WRITTEN QUESTION No. 667/98 by Sir Jack STEWART-CLARK to the Commission. EU's Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) and the post customs clearance recovery of customs duty from importers
21. 10. 98 EN Official Journal of the European Communities C 323/63 (98/C 323/82) WRITTEN QUESTION E-0667/98 by Sir Jack Stewart-Clark (PPE) to the Commission (10 March 1998) Subject: EUís Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) and the post customs clearance recovery of customs duty from importers The GSP is a broad trade policy regime designed to assist poorer, less developed countries by permitting products from certain countries to enter the EU at a preferential rate of customs duty. Importers, in order to claim this preferential rate from the respective Member Statesís customs authority, must include a duly authenticated GSP Certification of Origin (Form A). This Form A is issued by a government authorized authority in the beneficiary countries and supplied to the EU importer by the foreign exporter. However, it appears that a large number of these certificates have been issued fraudulently or incorrectly in respect of textile products from Bangladesh, thus rendering them invalid. Consequently, a company in my constituency is now faced with the prospect of having to pay a significant amount of customs duty. These companies/importers cannot be liable for the ineffective implementation and administration of agreements negotiated by the Commission. Has the Commission undertaken an investigation to establish how these unauthentic certificates were issued in the first place? If so, what conclusion has this investigation come to? What provisions has the Commission made for companies, such as in my constituency, who accepted these unauthentic certificates in good faith? Answer given by Mr Monti on behalf of the Commission (2 June 1998) A Community fact-finding mission to Bangladesh, in November and December 1996 conducted joint enquiries, with the Bangladeshi authorities, on the authenticity and regularity of certificates of origin Form A which were presented in the Community, between 1994 and 1996, for consignments of textile goods, imported under cover of the generalised system of preferences. As a result of the Community findings, the Bangladeshi authorities withdrew some 15 000 certificates of origin Form A. The preferential status of a further 10 000 certificates issued in the period mentioned above has yet to be established. The obligations of all of the parties involved are clearly defined by the Community customs code, and they have been confirmed regularly by the Court of justice. Recent judgments by the Court of justice have upheld the principle that, for the importers, reliance on the validity of a certificate of origin is part of the normal ácommercial riskí which they have to assume. Such problems in the past prompted the Council to ask the Commission to propose a solution for the post-clearance recovery of customs debts. To put this idea into its global setting, the Commission prepared a communication on the management of preferential tariff arrangements (1). This issue is being discussed in the Economic and social committee, in the Council and in the Parliament, so that appropriate measures can be taken to ensure the sound management and control of these arrangements by all of the parties concerned. (1) COM(97) 402 final. (98/C 323/83) WRITTEN QUESTION E-0690/98 by Amedeo Amadeo (NI) and Salvatore Tatarella (NI) to the Commission (10 March 1998) Subject: Altener II With reference to the proposal for a Council Decision concerning a multiannual programme for the promotion of renewable energy sources in the Community › Altener II (COM(97)87 final › 97/0106(SYN)) (1), would it not