WRITTEN QUESTION No. 2180/98 by Ben FAYOT to the Commission. Duties on wine
C 96/52 Official Journal of the European Communities EN 8. 4. 1999 Supplementary answer given by Mrs Wulf-Mathies on behalf of the Commission (13 October 1998) The Commission would refer the Honourable Member to its answer to Written Question No P-2120/98 by Mr Trakatellis (1). (1) OJ C 354, 19. 11. 1998, p. 131. (1999/C 96/074) WRITTEN QUESTION E-2180/98 by Ben Fayot (PSE) to the Commission (10 July 1998) Subject: Duties on wine The wine sector is worried that the Commission is planning to introduce excise duties on wine. This is of course a topic which keeps resurfacing in political discussions. I should like to know if any new facts have arisen to justify reopening this subject, and what precisely the Commission intends to do in this connection. In particular, does the Commission propose to demonstrate once and for all that the zero-rating of excise duties practised in all wine-producing countries leads to a distortion of competition with other drinks? Answer given by Mr Monti on behalf of the Commission (5 October 1998) Under Article 8 of Council Directive 92/84/EEC of 19 October 1992 on the approximation of the rates of excise duty on alcohol and alcoholic beverages (1), the Commission reports to the Council and Parliament every two years on the operation of the minimum rates of duty on alcoholic drinks. Such a report is now in preparation, although no decisions have been taken as to its final content. However, the Honourable Member will recognize that the report cannot avoid examining the question of whether or not the minimum rate for wine should remain at zero. Moreover, since Article 8 specifically requires it to do so, the report will also cover the question of competition between alcoholic drinks. (1) OJ L 316, 31. 10. 1992. (1999/C 96/075) WRITTEN QUESTION P-2182/98 by Konstantinos Hatzidakis (PPE) to the Commission Subject: Recruitment of pilots for Olympic Airways (3 July 1998) The management of Olympic Airways recently decided to recruit 45 pilots to meet immediate requirements from a list of successful candidates which had been drawn up after a competition in 1996. The need for such a decision was confirmed by other relevant bodies of Olympic Airways (Flight Exploitation Directorate) after the decision by the management to cut the companyís turnover by 10 %, on the grounds that not even the new programme could be implemented unless 45 pilots were recruited immediately. Despite all this the Ministry of Transport is refusing to endorse the adoption of this decision by the management of Olympic Airways, without giving any reason for its position