WRITTEN QUESTION No. 2830/98 by John McCARTIN to the Commission. Grant aid for pig meat industry in Ireland
C 182/24 Official Journal of the European Communities EN 28. 6. 1999 Answer given by Mr Oreja on behalf of the Commission (16 November 1998) The 1998 information note on the criteria for awarding grants to twinning schemes was adopted by agreement between the representatives of all the national schemes of the Council of European Municipalities and Regions and of the World Federation of United Cities, who met in Brussels on 21 January 1998. Since the programme was adopted in 1989, 24 800 town twinnings have been supported. At the next meeting on the award criteria for 1999, scheduled for December 1998, the Council of European Municipalities and Regions (Belgian section) will have an opportunity to submit its proposals. The Commission examines each file carefully before it decides to reject or accept it, and it feels that various European themes should be treated during a town twinning ceremony. (1999/C 182/030) WRITTEN QUESTION E-2817/98 by Carmen Díez de Rivera Icaza (PSE) to the Commission Subject: Overbooking and passengers’ rights (17 September 1998) In view of the repeated cases of overbooking or overselling which have occurred once more during the summer and the harm caused to passengers by overbooking, can the Commission say: 1. whether it intends to adopt new measures to regulate this situation, and 2. whether information on passengers’ rights and the compensation due to them in such situations should not be put on public display in the Union’s airports? Answer given by Mr Kinnock on behalf of the Commission (5 November 1998) The Commission shares the concerns of the Honourable Member and has therefore already taken the necessary steps to introduce new measures by means of a proposal (1) to amend Council Regulation (EEC) 295/91 establishing common rules for a denied-boarding compensation system in scheduled air transport (2). In this proposal the Commission suggests that information relating to passengers’ consumer rights should be improved with clearly displayed notices at the airports. Parliament has already finalised its first reading and the amendments are now being discussed by the Council. A common position could therefore be reached in the near future. (1) OJ C 120, 18. 4. 1998. (2) OJ L 36, 8. 2. 1991. (1999/C 182/031) WRITTEN QUESTION E-2830/98 by John McCartin (PPE) to the Commission (28 September 1998) Subject: Grant aid for pig meat industry in Ireland Can the Commission state what amount of grant aid was paid for the marketing and processing of pig meat in Ireland over the last 15 years and what was the breakdown between the Irish and EU contribution?