WRITTEN QUESTION P-1631/03 by Carlos Coelho (PPE-DE) to the Commission. Discrimination on grounds of nationality.
Date: 2003-05-12
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: European citizenship, bank, consumer protection, discrimination on the basis of nationality

8.4.2004

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 88 E/359

Answer given by Mr Lamy on behalf of the Commission

(30 June 2003)

The idea of a European Fair Trade Week during which it would be possible to call the attention of a wider
public on fair trade products is certainly one worth exploring. Such an initiative would, prima facie, fit
with the overall Commission policy of raising awareness on fair trade products via the financing of
private-led activities.

It is difficult for the Union to commit itself, via this reply, to the implementation of such an initiative, as it
requires further analysis on the actual form that such a support could take. It would be therefore useful if
the promoters of the Fair Trade Week could approach the relevant services (Directorate General (DG)
Trade) of the Commission to study the support that could eventually be given by the Commission.

In this context it should be noted that specific actions of support will take place during the fair trade week
in Belgium (6 to 9 October 2003), alongside an advertisement campaign. Companies will be encouraged,
to the extent possible, to offer fair trade products and to continue the practice of offering such products as
long as demand is sustained.

The Commission is assisting a number of developing countries in the promotion of trade as a means for
economic growth and poverty reduction: in this context the principles underlying the Fair Trade concept
are duly taken into account. As stated in the Communication on Fair Trade (1), fair trade gives producers in
developing countries higher revenues for their goods, as well as increased opportunities to find new
markets. Fair trade is particularly helpful to small-scale producers, especially in agriculture and the
handicraft sector, since small-scale producers in developing countries are often living in isolated rural areas
and do not produce a sufficient quantity to export directly. In an upcoming Staff Working Document on
‘Agricultural Commodity Trade, Dependence an Poverty’ which explores strategy elements that could
support commodity-producing farmers in developing countries, fair trade is brought up as one path of the
important task of assisting producers to tap into new market segments.

Finally, the promotion of the use of fair trade products is of particular concern to the Commission and the
coffee served during meetings in Commission buildings is fair trade coffee. In addition, in the framework
of the promotion of corporate social responsibility, the Commission is negotiating the use and promotion
of fair trade products in the Euro-City supermarket in Brussels and in all selling points inside the
Commission buildings.

(1) COM(1999) 619 final.

(2004/C 88 E/0365)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-1631/03

by Carlos Coelho (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(12 May 2003)

Subject: Discrimination on grounds of nationality

The European Community’s development is no longer confined to the economic sphere. The Community
is now made up of 375 million people, who are not merely consumers in a large single market, but also
citizens of the European Union who have the right to move freely within the EU and to settle in any part
of that Union for personal or professional reasons and who hope they can live without fear of being
discriminated against in any way.

C 88 E/360

Official Journal of the European Union

EN

8.4.2004

I have been contacted by a Portuguese national who has opted for an international career with Shell
Accounting Service in Glasgow, and has been living and working in the United Kingdom (Scotland) for
some two years. He maintains that he has been discriminated against on account of his nationality by the
Halifax Bank (a member of the Bank of Scotland group), which has rejected his request for his bank
account to be ‘upgraded’ on the grounds that this is only possible once a person has been resident in the
country for three years. As an EU citizen, does he not have the same rights and duties as a UK national?

Article 12 of the EC Treaty stipulates that ‘within the scope of this Treaty, and without prejudice to any
special provisions contained therein, any discrimination on grounds of nationality shall be prohibited’.
Does the Commission agree that the Halifax Bank’s policy may be considered discriminatory in that it is
contrary to the very essence of the European Union and constitutes a clear violation of the principle of
non-discrimination enshrined in the Treaty?

Answer given by Mr Bolkestein on behalf of the Commission

(13 June 2003)

In principle, a bank has the contractual freedom to enter into contractual agreements with a potential
customer. This applies both to any intended contractual relationship (e.g. opening an account) and to the
conditions under which a corresponding contract is concluded (particularly account maintenance fees,
interest rates, overdraft facilities, etc.).

There is therefore, in principle, no reason to challenge the Halifax Bank’s decision not to grant a customer
better conditions on the grounds that the customer has to have lived in the country for at least three years
in order for his/her bank account to be upgraded. This is not necessarily discrimination on grounds of
nationality. The reasons for rejecting the application could rather be based on specific economic
considerations (risk assessment, account history, volume of deposits and withdrawals, payment record or
other reasons relating to the individual customer). The information provided is not sufficient to allow a
clear legal assessment to be delivered.

(2004/C 88 E/0366)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1640/03

by Erik Meijer (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(16 May 2003)

Subject: Lack of money for maintaining infrastructure and for cofinancing projects in Member States which

use tax cuts to gain a competitive advantage

1.
Is the Commission aware of a trend in one or more of the countries due to become new Member
States of the EU in 2004 or 2007 to lower taxes, particularly taxes on high income and company profits?

2.
Is this reduction being made in the expectation that a combination of low taxes and assistance to be
provided from EU funds will deliver a significant competitive advantage favouring the relocation of
companies from the current Member states to the future Member states?

3.
Does this trend go hand in hand with abolition of the minimum wage, abolition of maximum
working hours for employees, removal of protection against dismissal and a reduction in rights in the area
of social security, pensions and reimbursement of medical expenses?

4.

In which of the future new Member States is this trend most pronounced?

5. Which new Member States have chosen not to follow this trend?