WRITTEN QUESTION No. 3087/97 by Glyn FORD to the Commission. VAT and record sales
16. 4. 98 EN Official Journal of the European Communities C 117/149 (98/C 117/199) WRITTEN QUESTION E-3083/97 by Doeke Eisma (ELDR) to the Commission (2 October 1997) Subject: Drugs 1. Does the Commission agree that the use of drugs in frontier regions is an ever greater problem? Is it currently supporting projects to care for drug addicts in the frontier regions and if so, which projects are 2. involved? Does the Interreg programme offer possibilities for financing projects to care for drug addicts? If not, which 3. other funds could be considered in this context? Answer given by Mr Flynn on behalf of the Commission (6 November 1997) The Commission is aware of the growing problem of drug consumption in cross-border areas, a phenomenon also called ánarco-tourismí. Member States have placed the fight against this phenomenon amongst their priorities and have undertaken to tackle it through co-operation between their law enforcement agencies, as provided in the Council Resolution of 29 November 1996 on measures to fight this problem within the European Union and in the joint action of 17 December 1996 concerning approximation of the laws and practices of the Member States of the European Union (1) to combat drug addiction and to prevent and combat illegal drug trafficking (2). Europol will soon provide information on the size of this problem in its forthcoming general situation report. In parallel with this, the preventive and health aspects relating to drug tourism are among the priorities laid down for the programme of Community action on prevention of drug dependence in 1998. The aim is to encourage coherence and effectiveness in the health and social measures to be applied to users, particularly by developing cooperation in the border areas concerned. A call for proposals for projects to be implemented under the action programme was published recently (3). An example of the projects supported by the action programme that deal directly with the problem mentioned by the Honourable Member is the exploratory study by a partnership of Belgian, German, French and Dutch bodies on cross-border flows, aimed at diagnosing and analysing professional practices and identifying new work avenues. The guidelines for the Interreg II operational programmes (4) mention, among the actions eligible for financing under strand A ( Cross-border cooperationí), measures to promote cooperation in health. Such measures have been incorporated in 12 of the 59 operational programmes for the period 1994-1999. These programmes are currently being implemented by the Member States. (1) OJ C 375, 12. 12. 1996. (2) OJ L 342, 31. 12. 1996. (3) OJ C 226, 25. 7. 1997. (4) OJ C 180, 1. 7. 1994. (98/C 117/200) WRITTEN QUESTION P-3087/97 by Glyn Ford (PSE) to the Commission (19 September 1997) Subject: VAT and record sales Given the European Unionís position on anti personnel mines, will the Commission emulate the British Government and ensure all the revenue it receives from VAT on sales from the sale of the record Candle in the Wind will go to the appropriate charities?