WRITTEN QUESTION E-1203/02 by Phillip Whitehead (PSE) to the Commission. Dog and cat fur.
Date: 2002-04-26
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: competence of the Member States, domestic animal, export restriction, hides and furskins industry, import restriction, market approval, protection of animals, public morality

C 301 E/104

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

5.12.2002

Management Training Programme

Since 2001 an internal programme has been in place to develop the key management capacities which are
specific to the Commission. By the end of 2002, about 400 managers will have attended this eight-day
programme.

External Management Development Programme

In 2000 the Commission launched a programme to encourage its senior and middle managers to attend
appropriate training seminars in leading European Business Schools. By the end of 2002, some 120
officials at the level of Unit Head and higher will have benefited from this initiative.

Developmental Consultancy

An initiative was launched in 2000 to enable middle and senior staff to draw upon the support of
the
management consultants for short
Commission at DG, Directorate, Unit or team level. By the end of 2002, some 40 such assignments will
have been funded from the central training budget. Each assignment involves at least one manager, whilst
most assignments involve several.

term assignments designed to improve the functioning of

Individual Coaching

An initiative was launched in 2001 to give management level staff in the Commission access to individual
coaching in the context of implementing significant change in their areas of responsibility. By the end of
2002, 15 senior managers will have benefited from this facility.

Other relevant activities

There are other, smaller training and developmental
including
university fellowships and distance-learning programmes. In the period 2000-2002, over 100 Commission
managers will have benefited from such developmental facilities.

initiatives for Commission managers,

Overview

The above figures show that, as announced by the Director-General for Personnel and Administration in
2000, all management staff are participating to various degrees in the designated training on an
unprecedented scale. This coverage is due in part to the Reform-related training activities. Furthermore,
over 50 percent of the Commission’s management staff at the level of Unit Head and higher will have
taken part in intensive management training in the period 2000-2002. That pattern will, of course,
continue as a regular feature of Commission efforts to improve training for, and training in, the essential
skills of management.

(2002/C 301 E/108)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1203/02

by Phillip Whitehead (PSE) to the Commission

(26 April 2002)

Subject: Dog and cat fur

Given the interest shown by a number of Member States in enacting national provisions to prohibit the
abhorrent trade in domestic dog and cat fur, will the Commission seek to bring forth proposals at a
European level to ban the import, export and trade of these products?

5.12.2002

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 301 E/105

Answer given by Mr Byrne on behalf of the Commission

(8 July 2002)

Since a complete ban on the production, use, trade and import of those furs (cid:1) as imposed by certain
Member States (cid:1) would apply regardless of the conditions under which the animals are kept and killed, it
is evident that such measures are not motivated by solely animal welfare concerns. The motivation is
primarily an ethical question, whether to use products derived from animals which are mainly regarded as
companion animals.

This specific motivation raises the question as to whether the Community is limited to act by the principle
of subsidiarity. A measure, which aims mainly to protect public morality, could indeed be seen as lying
within the competence of the Member States.

The necessity of any regulation in this matter depends on the appreciation of dogs and cats in society
which might vary in the Member States. A restriction of trade is only justified when the use of products
derived from such animals are regarded as an breach of public morality.

Possible animal welfare concerns related to the production of fur in the Union is already covered by
Community legislation. The Community adopted Council Directives 98/58/EC (1) and 93/119/EEC (2),
which apply to all animals reared for commercial purposes, including the production of fur. Furthermore,
in the framework of the Council of Europe Convention for the protection of animals kept for farming
purposes, recommendations concerning fur animals were adopted in 1999. However, the applicability of
these measures to third countries outside the Union and the Council of Europe is clearly limited. Therefore,
the Commission does not intend to propose regulations on the trade in dog and cat furs, leaving the
decision to take measures to the individual Member States.

(1) Council Directive 98/58/EC of 20 July 1998 concerning the protection of animals kept for farming purposes,

OJ L 221, 8.8.1998.

(2) Council Directive 93/119/EC of 22 December 1993 on the protection of animals at the time of slaughter or killing,

OJ L 340, 31.12.1993.

(2002/C 301 E/109)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1209/02

by Mihail Papayannakis (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(29 April 2002)

Subject: Construction of a housing complex on the coast at Vaya on the island of Serifos

Local residents on the island of Serifos have complained that a housing complex is under construction on
the coast at Vaya.

Since:

(cid:1) the coastal area at Vaya has been incorporated in the Natura 2000 network,

(cid:1) it is situated on an island which Greece has designated an area of exceptional natural beauty,

(cid:1) it has been described as an area of exceptional ecological value because of its sand dunes and

vegetation in a report drawn up by a group of planners,

(cid:1) a draft Presidential Decree ‘laying down restrictions and specific conditions governing construction for
the protection of the landscape in areas not covered by building plans’ makes specific reference to this
coastal area, banning any form of intervention within a distance of 200 metres from the coastline,