WRITTEN QUESTION E-0579/00 by Struan Stevenson (PPE-DE) to the Commission. Draft feedingstuffs regulations 2000.
C 53 E/10 Official Journal of the European Communities EN 20. 2. 2001 (2001/C 53 E/012) WRITTEN QUESTION E-0579/00 by Struan Stevenson (PPE-DE) to the Commission (29 February 2000) Subject: Draft feedingstuffs regulations 2000 Concern has been expressed in the UK in respect of draft feedingstuffs regulations 2000 produced by MAFF. Livestock farmers believe that EU regulations now in force require MAFF to ensure that no additives can be supplied to livestock unless incorporated directly in a feedingstuff. Such a rule would effectively outlaw the widespread use of mineral blocks, slow release boluses, licks and átop-dressedí mineral supplements, commonly provided to grazing or hay/silage-fed animals. Can the Commission confirm whether it is its intention to prohibit such dietary supplements and if so, whether the Commission has assessed the disastrous impact this will have on the UK farming industry? Answer given by Mr Byrne on behalf of the Commission (16 May 2000) The Commission would like to draw the attention of the Honourable Member to the fact that there is no intention to prohibit the use of the traditional mineral blocks containing macro-elements. These products are authorised and can be used when marketed as feed materials in accordance with Council Directive 96/25/EC of 29 April 1996 on the circulation of feed materials, amending Directives 70/ 524/EEC, 74/63/EEC, 82/471/EEC and 93/74/EEC and repealing Directive 77/101/EEC (1) or when marketed as complementary feedingstuffs and in particular as mineral feedingstuffs in accordance with Council Directive 79/373/EEC of 2 April 1979 on the marketing of compound feedingstuffs (2). However, the use as daily feed of boluses, mineral blocks, licks and top-dressed mineral supplements containing certain feed additives, would not necessarily ensure that the total amount ingested daily by the animals is under control. For this reason Council Directive 70/524/EEC of 23 November 1970 on additives in feedingstuffs (3) foresees that, from 1 October 1999 under Article 9k, Member States shall ensure that antibiotics, coccidiostats and growth promoters may be used only if incorporated in feedingstuffs. At the time of the adoption of Council Directive 96/51/EC of 23 July 1996 (4) amending Directive 70/524/ EEC it was decided that, in the present state of scientific and technical knowledge and taking into account the methods of these additives should not be authorised by any mode of administration other than incorporation in feedingstuffs. the use of inspection, It has to be noted that for the above mentioned category of additives it is indeed essential that the conditions of authorisation which foresee a maximum dose of incorporation in feedingstuffs are met in practice, as they ensure animal and consumer safety. By derogation, the Directive also foresees that additives belonging to other groups such as vitamins, trace elements, enzymes and micro-organisms may be used if administered by a method other than by incorporation in feedingstuffs, but on condition that the method is provided in the relevant authorisation regulation. This derogation has been given in order to take into account the developments in techniques for using additives. This can be envisaged for such types of additives because the potential adverse effects on human or animal health are estimated to be a priori low. However, until now, no authorisation of an additive foresees in a special provision that it can be administered by a method other than by incorporation in feedingstuffs. 20. 2. 2001 EN Official Journal of the European Communities C 53 E/11 The Commission is fully aware of the problems of modern farming practices. Following the need for a more flexible framework to use certain substances in particular feed additives in other ways than the inclusion in feedingstuffs, a proposal (5) was presented in July 1997 to the Parliament and to the Council, on the use of nutritional supplements for animals. These supplements are preparations likely to contain high levels of minerals, trace elements, vitamins, amino acids, etc. which may be administered orally over a very short period in the form of an individual dose in drinking water or via daily feed. On the proposal, amended by the Parliament in first reading in September 1999, the Council has not yet adopted a common position. (1) OJ L 125, 23. 5. 1996. (2) OJ L 86, 6. 4. 1979. (3) OJ L 270, 14. 12. 1970. (4) OJ L 235, 17. 9. 1996. (5) OJ C 298, 30. 9. 1997. (2001/C 53 E/013) WRITTEN QUESTION E-0588/00 by Mark Watts (PSE) to the Commission (29 February 2000) Subject: European sustainable transport policy How can the Member States speed up the implementation of the priority projects defined at the Essen summit? Answer given by Mrs de Palacio on behalf of the Commission (2 May 2000) In the Commissionís report to the Cardiff European Council (1) in 1998, it was stated that three of the 14 Essen projects are near completion (around 2000). Six other projects are due for completion around 2005 and financing is largely in place. Out of the remaining five projects three are corridor projects (multimodal link Portugal/Spain Europe, Nordic Triangle and Ireland-United Kingdom-Benelux road link) which makes it very difficult to establish firm overall timetables and financing plans because the corridors consist of a large number of smaller projects. For the remaining two projects, namely the high speed train (HST) North-South and HST Lyon-Trieste construction has started on several important sections of the projects, but there are still financial problems and delays on some sections e. g. the two Alpine crossings. According to the timetables and financial forecasts submitted by the Member States to the Commission, there will be a very substantial increase in expenditure on the 14 priority projects during the period 2000-2006, with many of the larger projects moving into the full construction phase. For the few remaining sections of the 14 priority projects where a firm timetable and financing have not yet been found, a combination of public and private finance is needed, together with the Member States giving higher priority to these specific projects in their national planning. A detailed overview of the state of completion on each project will be presented in the forthcoming proposal for the revision of the Trans-European network (TEN) guidelines. Concrete steps need to be taken, on a case by case basis as a matter of urgency, to agree the parameters and the mechanisms for the implementation of these private-public partnerships (PPPs). If this is done, it can help to achieve more rapid implementation and better value-for-money. A firm commitment is needed from Member States if the private sector is to invest in the development of suitable financial instruments