WRITTEN QUESTION E-1765/99 by Bartho Pronk (PPE-DE) to the Commission. Naturalisation of Foreigners Act in the Netherlands and discrimination against EU citizens.
C 170 E/96 Official Journal of the European Communities EN 20. 6. 2000 As far as the ástate aidí aspects are concerned, CTCs (costs of transition to competition) are a matter for the Member of the Commission in charge of competition policy. Nevertheless, the staff of that Member of the Commission obviously cooperate closely on such cases with the Directorate-General for Energy, which is under the responsibility of the Vice-President, Mrs de Palacio. Furthermore, any decision on the case will be taken in accordance with the principle of collective responsibility. As for Mrs de Palacioís involvement in reaching this future collective decision by the Commission on state aid granted to Spanish electricity companies, the Honourable Memberís attention is drawn to Article 213(2) (formerly Article 157(2)) of the EC Treaty, which provides that áthe Members of the Commission shall, in the general interest of the Community, be completely independent in the performance of their duties. In the performance of these duties, they shall neither seek nor take instructions from any government or from any other body. They shall refrain from any action incompatible with their duties. Each Member State undertakes to respect this principle and not to seek to influence the Members of the Commission in the performance of their tasksí. Several Members of the Commission have held government posts in the past. However, the fact that she has been a member of a government should not prevent Mrs de Palacio from taking part in the Commissionís decision-making process. If this were the case, it would be equivalent to nullifying the Commissionís obligation to act independently. Following the appointment of the Commission, its Members gave a solemn undertaking to the Court of Justice that they would meet their obligations as Commis- sioners and in particular those referred to above. Given these circumstances, the Commission does not agree with the Honourable Member that Mrs de Palacio should refrain from involvement in taking the decision in question. (2000/C 170 E/111) WRITTEN QUESTION E-1765/99 by Bartho Pronk (PPE-DE) to the Commission (11 October 1999) Subject: Naturalisation of Foreigners Act in the Netherlands and discrimination against EU citizens The Naturalisation of Foreigners Act entered into force in the Netherlands on 30 September 1998. It will only apply to citizens from outside the EU. 1. What is the Commissionís view of the Act? If the Commission feels the Act involves discrimination, will it draw the Netherlandsí attention to 2. this? 3. Why has the Commission still not replied to complaints from Dutch organisations, for example the complaint lodged on 8 September 1998 by LIZE (national consultative body of Southern Europeans) (dealt with by Carmel OíReilly, reference Cabinet Flynn/ms D(98))? Answer given by Mrs Diamantopoulou on behalf of the Commission (19 November 1999) The purpose of the Act in question is to help new arrivals to integrate. This is achieved by offering them Dutch courses as well as courses designed to improve their chances on the labour market. Participation in the integration programme is compulsory for new arrivals who, on the basis of an official test, are deemed to have insufficient knowledge of Dutch to be able to integrate into Dutch society in general and the labour market in particular. Failure to comply with the obligations laid down in the Act may result in a fine or other penalty. The exclusion of Community nationals from the education programmes offered in accordance with the Act has highlighted the extreme complexity of the subject, necessitating detailed investigations. 20. 6. 2000 EN Official Journal of the European Communities C 170 E/97 The Commission is carrying out a thorough examination of the problem and will keep the Honourable Member informed of its conclusions. The Commission regrets the delay in replying to the letter referred to by the Honourable Member. The body in question has recently received a letter on this subject. (2000/C 170 E/112) WRITTEN QUESTION E-1769/99 by Jan Andersson (PSE) to the Commission (11 October 1999) Subject: Introduction of a common EU-wide bottle recycling system Drinks packaging currently contributes to the serious waste management problems faced by the majority of Member States. Certain countries have introduced systems for recycling bottles but in some cases find it difficult to collect sufficient quantities to make such systems economical. One possible solution might be to introduce a common, EU-wide system, which would help to ensure that bottles are collected in sufficient quantities and alleviate the growing problem posed by large volumes of household waste. Is the Commission planning to introduce a common EU-wide system for recycling glass bottles? Answer given by Mrs Wallström on behalf of the Commission (17 November 1999) The encouragement of reuse systems of packaging in the Member States is one of the measures foreseen by Parliament and Council Directive 94/0062/EC of 20 December 1994 on packaging and packaging waste (1) in order to prevent or reduce the environmental impact of packaging waste provided that the packaging can be reused in an environmentally sound manner in conformity with the Treaty. Several Member States have established reuse systems or reinforced their traditional old systems, such as Denmark, Germany, The Netherlands, Austria, Finland, and Sweden. Currently, reuse rates of up to 90 % have been achieved for beverages packaging in some of these Member States. However, the setting up of a European system for reuse is a rather complex issue where several aspects (standardisation, transport distances) play a role. This makes it difficult to harmonise the existing reuse systems, which have been historically developed along different lines. Moreover, the need to ensure a high level of environmental protection needs to be combined with internal market rules. The Commission will however take advantage of the revision process of the Directive 94/0062/EC, which should start before the end of this year, to further improve the reuse systems of packaging in the Member States. (1) OJ L 365, 31. 12. 1994. (2000/C 170 E/113) WRITTEN QUESTION E-1772/99 by Herbert Bösch (PSE) to the Commission (11 October 1999) Subject: Proceedings pending before ECJ concerning Austrian drinks tax (C-437/97) A drinks tax is levied throughout Austria on all drinks, in the form of a local tax. EU Commission representatives had always confirmed that the Austrian drinks tax complied with the requirements of EU