WRITTEN QUESTION P-3009/03 by Arlene McCarthy (PSE) to the Commission. Fireworks.
Date: 2003-10-08
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: customs and traditions, customs inspection, explosive, intra-EU trade, market approval, marketing standard, popular culture, product safety, public safety, safety standard

C 65 E/256

Official Journal of the European Union

EN

13.3.2004

Answer given by Mrs Reding on behalf of the Commission

(30 October 2003)

The Commission is aware of the need to promote women’s participation in sport and equal access for men
and women to the sport of their choice. It realises that much remains to be done to ensure that women’s
sport achieves the position it deserves and therefore warmly welcomed the resolution on women in
sport (1) adopted on the initiative of the Honourable Member.

However, the powers provided for in the EC Treaty do not allow the Commission to follow up the
majority of the proposals in this resolution, most of which are addressed to the Member States and sports
organisations. In terms of the future, the Honourable Member is correct in stating that sport is one of the
areas where the draft constitution states that ‘the Union shall have competence to carry out actions to
support, coordinate or supplement the action of the Member States, without thereby superseding their
competence in these areas’ (2).

If the inclusion of sport in the EC Treaty were to be confirmed at the Intergovernmental Conference, the
proposals to promote sport for women could then be used to prepare a Community measure in this area.

With regard to conducting a study, the Commission takes the view that a great deal of information on this
subject is already available and that another study would be unlikely to add any new information.
However, it plans to fund four sectoral studies on education and sport in 2003-2004, taking into account
the aspects relating to women in sport. 2004 has been declared the ‘European Year of Education through
Sport’, and one of its main aims is to promote sporting values. The issues raised by the Honourable
member will be included among the objectives of the Year, and the projects organised over the Year will
contribute to promoting the educational aspect of sport.

Most of the issues raised by the Honourable Member will therefore be tackled in the context of the
European Year and these four studies.

(1) P5_TA(2003)0269.
(2) CONV 850/03 of 18.7.2003.

(2004/C 65 E/271)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-3009/03

by Arlene McCarthy (PSE) to the Commission

(8 October 2003)

Subject: Fireworks

Across Europe thousands of people are injured, property is destroyed, animals terrified and money wasted
on emergency services responding to a completely preventable danger.

There is no specific Community legislation on the safe use of fireworks. They were explicitly excluded
from the scope of Directive 93/15/EEC (1) of 5 April 1993 on the harmonisation of the provisions relating
to the placing on the market and supervision of explosives for civil uses. The Commission has not been
convinced that a Community directive on the marketing and use of fireworks would be a more effective
solution in terms of prevention of accidents than rules developed at a local level.

The Commission stated in answer to Written Question P-4053/97 (2) that the level and seriousness of
1.
accidents depends on local customs for public use of fireworks. Given the discrepancy between Member
States on the marketing and use of fireworks, does the Commission agree that a specific Community
directive would be more effective in both protecting public health and ensuring a level playing field in the
marketing and use of fireworks?

13.3.2004

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 65 E/257

Is the Commission not of the view that restricting the sale of fireworks to licensed displays would

2.
reduce the discrepancies between states?

3.
Some fireworks are more dangerous than others. Fireworks placed on the Community market are
subject to Council Directive 92/59/EEC (3) of 29 June 1992 on General Product Safety. Not all Member
States share the same position on which products meet this Directive. Would it not be more appropriate if
product safety standards were clarified by legislation particular to fireworks?

4.
As with all goods that are approved for legal use in one Member State, fireworks are typically able to
circulate freely within the Community (Article 28 (ex Article 30) of the EC Treaty). Under Article 30
(ex Article 36) of the EC Treaty, cross-border transfer of fireworks may be prohibited on grounds of public
policy or public security. Does the Commission agree that it is easier to illegally import a product into a
EU State with tighter product control once it has been legally imported into a Member State with weaker
restrictions, than attempting to directly import the banned product from a third-party nation? Thus is it
not more suitable to harmonise legislation concerning which fireworks are legal in the EU?

5. What is the Commission doing to stop illegal fireworks being imported into Member States across
the EU?

(1) OJ L 121, 15.5.1993, p. 20.
(2) OJ C 187, 16.6.1998, p. 116.
(3) OJ L 228, 11.8.1992, p. 24.

Answer given by Mr Liikanen on behalf of the Commission

(31 October 2003)

Work is currently ongoing to develop a proposal on Community legislation on harmonised rules for the
approval and categorisation of fireworks for consideration by the Commission. Such rules should provide
consumers with a high level of protection ensuring that only approved fireworks are placed on the Union
market. The proposed legislation would include essential safety requirements with which fireworks must
comply. This would lead to the development of harmonised safety standards on fireworks by the European
Committee for Standardisation (CEN).

The Commission is not convinced that Community measures should be taken in relation to restricting the
sale of fireworks to licenced displays. However, the proposed legislation would categorise fireworks with
certain categories of
fireworks being restricted to professionals only. Such measures would be a
proportionate response to providing consumers with a high level of protection.

There are wide differences throughout the Union on local customs for consumer use of fireworks. These
differences extend to aspects such as the times of year when fireworks are most in demand and their
charcteristics (visual and sound effects). As a result, the planned measures would provide that the Member
States should adopt any necessary provisions in relation to the use of Union approved fireworks consistent
with these local customs.

In the meantime, the EC Treaty provisions and principles regarding the Internal Market apply and
consequently national measures that may lead to restrictions on intracommunity trade of such goods are
assessed in the light of Articles 28 to 30 of the EC Treaty.

The control of illegal import of fireworks into the Union is a matter for the Member States. The adoption
of harmonised legislation on fireworks at Community level would mean that imported fireworks would be
subject to the same rules as those of Union origin.