The Week in Europe 16-22/09/02

EU news in brief

Public lending right applied inconsistently across the EU, says Commission report

The Public Lending Right (PLR) is being applied differently in different EU Member States. In some cases, it is not being applied properly as required by the 1992 Council Directive on the Rental and Lending Right and Certain Related Rights. Those are the conclusions of a European Commission report published on 16 September. The report assesses the implementation of the PLR provisions under the Directive and reiterates the Commission's commitment to ensuring that the PLR is effective in all Member States and to monitoring the way increasing use of new technologies is affecting the application of the PLR. The Directive requires that the authors of books, films and any other copyright works and (at Member States' discretion) other rightholders, either have the right to authorise or refuse lending of their works by institutions such as public libraries, or that they be remunerated for such public lending.

[Background paper IP/02/1303]

Commission presents first results of joint work with industry on eSafety

On 16 September at the eSafety Congress in Lyon, Erkki Liikanen, European Commissioner responsible for Enterprise and the Information Society presented the progress and first results of the joint industry European Commission Working Group on eSafety. Organised by ERTICO ITS Europe, the e-Safety Congress in which participated over 600 people from 35 countries focused on progress made so far in Information Technology solutions for safety and security in intelligent transport. Further information:

http://europa.eu.int/information_society/programmes/esafety/index_en.htm

[Background paper IP/02/1304]

Commission held public workshop in Brussels on 3G study results

The European Commission held on 17 September a public workshop in Brussels on the results of the study "Comparative assessment of the licensing regimes for third generation (3G) mobile communications in the EU and their impact on the mobile communications sector". The workshop provided an opportunity for interested parties to express their views on future regulatory policy in the EU, drawing on the experience of 3G licensing. The study results as well as written comments received from interested parties are available at:

http://europa.eu.int/information_society/topics/telecoms/radiospec/mobile/studies/index_en.htm

[Background paper IP/02/1305]

Commission supports creation of a European cancer research area

How to build greater coherence in European cancer research was the key question to be debated at a conference in Brussels on 19 September, which brought together around 250 representatives from science, the medical profession, government, patient organisations, foundations, industry and European institutions. The aim of the conference, jointly organised by the European Commission and the European Parliament, was to kick off the conception of a joint European strategy for cancer research, rallying all players concerned to improve the coherence and efficiency of their research activities. The conference coincided with the launch, in November 2002, of the EU's Sixth Research Framework Programme (2002-2006), which has been designed to better structure and integrate the excellent science that Europe already has. The full conference programme is available online:

http://europa.eu.int/comm/research/info/conferences/cancer/cancer_en.html

Further information on the EU's cancer research activities is also available:

http://europa.eu.int/comm/research/rtdinfo/en/33/index.html

[Background paper IP/02/1338]

Clean energy: EU funds Fuel Cell Bus research

In support of European Mobility Week and the Car Free Day, on Sunday, 22 September 2002, EU Research Commissioner Philippe Busquin organised a ride across Brussels in a prototype fuel cell bus. The bus runs on hydrogen and oxygen; the only emission discharged from the exhaust pipe is pure water vapour. Pressurised hydrogen gas is stored in fibreglass-reinforced aluminium cylinders mounted in the roof of the vehicle. The bus generates power comparable to a conventional diesel engine, but causes less pollution, is less noisy and can carry more passengers. The prototype will be developed further thanks to EU-funded research. For further information please visit:

http://europa.eu.int/comm/research/energy/nn/nn_rt_hy3_en.htm

[Background paper IP/02/1341]

Commission proposes new rules on detergents to protect environment and health of consumers

The European Commission has adopted a proposal for a Regulation on detergents. The proposal aims to increase the protection of the aquatic environment against the harmful effects of certain substances (surfactants) designed to reduce surface tension of liquid to allow it to better penetrate solids. The provision of information for the protection of consumer health is also improved. The proposed Regulation modernises and substantially extends the scope of five existing Directives, all of which concern the biodegradability of detergent surfactants, and of one Commission Recommendation on the labelling of detergents. For the first time, a Regulation will be used for detergents to ensure the uniform application of detailed technical requirements in the Member States, and to facilitate subsequent amendments that will be required to keep up with developing scientific knowledge on surfactants.

