WRITTEN QUESTION No. 3012/97 by Cristiana MUSCARDINI to the Commission. Exceeding milk quotas
C 134/58 EN Official Journal of the European Communities 30. 4. 98 The Commission has approved over 120 agri-environment programmes throughout the Community. A report on the application of the Regulation is in preparation. (1) OJ L 215, 30. 7. 1992. (98/C 134/71) WRITTEN QUESTION E-3012/97 by Cristiana Muscardini (NI) to the Commission (1 October 1997) Subject: Exceeding milk quotas A number of Italian newspapers carried prominent reports on 30 August 1997 of statements made in a report produced by the Italian Court of Auditors in October 1995 concerning the complex matter of milk quotas. It would appear from this report that Italy has paid fines for exceeding its milk quotas which were not justified by the amount actually produced. 1. Is the Commission aware of the contents of this document? 2. Can the Commission confirm the claim that Italy paid LIT 2 207 billion in unwarranted fines for the period 1989-1993? 3. Can the Commission confirm that Italyís milk production only meets 60% of national demand? 4. In the light of this information, what point has been reached in the dispute between Italy and the EU in the milk sector? Answer given by Mr Fischler on behalf of the Commission (14 November 1997) The Commission is not aware of the analysis by the Italian Court of Auditors to which the Honourable Member refers. It should be remembered that Italy did not apply the milk-quota scheme correctly before 1993-94. In particular, individual reference quantities were not allotted and the data on deliveries to purchasers came not from the purchasersí statements but from national statistics or from the producersí associations. The consequences of this incorrect application of the scheme were drawn in the context of the clearance of accounts and quantified on the basis of the joint conclusions of the Council and the Commission of 21 October 1994. Italy must pay the Community an additional levy of about LIT 3 461. 5 billion (ECU 1 715. 2 million) for the 1989 to 1993 financial years. It has already paid 90. 5% of this amount. Italy did not dispute the corrections imposed under the clearance of accounts and the Commission has no information which might call into question the financial consequences drawn. The Commission does not have all the data needed to determine Italyís exact degree of self-sufficiency, such as consumption and commercial trade in milk products or even accurate and reliable production figures. This being said, quotas were fixed not with reference to the degree of self-sufficiency of each Member State but on the basis of existing production in each Member State. If any other criterion had been used, particularly the national population or consumption, either it would have been impossible to reach an agreement on the scheme, or the overall quantity for the Community would have been fixed at far too high a level. Since the information given above has never been questioned, there is no dispute on this matter between Italy and the Commission