WRITTEN QUESTION E-1747/99 by Karl von Wogau (PPE-DE) to the Commission. Fuel checks on vehicles crossing into Hungary.
C 170 E/92 Official Journal of the European Communities EN 20. 6. 2000 Answer given by Mr Barnier on behalf of the Commission (9 November 1999) Part of the Umbria region is eligible in the current programming period under Objectives 2 and 5(b) of the Structural Funds, the programmes for which include a tourism promotion measure. Any grant of aid to businesses under this measure is subject to Community rules, the ones on competition in particular. The authority responsible for managing the programmes, in this case the Umbria region, must ensure that these rules and the rules on the eligibility of expenditure as laid down in the relevant decisions are all observed. According to the information in the Commissionís possession, the Perugia Classicoí event is being entirely funded by the municipality of Perugia. It should also be noted that the municipality is not in an area eligible for the Structural Funds. (2000/C 170 E/106) WRITTEN QUESTION E-1747/99 by Karl von Wogau (PPE-DE) to the Commission (1 October 1999) Subject: Fuel checks on vehicles crossing into Hungary Is the Commission aware that the Hungarian customs authorities conduct fuel checks on lorries crossing the border and charge a fee on quantities in excess of 200 litres, with penalties if drivers fail to declare quantities? true that Is it there are no such checks on lorries travelling in the opposite direction? Does the Commission feel it would be useful in this case to reintroduce the customs documents that used to be carried and which prove that a tank contains a certain amount of fuel when it crosses the frontier? Does the Commission feel it would be useful to conclude an agreement with Hungary, by analogy with the agreement with Switzerland, so that these checks are not carried out? Answer given by Mr Verheugen on behalf of the Commission (16 November 1999) According to Article 4 of transport vehicles (18 May 1956): the Customs convention on temporary importation of commercial road The fuel contained in the ordinary supply tanks of vehicles temporarily imported shall be admitted without payment of import duties and import taxes and free of import prohibitions and restrictions. Each Contracting Party may however fix maximum quantities for the fuel so admitted into its territory in the supply tanks of the vehicle temporarily imported. Both Hungary, and the Community are signatories to this convention (Council Decision 94/0111/EC of 16 December 1993 on the conclusion of the Customs convention on the temporary importation of commercial road vehicles (1956) and the acceptance of the United Nationsí resolution on the applicability of carnets de passage en douane and CPD carnets to commercial road vehicles (1)). In line with this, Hungarian legislation states that imports of petrol in excess of 200 litres are subject to VAT and excise duties. As the customs duty rate for petrol is currently 0 %, the imports are in practice only subject to VAT and excise duty. However, Hungary has concluded bilateral agreements with certain countries which set out on a reciprocal basis limits which differ to those mentioned above. 20. 6. 2000 EN Official Journal of the European Communities C 170 E/93 Certain Member States currently exercise the possibility of limitations set out in Article 113 of Council Regulation (EEC) 1315/88 of 3 May 1988 amending Regulation (EEC) 2658/87 on the tariff and statistical nomenclature and on the common customs tariffs and Regulation (EEC) 0918/83 setting up a Community system of reliefs from customs duty (2) which states: As regards the fuel contained in the standard tanks of commercial motor vehicles and special containers, Member States may limit application of the (duty) relief to 200 litres per vehicle, per special container and per journey. the Council mandated the Commission to negotiate agreements with Bulgaria, In December 1995, Hungary and Romania, with the aim of determining certain conditions applied to the road transport of goods and to the promotion of combined transport, in order to facilitate the transit of road vehicles through the territory of contracting parties. Agreements were paraphed with Bulgaria in December 1998, with Hungary in April 1999, and negotiations continue with Romania. However, the question of duty relief on fuel quantities above 200 litres is still the subject of debate in the Council. (1) OJ L 56, 27. 2. 1994. (2) OJ L 123, 17. 5. 1988. (2000/C 170 E/107) WRITTEN QUESTION E-1752/99 by Olivier Dupuis (TDI) to the Commission (1 October 1999) Subject: Supplementsí to daily newspapers and consumersí rights A growing number of daily newspapers in certain countries of the European Union sell weekly supple- ments. These supplements are sold on a given day of the week together with the normal edition of the newspaper, the price of which is far higher on that day. Regular and occasional readers of the newspaper concerned have no possibility of agreeing or declining to buy the ásupplementí. Does the Commission not take the view that these practices violate consumersí rights in that they oblige them to buy two clearly distinct products? Does the Commission not take the view that the concept of a supplement should imply that consumers are free to decide whether or not they wish to purchase it by paying extra, but that the consumer should in any case retain the right to purchase only the basic product (the daily newspaper) at the same price as on the remaining days of the week? What measures has the Commission taken or will it take to guarantee the right of consumers in this respect? Answer given by Mr Monti on behalf of the Commission (8 November 1999) Unilateral decisions concerning the price of newspapers, including the sale of weekly supplements together with the normal edition at a higher price, depend essentially on the free commercial choice of each publisher and do not normally come under the competition rules of the Treaty, which prohibit restrictive agreements (Article 81 EC, former Article 85) and the abuse of a dominant position (Article 82 EC, former Article 86). In the event, it would appear that the higher price of newspapers sold with a supplement does not correspond to a concerted practice among publishers of daily newspapers in all Member States. In some cases the inclusion of the weekly supplement entails only a modest price increase or may even be free of charge. Coordinated behaviour by all newspaper publishers with a view to adopting the same possibly restrictive practice regarding the weekly supplement cannot therefore be demonstrated