The text of the proposed Regulation can be found at:

http://europa.eu.int/comm/enterprise/chemicals/detergents/index.htm

[Background paper IP/02/1348]

Eurostat news releases

August 2002: euro-zone annual inflation up to 2.1%; EU15 up to 1.9%

Euro-zone annual inflation rose from 1.9% in July to 2.1% in August 2002. A year earlier the rate was 2.4%. EU15 annual inflation rose from 1.8% in July to 1.9% in August 2002. A year earlier the rate was 2.4%. In August, highest annual rates were in Ireland (4.5%), Portugal (3.9%), Greece and the Netherlands (both 3.8%); lowest rates were in Germany and the United Kingdom (both 1.0%) and Belgium (1.3%).

[Background paper STAT/02/110]

Enlargement news

Commission moves to prepare extension of FIN-NET financial services complaints network to future Member States

Commission officials and senior representatives of existing complaint schemes in the UK, Greece, Sweden, France, Portugal and Finland presented to an audience of representatives from the accession countries the principles and practice of national complaint schemes and of the FIN-NET system linking them across the EU. The seminar also provided a chance for the accession countries to inform the Commission further about their own existing schemes. The objective is to promote best practice in the creation and management of out-of-court redress schemes in the accession countries and ultimately to include them in FIN-NET after enlargement. Information on all FIN-NET member schemes is also available on the European Commission's website

(http://europa.eu.int/comm/internal_market/en/finances/consumer/intro.htm) as well as on the multilingual FIN-NET database (http://finnet.jrc.it/).

[Background paper IP/02/1309]

Plain speaking from commissioner Fischler to candidate farmers

Determined to prevent the enlargement timetable being held up by the agriculture negotiations, Franz Fischler, European Commissioner for Agriculture, Rural Development and Fisheries embarked on a tour of several of the candidate countries with a message of pragmatism. "We will not allow agriculture to be the stumbling-block in the negotiating process. We are fully committed to the timetable. We can make it in time for the Copenhagen Council on 12 December 2002," he promised. He started his tour in Poland on 12 September, and told farmers' associations, agri-businesses and non-governmental organisations: "Unfortunately, there is still a gap between what is possible and what Poland requests" on agriculture. In particular, Polish requests go too far in respect of direct payments for farmers, he said. "Despite the fact that, originally, no direct payments had been foreseen, the European Commission has made concessions to the Polish request already" - in terms of phasing them in from a level of 25%, which, he claimed, "will create an income level for Polish farmers that is, compared to the average national income, as valuable as 100% for a French farmer with 30 hectares".

But this concession is itself a compromise position, he pointed out, and "I see no point in keeping up the request for 100% direct payments from the first day of accession if it is clear that there is no room for manoeuvre. This rhetoric cannot be successful, and it will only lead to frustration among the Polish people when they have to vote about accession."

When he addressed the Polish parliament the same day, the Commissioner argued that the tendency to put direct payments at the centre of the entry negotiations "has had the detrimental effect of cramping the debate". There are "convincing" reasons for phasing them in gradually, particularly since "what Polish agriculture needs most is not income aid that maintains structures as they are, but funds for modernisation and restructuring".

Fischler pointed to the benefits Poland already receives as a candidate (in particular the pre-accession agriculture assistance programme Sapard, under which the first advance of around 40 million euro has now been transferred, out of he total 171.6 million euro foreseen for Poland until 2006). And he listed the even more extensive advantages it can expect as a member state.

