WRITTEN QUESTION E-1983/99 by Cristiana Muscardini (UEN) to the Commission. Marijuana.
C 203 E/104 Official Journal of the European Communities EN 18. 7. 2000 Answer given by Mr Vitorino on behalf of the Commission (3 December 1999) 1. As the Honourable Member points out, the Treaty of Amsterdam does not make explicit provision for Community powers in the field of urban safety. However, at the Tampere European Council, the Heads of State or Government expressed their desire to see national crime prevention programmes developed. This would involve exchange of best practices and strengthening cooperation networks. Priorities might be juvenile delinquency, urban crime and drug-related crime. With this in mind, a request was made to examine the possibility of a Community-financed programme. With regard to the collection of crime statistics, this is currently carried out independently by the Member States, using their own criteria and in accordance with their own internal legislation. For this reason, it is not possible at present to examine or compare available data. The Commission considers it necessary to act on this need and is about to propose a draft programme to be called Euclid. Its purpose will be to provide the Union with an instrument for comparison of police and judicial crime statistics. Once it has been adopted by the Council, after consultation with Parliament, the instrument will be developed in future years in close cooperation with national departments in these two areas, with the help of Eurostat and Europol. 2. The Commission notes the Honourable Memberís suggestion of providing an automatic connection to the security services for those who work in public places, so that crimes can be reported as soon as they occur. It would point out that all Member States have a single emergency services number (112) and a single number for the police. The idea of a number specifically for certain professions, as the Honourable Member suggests, would have to be examined carefully to assess the advantages and disadvantages of such a scheme. As a first step, it would probably be useful to look at the experiences of some of the Member States and, where necessary, to encourage the provision of information on such measures, which must be introduced at local level and with the agreement of the various partners involved. The Oisin Community programme could provide assistance for evaluating such measures. The Commission would then have to see whether such provisions could be put forward on a broader scale as part of an overall approach to preventing delinquency. (2000/C 203 E/131) WRITTEN QUESTION E-1983/99 by Cristiana Muscardini (NI) to the Commission (5 November 1999) Subject: Marijuana Recent research into drugs to combat obesity and reduce appetite has concentrated on a new series of products derived from marijuana. Recent studies on such products have confirmed that they have the effect of suppressing appetite but emphasised their dangerous side-effects, which are far from negligible. Scientists have considerable reservations about using marijuana, particularly as the consumption of this substance by children between the ages of 12 and 15 can arrest the development of the brain, with disastrous consequences for a series of functions such as memory, learning and motor cooordination. Would the Commission, therefore, approach the institutes of pharmacological research with a view to regulating the use of marijuana in pharmacological experiments? 18. 7. 2000 EN Official Journal of the European Communities C 203 E/105 Answer given by Mr Liikanen on behalf of the Commission (8 December 1999) Community pharmaceutical legislation regulates the placing on the market of medicinal products and the requirements for obtaining marketing authorisations, based on an assessment of the quality, safety and efficacy of the product. Community pharmaceutical legislation also regulates ü to a certain extent ü the conduct of clinical trials. A draft directive on good clinical practice has been proposed (1) and is currently being discussed in Council which has as its main aim the harmonisation of general conditions and requirements under which clinical trials are authorised and conducted. Neither the existing pharmaceutical legislation nor the draft directive regulate or propose to regulate which substances may be tested in clinical trials because, as a matter of principle, any substance could have a positive impact in curing certain diseases and a case by case evaluation must be made by the authorities with regard to any clinical trial proposed. (1) COM(97) 369 final modified by COM(1999) 193 final. (2000/C 203 E/132) WRITTEN QUESTION E-1986/99 by Cristiana Muscardini (NI) to the Commission (5 November 1999) Subject: Action to combat corruption In the light of alarming indications of corruption on the part of leading figures in Russia, a recent G7 decision decreed a freeze on loans to Russia after calling for quarterly information about the state of accounts as a condition for restoring the flow of funds to the former Soviet empire. Would the Council set up a committee of inquiry concerning the destination of Community funds allocated to Russia under the cooperation agreements with that country? Answer given by Mr Patten on behalf of the Commission (30 November 1999) Allegations have recently been made concerning corruption in Russia and the laundering of assistance funds disbursed by international organisations. In the light of such allegations, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has set certain requirements for the release of the next tranche (US$ 640 million) of the US$ 4 500 million structural adjustment loan agreed with Russia in July 1999. The requirements concern increased transparency of the management of state finances in general and official reserves in particular, quarterly audits of Central Bank of Russia (CBR) forex reserves, adoption of international accounting standards by the CBR and withdrawal of CBR assets from five state-owned foreign subsidiaries, which have in the past been used to manage Russiaís forex reserves. This is primarily a matter for the World Bank and Group of seven most industrialised countries, as the main suppliers of direct financial assistance. Community funds are not the subject of the allegations mentioned above. The Commission nonetheless confirms that the recent allegations are of concern to all in the international community. It has already, in meetings held in the framework of the partnership and cooperation agreement, pressed Russia to address issues of corruption and money laundering forthrightly. The Commission has welcomed commitments given by Prime Minister Putin at the Group of eight most industrialised countries ministerial conference on combating organised crime, held in Moscow on 19-20 October 1999, that Russia will adopt anti-money laundering legislation in line with international standards in the near future and tackle corruption as a matter of priority