WRITTEN QUESTION E-1703/02 by Paulo Casaca (PSE) to the Commission. Aid C35/02 — Adaptation of the national tax system to the specific characteristics of the autonomous region of the Azores.
Date: 2002-06-13
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: Azores, State aid, access to EU information, control of State aid, document, national law, tax law

6.2.2003

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 28 E/129

(2003/C 28 E/146)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1697/02

by Ilda Figueiredo (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(12 June 2002)

Subject: Compensation for fishermen and ship-owners in the event of temporary cessation of activities

Small-scale coastal fishing is of great socio-economic importance for the fishing communities dependent
on it. Periods of temporary cessation of activity, for example because of biological rest periods, call for due
compensation. In the case of Portugal, storms and poor sea conditions during long periods in winter are of
particular significance, as are biological rest periods, particularly for sardines in the North, and fishing for
bivalves using dredges in the Algarve.

Commissioner Fischler, in his answer to Written Question E-1648/01 (1) of 12 June 2001, said that there is
provision for such compensation in Community legislation and it may be granted to Member States, in
accordance with the criteria specified in Regulation (EC) No 2792/1999 (2) of 17 December 1999 laying
down the detailed rules and arrangements regarding Community structural assistance in the fisheries
sector. However, this fact, albeit positive, does not in itself ensure the implementation of this measure in
the various Member States of the European Union.

In view of this, can the Commission say whether, in the context of the revision of the common fisheries
policy, it intends to introduce a system of Community aid to compensate fishermen and ship-owners in
the event of temporary cessation of activities, to be financed or cofinanced by the Community budget?

(1) OJ C 364 E, 20.12.2001, p. 167.
(2) OJ L 337, 30.12.1999, p. 10.

Answer given by Mr Fischler on behalf of the Commission

(8 July 2002)

Article 16 (Temporary cessation of activities and other financial compensation) of Council Regulation (EC)
No 2792/1999 of 17 December 1999 laying down the detailed rules and arrangements regarding
Community structural assistance in the fisheries sector provides for compensation to be paid where fishing
activities are stopped temporarily.

As part of the reform of the common fisheries policy, the draft Council Regulation amending Regulation
(EC) No 2792/1999 contains a number of changes to Article 16, including the extension from two to three
months of the period for which compensation may be granted in the event of unforeseen circumstances
arising in particular from biological causes.

Where the Council adopts a multiannual management plan or the Commission or one or more Member
States adopt emergency measures, the limits set for the period 2000-2006 of EUR 1 million or 4 % of the
financial contribution from the Community awarded to the industry in the Member State in question may
be exceeded, provided the measure includes a decommissioning programme for the withdrawal, in the
two-year period following adoption of the measure, of a certain number of fishing vessels with a fishing
effort at least equivalent to that of vessels whose fishing activities are suspended as a result of the plan or
emergency measure.

(2003/C 28 E/147)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1703/02

by Paulo Casaca (PSE) to the Commission

(13 June 2002)

Subject: Aid C35/02 (cid:1) Adaptation of the national tax system to the specific characteristics of

the

autonomous region of the Azores

Can the Commission supply copies of all the correspondence referred to in its letter of 24 April 2002 (1),
notifying Portugal of its decision to initiate the procedure referred to in Article 88(2) of the EC Treaty with
regard to Aid C 35/02 (ex NN 10/2000)?

(1) OJ C 127, 29.5.2002, p. 16 et seq.

C 28 E/130

Official Journal of the European Union

EN

6.2.2003

Answer given by Mr Monti on behalf of the Commission

(26 July 2002)

The Honourable Member’s request will be dealt with in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001 of
the European Parliament and the Council of 30 May 2001 regarding public access to European Parliament,
Council and Commission documents (1).

(1) OJ L 145, 31.5.2001.

(2003/C 28 E/148)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1716/02

by Carlos Coelho (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(13 June 2002)

Subject: List of officials

Further to Question E-3033/01 (1), also tabled by the author of the present question, can the Commission
supply a list of all officials employed by it, with particular reference to categories A and B and broken
down by subcategories and nationalities?

(1) OJ C 115 E, 16.5.2002, p. 216.

Answer given by Mr Kinnock on behalf of the Commission

(11 July 2002)

A table showing the breakdown of staff working in the Commission by nationality, category and grade, as
defined in the Staff Regulations and limited to categories A and B on June 1st 2002, is sent direct to the
Honourable Member and to the Parliament’s General Secretariat.

(2003/C 28 E/149)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1743/02

by Camilo Nogueira Román (Verts/ALE) to the Commission

(19 June 2002)

Subject: Positions publicly stated by various Commissioners regarding the reform of the common fisheries

policy proposed by Commissioner Franz Fischler

Various Members of the Commission, such as Mrs Loyola de Palacio, Mrs Margot Wallström and Mr Neil
Kinnock, have expressed their views on the content of Commissioner Franz Fischler’s proposal concerning
the reform of the CFP. None of them, nor Mr Fischler himself, and not even those particularly concerned
about the state of resources, have publicly stated a position regarding the need to review or eliminate the
principle of relative stability, which favours some countries and fleets and discriminates against others, and
allowing a substantial proportion of the catch rights to be used by certain States in the north of the EU to
be used to catch species for the manufacture of
fish meal. What are the prevailing views in the
Commission regarding this discriminatory principle and its impact on the state of fish resources and on
territorial and social equilibrium inside the EU?

Answer given by Mr Fischler on behalf of the Commission

(22 July 2002)

The Commission has expressed,
in the framework of the ‘roadmap’ on the reform of the Common
Fisheries Policy, that fishing possibilities will still be allocated through relative stability for the foreseeable
future.