WRITTEN QUESTION P-3930/03 by Alexandros Alavanos (GUE/NGL) to the Commission. Retention of privileges by the Agricultural Bank of Greece.
Date: 2003-12-16
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: Greece, agricultural bank, credit institution, financial transaction, law of banking, restriction on competition

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3.4.2004

measuring 6 on the Richter scale’, while on the same day the Greek media were practically unanimous in
condemning the government’s adoption of a law which threatens the survival of the few remaining forests
in Greece. It is also noticeable that the Commissioner does not seem to be concerned about the fact that
thousands of Greek citizens have been paying contributions to building cooperatives (cid:1) often for decades
(cid:1) without receiving any benefits.

Will the Commission say whether under Community law this represents a violation of the rights (cid:1) and
exploitation (cid:1) of thousands of Community nationals who pay contributions to cooperatives without
receiving any benefit whatsoever? Since the Greek authorities have not forwarded information about
request details about workmanship?
unauthorised buildings, why does the Commission itself not
Will Commissioner Wallström say what definitions of ‘forest’ and ‘wooded land’ are contained in the
Directive to which she refers in her answer?

Answer given by Mrs Wallström on behalf of the Commission

(2 February 2004)

The Commission would like to inform the Honourable Member that is not aware of the content of media
reports on unauthorised buildings in Greece, which were published in the Greek press on 5 December
2003. As stated in its previous reply to the Honourable Member’s written question E-3196/03 (1) on
4 December 2003, the Commission has no statistics or information on unauthorised building in different
Member States. As there is no binding Community legislation regarding building activity and standards, the
procedures for granting building permissions are exclusively regulated by national legislation and the issue
falls within the competence of the Greek authorities. Therefore, the Commission does not intend to request
details about workmanship standards applied to illegal (unauthorised) buildings in Greece.

forests and forest

With regard to the definition of forest and wooded land, the Commission indicated in its first reply that
the Union Forestry Strategy does not include an Union wide definition of forest and wooded land. National
definitions of
instruments.
The Commission would like to stress that Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 2152/2003 of the Parliament
and of the Council of 17 November 2003, concerning the monitoring of forests and environmental
interactions in the Community (Forest Focus) (2) provides definitions for ‘forest’, ‘other wooded land’ and
‘other land’. These definitions have to be respected and implemented by Member States for the purposes of
the above mentioned Regulation and the monitoring actions that the Regulation supports, however, their
application is bound solely to this Regulation.

land applies for Community legislation and financial

Regarding the issue of citizens who pay contributions to building co-operatives without receiving any
benefits as yet, the Commission would like to maintain its position, according to which there is no
Community competence and the issue is regulated by national laws.

(1) OJ C 78 E, 27.3.2004, p. 788.
(2) OJ L 324, 11.12.2003.

(2004/C 84 E/0154)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-3930/03

by Alexandros Alavanos (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

Subject: Retention of privileges by the Agricultural Bank of Greece

(16 December 2003)

Under Article 26(4) of N 1914/1990, ‘all the special arrangements which apply to the Agricultural Bank of
Greece, with particular reference to its substantive and procedural privileges, to its immunities in respect of
tax and other matters, to its debt instruments, to the guaranteeing of its debts and in general to its legal
personality as an entity possessing rights and subject to obligations’ remain in force and are applied
unchanged even following the conversion of the Agricultural Bank of Greece (ATE) into a limited liability
company. On the basis of this provision the ATE, in its transactions with its customers, makes use of the

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privileges granted to it by Articles 8 (cid:1) 15 and 34(8) of N 4332/1929, under which the legal, procedural
and substantive guarantees for those dealing with the ATE, and in particular its debtors, are set aside.
The Commission has also received a complaint on this subject from the firm Tipopiitiria Thivas A.E. (reply
from the Agriculture Directorate-General No 31427/24.11.2003).

Since the retention and application by the ATE of the above-mentioned privileges, which is contrary to
Community law, is onerous for those doing business with it and deprives them of all rights of defence,
what does the Commission intend to do to put a stop to the violation of the rights of those dealing with
the ATE and to eliminate the distortion of competition conditions with respect to other credit institutions?

Answer given by Mr Bolkestein on behalf of the Commission

(26 January 2004)

The Commission confirms that it has just received a complaint concerning the Agricultural Bank of Greece
and therefore is conducting a detailed investigation of the problem raised by the Honourable Member and
will inform him of the outcome as soon as possible.

(2004/C 84 E/0155)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-3931/03

by Paulo Casaca (PSE) to the Commission

(16 December 2003)

Subject: Rehabilitation of areas devastated by the summer 2003 forest fires in Portugal

The summer 2003 forest fires in Portugal devastated 410 000 hectares, i.e. 5 % of Portugal’s landmass and
12 % of its woodlands, destroying numerous Natura 2000 Network areas, various cork oak, holm oak and
oak forests, causing numerous deaths, destroying homes, killing animals and destroying crops in some of
the country’s most fragile and deprived rural regions.

Support provided under the aegis of the Solidarity Fund, although extremely useful, is nowhere like equal
to the enormous task of rehabilitating incalculably valuable natural heritage on this scale, and a rural
economy which is under threat of total disappearance.

At the Budgetary Committee meeting which discussed the Solidarity Fund contribution to Portugal, it was
claimed that a total of EUR 180 million was going to be reprogrammed from Portuguese Structural Funds
to cope with the challenge.

Could the Commission explain:

1. Why amounts programmed for the 2000-2003 Structural Funds, and not yet taken up, cannot be

reprogrammed to this end?

2. Whether the Portuguese authorities have already submitted specific proposals for reprogramming the
EUR 180 million, and whether this amount is earmarked for rehabilitating the natural heritage and the
rural economy of the areas devastated?

3. What other means it thinks could be used to support this rehabilitation which, while of direct concern

to Portugal, is of no less concern to Europe?

Supplementary answer
given by Mr Barnier on behalf of the Commission

(25 February 2004)

The Solidarity Fund provided EUR 48,5 million of funding for urgent infrastructure restoration work
following the summer 2003 fires in Portugal. Both further infrastructure restoration work and restoration