WRITTEN QUESTION P-3453/02 by Christopher Huhne (ELDR) to the Commission. Economic integration.
Date: 2002-11-27
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: direct investment, economic statistics, employment statistics, foreign investment, industrial statistics, production statistics, subsidiary, type of business

C 137 E/210

Official Journal of the European Union

EN

12.6.2003

The Commission does not think that the difficulties to which the Honourable Member refers entail any risk
to product quality, a matter to which it naturally attaches greater importance.

(1) Commission Regulation (EC) No 2366/98 of 30 October 1998 laying down detailed rules for application of the
system of production aid for olive oil for the 1998/99, 1999/2000 and 2000/01 marketing years, OJ L 293,
31.10.1998.

(2003/C 137 E/236)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-3453/02

by Christopher Huhne (ELDR) to the Commission

(27 November 2002)

Subject: Economic integration

What measures would the Commission propose to use as benchmarks to assess the importance of foreign
ownership in the production structure of each Member State, including ownership by companies in other
Member States?

Answer given by Mr Solbes Mira on behalf of the Commission

(27 January 2003)

An appropriate indicator to assess the importance of foreign control is the share of value added generated
the whole economy (including enterprises
by foreign-controlled enterprises on the value added of
controlled by the compiling economy). Another possibility is to measure the importance in terms of
employment. Enclosed herein there are results obtained in the Structural Business Statistics-Framework
with data for reference year 1999 for seven participating Member States. For more detailed information,
the publication ‘Foreign-owned enterprises’ with data for reference year 1997 and the Statistics in Focus
‘Foreign-owned enterprises’ with data for reference year 1998 are sent direct to the Honourable Member
and to Parliament’s Secretariat.

However, this measure is not available for all Member States and not for the Union aggregate. A draft
Regulation on the structure and activity on foreign affiliates is presently under discussion following
Eurostat initiative. This legal framework would enable to provide the requested information for all Member
States and for the Union as a whole.

For the time being, an alternative indicator is given by foreign direct investment (FDI) statistics. FDI inward
stock expressed in percentage of the gross domestic product (GDP) (see the reply given to written question
E-3637/02 by the Honourable Member (1) and tables which are sent direct to the Honourable Member and
to Parliament’s Secretariat) can provide indication on the comparative importance of foreign ownership
over space and time. FDI are more readily available in time and more complete, but they have a financial
dimension and do not give information on real variables such as production, employment, etc.

(1) OJ C 110 E, 8.5.2003, p. 221.

(2003/C 137 E/237)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-3457/02

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

(6 December 2002)

Subject: Eurocost

Between 1990 and 2000 what budget was spent on officials posted outside of the EU for compensation
due to differences in the cost of living compared to Brussels?

Between 1990 and 2000 what budget was attributed to the non-profit organisation Eurocost, founded by
Yves Franchet, director-general of Eurostat, in Luxembourg since 1987?