WRITTEN QUESTION E-2005/03 by Jan Dhaene (Verts/ALE) to the Commission. Fiscal incentives and quality standards to promote road safety and the cycle and cycle repair trade.
Date: 2003-06-16
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: VAT rate, general mechanical engineering, impact study, product safety, quality standard, road safety, two-wheeled vehicle

C 51 E/180

Official Journal of the European Union

EN

26.2.2004

Answer given by Mrs Reding on behalf of the Commission

(16 July 2003)

The Commission shares the opinion of the Honourable Member on the need to foster a European spirit
among the Member States, develop different teaching methods and content and incorporate European
attitudes and values into university education.

The Commission contributes towards the achievement of
through
programmes like Socrates-Erasmus and Leonardo da Vinci, a series of projects and networks in which
teachers from all over Europe collaborate on pedagogical themes in their field of expertise. In the project
‘Tuning Educational Structures in Europe’, for example, professors from 135 universities from 29 countries
work closely together in defining common reference points for teaching and learning in nine different
the Commission promotes awareness of European
subject areas. Through the Jean Monnet Project,
integration issues in universities across and beyond the European continent.

these objectives by supporting,

(2004/C 51 E/200)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2005/03

by Jan Dhaene (Verts/ALE) to the Commission

(16 June 2003)

Subject: Fiscal incentives and quality standards to promote road safety and the cycle and cycle repair trade

Cycles and cycle spare parts sold in the European Union have so far not be required to meet quality and
safety standards; nor do consumers have any way of knowing the quality of the equipment they buy. This
has far-reaching implications in terms of safety.

In an initial evaluation of the three-year experiment of lower VAT rates for labour-intensive services
(including renovation work and cycle repairs), the European Commission concludes that the measure has
had no demonstrably beneficial effect on employment. The evaluation report for Belgium, however, says
that the lower VAT rate has achieved its objective. Various experts also doubt whether the period of three
years is sufficient to make cyclically-insensitive evaluations.

It is possible that this experiment may be ended on the basis of the negative evaluation. Nonetheless, in its
Transport White Paper: 2010, the Commission itself emphasises the importance of cycles in urban
environments.

I therefore have the following questions to put to the Commission:

(cid:1) what is the Commission’s specific evaluation for the cycle repair sector?

(cid:1) does the Commission intend to respond to the negative assessment of this experiment by abolishing

the lower VAT rate for cycle repairs?

(cid:1) has the Commission an overview of the impact of badly maintained cycles on road safety and safe

cycling?

(cid:1) does the Commission intend to introduce quality standards for cycles and cycle parts, together with a

quality label that is clearly recognisable for consumers?

Answer given by Mr Bolkestein on behalf of the Commission

(25 July 2003)

Three Member States (Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands) have applied a reduced rate to cycle
repairs under the experiment of lower VAT rates for labour-intensive services. An examination of the

26.2.2004

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 51 E/181

reports of the Member States has revealed that a significant number of firms did not apply the reduced rate
as foreseen by the legislation. These firms considered that the arrangements for implementing the measure
were too complex. It was also one of the sectors where the incidence of the fall in VAT rates on prices was
most limited. The Commission’s comprehensive evaluation report may be found at the following address:
http://europa.eu.int/comm/taxation_customs/taxation/labour_intensive/labour_intensive_fr.htm#Rapport

The Commission intends to present a proposal for a directive on reduced VAT rates by the summer of
2003. The main aim of this proposal will be to improve the functioning of the internal market by
rationalising Member States’ use of reduced rates in order to avoid potential distortions of competition by
giving Member States equal opportunities to apply reduced rates.

The proposal will take into account the results of the experiment of lower VAT rates for labour-intensive
services.

The Commission is fully aware of the impact that badly maintained cycles can have on road safety and safe
cycling. However, it needs to examine carefully whether a reduction in VAT rates is an appropriate way of
resolving the problem.

The Commission does not intend to introduce quality standards or a quality label for cycles.

(2004/C 51 E/201)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2021/03

by Sérgio Marques (PPE-DE) to the Council

(17 June 2003)

Subject: Support scheme for producers in the fisheries sector

In 1992, to compensate for the fact that certain outermost regions are islands, a support scheme was
adopted for producers in the fisheries sector, providing for contributions to offset the additional marketing
and transport costs that they were incurring because there were no regional markets near at hand and the
cost of transport from the regions concerned to the mainland was high.

New regulations were adopted in 1994, 1995, and 1998 in order to continue the measures laid down in
the initial regulation. The last of these regulations (Regulation (EC) No 1587/98 (1)) remained in force until
31 December 2002.

Although the Commission has always proposed that a permanent scheme be established, given that
remoteness and the other specific characteristics affecting the outermost regions (small size, the fact of
being islands, difficult topography and climate, etc.) are factors which cannot be altered, the Council’s
decision to date has been that the scheme should be limited in time.

What is the reason for this attitude?

(1) OJ L 208, 24.7.1998, p. 1.

Reply

(13 October 2003)

The Council is aware of the specific handicaps affecting the structural economic and social situation of the
outermost regions, and which exist in various areas, in particular the fisheries sector.

In this connection, the Council has given special attention to the problem of the additional cost involved
in transporting fishery products to markets as a result of the outermost regions’ remoteness and isolation.
Thus, it adopted on 17 July 1998 Regulation (EC) No 1587/98 introducing a scheme to compensate for
the additional costs incurred in the marketing of certain fishery products from the Azores, Madeira, the
Canary Islands and the French departments of Guiana and Réunion as a result of
those regions’
remoteness. That scheme expired on 31 December 2001.