WRITTEN QUESTION E-0874/04 by Salvador Garriga Polledo (PPE-DE) to the Commission. Boycott of polio vaccinations by Nigerian fundamentalists.
Date: 2004-03-22
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: EU relations, Nigeria, health aid, health policy, infectious disease, vaccination

C 88 E/546

Official Journal of the European Union

EN

8.4.2004

Imports
of agricultural products
on which agricultural
duties were charged

Imports of
non-agricultural products
on which customs duties
were charged

Imports of goods
partially or totally
exempted of import duties

Netherlands

1 249,2

Austria

Portugal

Finland

Sweden

293,0

407,1

56,6

184,8

United Kingdom

2 541,3

37 063,0

12 150,2

3 672,8

3 868,7

11 145,6

82 700,8

67 918,4

11 714,6

5 352,9

7 912,8

11 035,3

75 372,6

Total imports

106 230,6

24 157,7

9 432,8

11 838,1

22 365,6

160 614,7

The three most important categories, by value of goods imported, partially or totally exempted of
import duties are sent directly to the Honourable Member and to Parliament’s Secretariat.

4. Agricultural duties do not include any anti-dumping duties. Anti-dumping duties are included under

customs duties.

5. The overall value of anti-dumping and anti-subsidy duties declared by Member States in 2002 was

EUR 114 million.

The three most important sectors (by chapter of the Combined Nomenclature) by value of imports under
anti-dumping or anti-subsidy measures were the following:

(cid:1) Fish: EUR 846 million;

(cid:1) Footwear: EUR 707 million;

(cid:1) Vehicles and parts: EUR 685 million.

(2004/C 88 E/0556)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0874/04

by Salvador Garriga Polledo (PPE-DE) to the Commission

Subject: Boycott of polio vaccinations by Nigerian fundamentalists

(22 March 2004)

According to the President of Unicef, cases of polio have been recorded in as many as seven countries in
the past year through the fault of the Islamic authorities in northern Nigeria.

The Islamic authorities have suspended vaccination campaigns because they claim the preparations have
been found to contain oestrogen, a hormone that forms the basis of the contraceptive pill.

Can the Commission indicate whether, in line with the coercive measures at its disposal, it could try to
persuade the Islamic authorities in question to end their boycott, thereby ensuring that no more children
become paralysed owing to their vaccinations being deferred on the basis of unfounded rumours?

Answer given by Mr Nielson on behalf of the Commission

(30 April 2004)

With Nigeria continuing to have among the highest number of polio cases in the world, it is a priority
country in terms of global polio eradication. The Community contributes to the Global Polio Eradication
Initiative through various instruments as well as specifically allocating supplementary funds for polio
immunisation activities in Nigeria. The Commission is in the process of further allocating funds to fight
polio in that region.

8.4.2004

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 88 E/547

The Commission, through its delegation in Nigeria, works in dialogue with the Nigerian authorities and
will continue to support and improve polio eradication programmes in the region. The Commission is
aware that the recent outbreak of polio in northern Nigeria that has spread to other African nations is
causing a major setback for the international polio-eradication campaign co-ordinated by the global
partnership to eradicate polio. It is to be noted that President Obasanjo is committed to eradicating the
polio virus in Nigeria before the global target date of 2005. Despite this there is evidence of suspended
vaccination campaigns in Northern Nigeria enabling the virus to spread. To the Commission’s knowledge,
this position occurs in Nigeria only and it would expect that successful implementation of vaccination
programmes in the region as a whole will convince the authorities of the importance of resuming the
programmes. In fact the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC), at its last summit in October 2003
in Malaysia, adopted a resolution to eradicate polio from all its Member States. Currently, 52 of the OIC’s
57 members are polio free.

The World Health Organisation and the global partnership to eradicate polio, as the implementing bodies,
work with specific technical questions such as the possibility of presence of oestrogen in vaccines.

(2004/C 88 E/0557)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0878/04

by Antonio Di Pietro (ELDR) to the Commission

(22 March 2004)

Subject: The Acque Albule water company of Tivoli (Italy)

The Acque Albule water company administers thermal springs which have been known and highly
regarded since antiquity. The Tivoli municipal authority (cid:1) which has been the company’s sole shareholder
since December 2001 (cid:1) has recently disposed of 40 % of the company’s capital to a private group on the
alleged grounds that it intends to recapitalise the company. That operation has been declared irregular and
the Italian national auditing body has identified serious
void by a court
irregularities in the company’s accounts. Acque Albule’s shares seem to have been greatly undervalued
and the operation was carried out with a total lack of transparency (cid:1) the valuation document was not
even made public. Despite the contractual undertakings given by the new private company and despite the
injection of considerable public funding, virtually all of the company’s staff have been made redundant. It
has recently been reported in the press that Acque Albule has considered issuing debenture bonds, to add
to the benefit it derives from the public aid to which it is not entitled.

in Rome. Furthermore,

What action does the Commission intend to take in response to the fact that a sizeable amount of public
property has been disposed of in a most untransparent fashion, to the fact that there has recently been a
public issue of debenture bonds for which appropriate guarantees have not, apparently, been provided, and
to the fact that the large amounts of public aid which were granted to the company for the purpose of
compensating the workforce for any losses suffered have obviously not (cid:1) in view of the fact that staff
have been made redundant (cid:1) been used in order to preserve jobs?

Answer given by Mr Monti on behalf of the Commission

(29 April 2004)

The issue of whether the sale of public property below its value may contain an element of State aid in
favour of the buyers is dealt with (cid:1) as regards sales of land and buildings (cid:1) in the Commission
Communication on State aid elements in sales of land and buildings by public authorities, published in the
Official Journal of the European Union (1).