WRITTEN QUESTION P-2697/99 by Rosa Díez González (PSE) to the Council. Information on European Union citizens condemned to death.
8. 8. 2000 EN Official Journal of the European Communities C 225 E/195 explained that the link could potentially transport power equivalent to the output of a major power station, to wit some 750 Megawatts (Mw). The Commission stressed that the link made the construction of a nuclear power station unlikely: by carrying electricity from Spain to Morocco it rendered the construc- tion of a nuclear power station with an equivalent capacity uneconomic. Nuclear power stations normally have a capacity of at least 600 Mw. The largest have a capacity of 1000 Mw or more. A nuclear power station naturally has to offer every possible guarantee that safety requirements have been satisfied. This is the province of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Franceís department of nuclear safety is quite probably sharing its know-how too. The link permits more effective use of the capacity available. Were Morocco to build a nuclear power station, it would not be for the Commission to carry out checks incumbent on other bodies. As for the use of gas, Morocco and Algeria would appear to be negotiating the supply of gas to cover Moroccoís future energy needs. The French government would indeed appear to be involved with the Moroccan government in this project. The Maâmoura nuclear research centre is not a secret project. Construction started last August, and the centre is to be devoted exclusively to civil applications, primarily in the fields of health and food- processing. Since the project lies outside the Commissionís sphere of competence, it cannot provide the Honourable Member with detailed answers. The Commission has consistently supported UN efforts to organise a referendum on the future of the Western Sahara. It intends to pursue this policy or any other course of action decided by the UN with a view to settling the question of the Western Sahara peacefully. (1) Debates of the European Parliament (November 1999). (2000/C 225 E/220) WRITTEN QUESTION P-2697/99 by Rosa Díez GonzÆlez (PSE) to the Council (3 January 2000) Subject: Information on European Union citizens condemned to death Is the Council in possession of information on the numbers, the identities, the legal situations, the conditions of detention and the personal and family situations of nationals of Member States of the European Union condemned to death in other countries? Has it attempted to obtain this information, and, if so, will it forward it to the author of this question and to the European Parliament? If the Council is not in possession of such information, does it not agree that steps need to be taken to establish a system for keeping proper records of these cases? What action does it intend to take to remedy this lack of information? Reply (28 February 2000) The Council is not in possession of the information requested concerning the number of European Union citizens condemned to death in third countries. The European Union, which is campaigning resolutely for the universal abolition of the death penalty, regularly intervenes to prevent third countries concerned from imposing or executing the death penalty, in particular following initiatives taken along such lines within the Council, by its members and/or its Presidency