norte S.A. (Uminsa) received EUR 1 851 461 in 1998, EUR 469 000 in
1999, EUR 906 708 in 2000 and EUR 832 500 in 2001 from the Spanish authorities as repayment for the
ECSC aid mentioned above which the company had advanced to the miners concerned.

Spain has also granted state aid to Uminsa to cover its operating losses. This aid has to be approved by the
Commission, which it did for 1998, 1999, 2000 and 2001, the years during which the ‘1998-2002 Coal
Plan’ was in force and approved by the Commission in Decisions No 98/637/ECSC (1) of 3 June 1998,
1999/451/ECSC (2) of 4 May 1999, 2001/162/EC (3) of 13 December 2000, and its Decision of
11 December, which has not yet been published but a copy of which is being sent to the Honourable
Member and to Secretariat-General of the Parliament.

The aid authorised by the Commission for Uminsa is as follows:

6 operating aid of ESP 5 370 million for 1999, ESP 6 453 million for 2000 and ESP 6 786 million for

2001, under Article 3 of Decision No 3632/93/ECSC; (4)

6 aid for the reduction of activity of ESP 600 million for 2000, under Article 4 of Decision No 3632/

93/ECSC;

6 aid to cover exceptional restructuring costs of ESP 2 762 million for 2000, under Article 5 of Decision
No 3632/93/ECSC. Spain also gives financial support to workers affected by restructuring measures,
but it still has to provide detailed information on what proportion of this support was used for
compensation payments to Uminsa workers.

The above information should be examined bearing in mind that Uminsa was created by a series of
mergers of some 17 companies during 1998 and 1999, and that consequently the size of the company has
changed over the whole of the period under consideration.

(1) OJ L 303, 13.11.1998.
(2) OJ L 177, 13.7.1999.
(3) OJ L 58, 28.2.2001.
(4) OJ L 329, 30.12.1993.

(2002/C 205 E/133)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0353/02

by Paul Rübig (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(14 February 2002)

Subject: Tax changes in connection with cross-border work and services in Germany

From 1 January 2002 a 15 % tax is being charged on payments for building work carried out in Germany
for a legal entity under public law or a private person regarded as the employer under the turnover tax
law. This tax can only be waived if the builder gives the client a certificate of exemption from the relevant
German tax office.