WRITTEN QUESTION P-0127/03 by José Ribeiro e Castro (UEN) to the Commission. Inquiry regarding the Prestige.
Date: 2003-01-21
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: Bahamas, France, International Maritime Organisation, Spain, judicial inquiry, maritime transport, oil pollution, ship's flag, tanker, transport accident, transport regulations

C 268 E/72

Official Journal of the European Union

EN

7.11.2003

directives do not stipulate the number of persons allowed in, as that is a decision for each Member State.
The Seville European Council also pointed out that immigration policy should also take account of the
reception capacity of the Union and its Member States.

(1) Proposal for a European Parliament and Council Directive on the right of citizens of the Union and their family
members to move and reside freely within the territory of the Member States, COM(2001) 257 final, OJ C 270,
25.9.2001.

(2003/C 268 E/074)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-0108/03

by Margrietus van den Berg (PSE) to the Commission

(20 January 2003)

Subject: Funding the recovery of the Joola ferry (cid:1) additional questions

The answer to my earlier question (E-3319/02 (1)) begs further questions.

The 8th EDF is not used up for Senegal.

In the view of the Commission, can funds for recovering the bodies of the victims and salvaging the ferry
come from the 8th EDF, if Senegal agrees?

Does the Commission not have a moral and political duty to coordinate the recovery operation? Or does
the Commission not wish to be involved in any way, and will it leave it to the affected Member States
(France, Belgium, Spain and the Netherlands) to recover their own citizens themselves?

Is Europe going to fail to extend help to the victims, although its would make funds available immediately
if a similar disaster were to take place off its own coast?

(1) See page 29.

Answer given by Mr Nielson on behalf of the Commission

(11 February 2003)

The Commission cannot use the financial resources of the eighth European Development Fund (EDF) as
they are already earmarked for specific operations determined with the country as part of the cooperation
strategy.

The Commission fully understands the concern expressed and the importance of the issue at hand;
however, it must stress that the responsibility for taking any kind of initiative concerning the Joola ferry
lies first and foremost with the Senegalese authorities.

Moreover, recovering the bodies of EU citizens is not
included in the objectives of development
cooperation with ACP countries, as defined in Article 177 of the EC Treaty and in the Cotonou Agreement.

(2003/C 268 E/075)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-0127/03

by José Ribeiro e Castro (UEN) to the Commission

(21 January 2003)

Subject: Inquiry regarding the ‘Prestige’

On 21 November 2002 the European Parliament meeting in plenary adopted a resolution on the disaster
caused by the tanker ‘Prestige’, which included the following paragraph:

[The European Parliament] calls on the Commission to conduct an inquiry to determine who was
responsible for and the circumstances surrounding the disaster and the respective identities and roles
of all of the individuals involved, focusing on: the type of vessel and the causes of the accident, the

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Official Journal of the European Union

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origin and destination of the shipment, the degrees of responsibility borne by the shipping company,
the captain of the vessel, the state in which the vessel was registered and the owner of the cargo, the
individuals involved in the shipment of the fuel oil, the crew’s working conditions, the quality of the
inspections carried out and the ports used, and to inform Parliament of the outcome as soon as
possible, and to check the application of the standards governing the internal market, including the
nature of the goods transported, and whether the fuel oil being transported was consistent with the
relevant European standards.

There is still great anxiety, concern and indignation about the issue, especially in Portugal, Spain and
France.

Can the Commission therefore say what stage has been in the inquiry? Are there any duly substantiated
preliminary findings? When will the conclusions be published?

Answer given by Mrs de Palacio on behalf of the Commission

(11 February 2003)

The Commission has noted the Resolution adopted by Parliament on 21 November 2002. Although it
does not have formal powers to conduct an inquiry into the sinking of the ‘Prestige’, it is making every
effort to follow the work conducted by the various authorities responsible for this task, and to gather all
the information requested.

Under international law of the sea, this type of inquiry is the responsibility of the flag State concerned,
which informs the International Maritime Organisation of its findings. The coastal States concerned
normally also carry out their own inquiries into such accidents.

In this framework, the Commission is already in contact with authorities in the Bahamas, France and Spain
which have started inquiries into this disaster. It is also participating as an observer and at the request of
the American Bureau of Shipping (the classification society of the ‘Prestige’) in the ad hoc audit of this
company by the International Association of Classification Societies.

The Commission will therefore report on the initial findings of these inquiries to the Committee for
Regional Policy, Transport and Tourism in March 2003 with a view to the public hearing to be organised
by Parliament.

(2003/C 268 E/076)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0128/03

by Ursula Schleicher (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(28 January 2003)

Subject: Alpine Convention

It is encouraging that finally, after forty years of preparation, the Alpine Convention has now come into
force. It is, however, regrettable that two Member States, Italy and France, have so far failed to sign. The
European Union, which should also be among the signatories to the Convention, has also yet to sign the
Alpine Convention.

1. What problems stand in the way of the European Union’s signing the Convention?

2. What action is the Commission taking to encourage those Member States that have yet to sign to do
so?

Answer given by Mrs Wallström on behalf of the Commission

(27 February 2003)

The Community signed the Alpine Convention on 7 November 1991 in Salzbourg (Austria).

The decision to ratify was taken on 26 February 1996 (1). The Community is therefore a Party to the
Alpine Convention.