WRITTEN QUESTION No. 1962/97 by Undine-Uta BLOCH von BLOTTNITZ to the Commission. Imports of protected animal species from Poland to Belgium
25. 2. 98 EN Official Journal of the European Communities C 60/71 Neither grassland nor the harvesting of the plant cover are covered by these provisions. It is true that at one time it was feared that the drought would affect plant cover. However, the latest information on the state of the crops is that a normal harvest can be expected. There is therefore no reason to derogate from the rules in force. In any case, a local drought problem can always be met by the market and regional supplies. (1) OJ L 181, 1. 7. 1992. (2) OJ L 90, 7. 4. 1994. (98/C 60/105) WRITTEN QUESTION E-1962/97 by Undine-Uta Bloch von Blottnitz (V) to the Commission (9 June 1997) Subject: Imports of protected animal species from Poland to Belgium On 12 February 1997 German frontier police discovered an illegal consignment of animals en route from Poland via Germany to Belgium. The consignment mainly concerned Siberian goldfinches (Carduelis carduelis major), a subspecies of the European finches. The carrier of the birds was employed by a Belgian dealer. 1. Is the Commission aware of the case described above? Is it aware of comparable cases? Are such cases automatically referred to the Commission and does it keep statistics? If not, will the Commission take steps to obtain such information in future so that it can bring actions against the Member State concerned if necessary, in relation to complaints or infringements of the Treaty? 2. Does the Commission consider that the checks undertaken at the external and internal frontiers of the European Union or its Member States are sufficient to ensure success in preventing illegal movements of protected animals? If not, what practical steps will the Commission take to prevent such illegal trade in the future? What steps has the Commission already taken or will it take to assist states bordering on the EU which are not yet members, or which are soon to become members, to establish and/or implement effective species protection legislation? Answer given by Mrs Bjerregaard on behalf of the Commission (4 August 1997) 1. The Commission learned of this matter through the press. It has received no official communication on the subject. Indeed, Community law does not require the Member States to inform the Commission of this type of situation. Therefore no particular statistics have been kept by the Commission in this area. 2. (a) The Commission has no specific information in its possession on the checks actively carried out in this connection by the Member States at the Community’s external frontiers. It should be pointed out that systematic checks of this type at the internal frontiers became unacceptable on completion of the internal market on 1 January 1993. However, the national authorities remain free to carry out checks on a random or spot basis. (b) In the wake of Poland’s request for accession the Commission has acquired a certain amount of information on the extent of approximation of Polish law to its Community counterpart. It would seem, as regards the ábirdsí directive, that Polish law is very close to Community law. The LIFE assistance programme would seem to be the most appropriate in supporting that country’s efforts towards the protection of nature