WRITTEN QUESTION E-0412/02 by Nelly Maes (Verts/ALE) to the Commission. Brittany in France.
Date: 2002-02-21
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: Brittany, European charter, France, cultural heritage, minority language

C 160 E/216

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

4.7.2002

(2002/C 160 E/276)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0412/02

by Nelly Maes (Verts/ALE) to the Commission

(21 February 2002)

Subject: Brittany in France

1.
Does the Commission regard the Vichy Government’s decision of 30 June 1941 to cut Loire-
Atlantique (Loire-inférieure as it then was), and hence Nantes, the historic capital, off from the rest of
Brittany as an acceptable one? Does the European Union think this arbitrary decision, which has ever since
been perpetuated by all French Governments, right-wing and left-wing alike,
is compatible with the
commitments made by France as a founding Member State, namely to respect subsidiarity, above all when
one opinion poll after another shows that a majority of the inhabitants of the département in question and
those of the Brittany administrative unit are in favour of the restoration of their historic status as a single
unit?

2.
Should France, as a founding Member State of the European Union, not act in the spirit of the ideal
which led to the founding of the EU, and overturn the unilateral decision of the fascist Vichy Government
to deprive historical Brittany of part of its territory?

3. What practical steps does Europe intend to take to push France to ratify and implement within
France the European Charter of Minority or Marginalised Languages which it has signed on its own
territory?

Answer given by Mr Prodi on behalf of the Commission

(27 March 2002)

The matter to which reference is made does not fall within the jurisdiction of the Community.

(2002/C 160 E/277)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-0441/02

by Rosa Miguélez Ramos (PSE) to the Commission

(12 February 2002)

Subject: Toxins in scallops

Scallops ; a bivalve mollusc which is highly prized by European consumers ; have long been
contaminated by algae carrying toxins such as ASP and PSP.

Some time ago the Commission, which is responsible for protecting the health of our consumers, fixed
limit values for the presence of these toxins in the edible parts of molluscs. This led to restrictions on
harvesting and marketing which were never applied homogeneously across the whole of the EU. Some
producer regions continued to harvest and market molluscs even though they contained levels of toxins
above the limit. In my own region, Galicia, strict application of the rules has led to a total ban on scallop
harvesting throughout the past seven years, causing heavy financial losses for the extracting industry and
giving rise to illegal harvesting, which is always undesirable.

According to the information I have received, the Commission has now decided to revise the rules, which
are considered excessively stringent, and the Veterinary Committee meeting on 19 February is set to
approve a decision significantly raising the limit values for toxins which, once published, will apply in all
the Member States with effect from March.

This good news will have a significant impact on European regions which depend heavily on fishing, and
on an industry which has been hit particularly hard by the crisis. It will also have positive implications for
consumers, who will be able to obtain this product with the best possible guarantees.