WRITTEN QUESTION E-3000/03 by Geneviève Fraisse (GUE/NGL) to the Commission. Follow-up to the women's sport resolution adopted by the European Parliament on 5 June 2003.
Date: 2003-10-14
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: EP resolution, European Commission, European Constitution, Olympic games, gender equality, position of women, powers of the institutions (EU), sport

13.3.2004

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 65 E/255

In the Community coordinated report on Pesticide Residues, available on the Commission website, the
percentage of violations of MRLs varies between 2 and 5 percent. There is no significant trend pointing to
an increase of incorrect uses of plant protection products either in or outside the Community.

The results of the latest Community coordinated report for the year 2001 shows an average of 3,9 % of
violations, ranging in the Member States between 1,3 and 9,1 percent.

It should be noted that MRLs are not toxicological limits and a violation of a MRL is not necessarily a food
safety issue. MRLs are set, based on (i) evidence that the correct use of a plant protection product leads to
a residue on the harvested produce and (ii) that the presence of this residue does not lead to a risk to the
consumer. In most cases the MRL represents a level that is significantly below the level of concern. When,
in the framework of the Rapid Alert System for Foodstuffs an MRL violation is notified, a risk assessment
is carried out. If an immediate risk to the consumer is established, an Alert notification is issued. The
Commission, through the Food and Veterinary Office, systematically addresses the issue of notifications
when making inspections in the Member States.

In addition, the Commission proposal for a Regulation of the Parliament and of the Council on the setting
of maximum residues limits in food (1) includes proposals to increase monitoring and control measures in
the Member States.

(1) COM(2003) 117 final.

(2004/C 65 E/270)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-3000/03

by Geneviève Fraisse (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(14 October 2003)

Subject: Follow-up to the ‘women’s sport’ resolution adopted by the European Parliament on 5 June 2003

On 15 September 2003, at the time of the Women’s Football World Cup, it was announced that the
American Women’s Football Championship had been abolished. Despite clear progress, women’s sport,
across the board (schools, leisure and professional) needs to be supported.

In June 2003, the European Parliament, on my initiative, adopted a resolution dedicated to the issue of
women and sport (P5-TA(2003)0269). The text’s 46-odd proposals call on the European Union, the
Member States and the sporting movement to put the issue of the effective equality of women and men in
sport on their political agenda. The Commission has, thus far, done nothing to follow up this EP
resolution.

The draft European constitution provides for a legal base for supportive action in the field of sport
(Article 16), so as to promote the European dimension of sport, with particular regard to its social and
educational role (Article III-182).

How does the Commissioner for sport, Mrs Viviane Reding, intend to follow up the EP resolution on
women and sport? Will the Commission use the new legal framework for sport to make a favourable
response to the demands set out in the resolution, and draw up the study of the situation of women in
sport within Europe suggested by the Council of Sports Ministers meeting on 12 November 2001?

What initiatives are the Commission, and more particularly,
its DG EAC going to take to promote
women’s sport and raise Member States’ awareness of this policy issue (Community programmes and/or
actions, Communication, White Paper, etc.)?

Could the European Union not seize the opportunity offered by the European location of the forthcoming
2004 Olympic Games to set out its vision of what sport is, by taking an active stance, as it did in the fight
against doping, for equality between the sexes in sport, in terms of both access and practice?

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?