Franz Fischler in Latvia: "We need facts, not myths about the effects of EU membership"

"I understand the concerns of Latvian farmers about joining the EU. The more essential it is that they are fully informed that the cost of non-enlargement would be high, simply because they would be worse off outside the EU. The Commission has set out a fair proposal, which is tailor-made to support the restructuring process in Latvia. It is designed to guarantee an efficient and optimal integration of the farming sector into the CAP. As we approach the finishing line of the enlargement negotiations, we need facts, not myths about the effects of Latvia's accession. It is time to stop giving the impression that the whole financing offer of the Commission only consists on 25% direct payments. Let us start looking at the whole package which includes many advantages for Latvian farmers," said EU Farm Commissioner Franz Fischler during his official visit in Latvia. "Since my last visit to Latvia, your country has made remarkable progress. But there is still work to do. The Latvian farm sector needs to continue and reinforce the efforts. The restructuring of your agriculture and the upgrading of your processing facilities is not something that is forced upon you by the European Union. Latvia is facing these tasks in any case, no matter whether Latvia joins the European Union or not. Your advantage as a future Member of the European Union is the support for necessary changes of millions euros", he stated. More information on the Commission's enlargement proposal is available on the Internet at:

http://europa.eu.int/comm/agriculture/external/enlarge/index_en.htm

[Background paper IP/02/1317]

Prodi looks at link between the euro and enlargement

"The enlarged, economically strong and reformed European Union we are building has the resources to play a role in spreading peace, stability and prosperity far beyond its borders" in the new post-September 11 phase of history, according to European Commission President Romano Prodi - and the euro can play its part in that process, he insisted. Speaking at the International Economic Association World Congress in Lisbon on 10 September, he said he was "confident" that 2002 - the year of the launch of the euro currency and of the European Convention on the future of Europe - "will end with a historic decision to enlarge today's Union of 15 member states to bring in as many as ten new member states - thus finally reuniting the European continent".

As an example of how such economic integration is already benefiting both sides, even in advance of accession and of the introduction of the euro in the new member states, Prodi focused on the automobile sector. With a total investment of about 5 billion euro over the past decade, EU automobile manufacturers have built up a structure in central Europe that now accounts for about 15% of their total output, he pointed out. And with no quality differences between eastern and western European plants, exports from plants in central and Eastern Europe are now running at 80 to 90%. But far from undermining the main EU operations, these plants have given these manufacturers a low-cost supply base and made a big contribution to their profits. And at the same time, these automakers have established a large network of suppliers tied into their quality-control systems, and ensured that the entire modernisation process reaches deep into the eastern and central European economies.

Byrne expects food safety innovation in the candidate countries

There is no contradiction between introducing innovation in EU food safety at the same time as enlarging the EU, argued David Byrne, European Commissioner for Health and Consumer Protection, at the informal EU agriculture council in Nyborg last week. "The European Union is on the threshold of a historic enlargement which will create a new, dynamic framework for the development of policy," he said, and the prospect of a larger market "will encourage and act as an impetus to further innovation".

The basic European Commission approach to negotiations in this field is that food safety is an element of the enlargement process where the EU should not take risks that might lead to lower food safety standards or to any risks for consumers. Compliance with the Union's acquis on food safety is essential. The chapter on free movement of goods has already been provisionally closed for all candidate countries in negotiations, except Romania, and none of the candidates has requested transitional periods on food legislation. Negotiations on agriculture are under way with all these candidates, and agreement on the veterinary, phytosanitary and animal feed aspects has been reached with all the leading candidate countries except Poland and Malta.

Still to be resolved are issues such as the capacity to guarantee sufficient external border controls, compliance with EU rules regarding BSE, bringing food-processing establishments up to EU standards, and respect for the EU's animal welfare rules. "Clearly there is still a lot of work to be done, and time is now short," the Commission remarks. "(We) will keep up the pressure to make improvements," and "in any event, the EU will not compromise its standards."

More talk, more hopes, on Kaliningrad

Talks between the EU and Russia in Moscow on 9 September edged towards possible solutions to the problems that Kaliningrad will present once Lithuania and Poland join the EU. The meeting focused on proposals from Russian President Vladimir Putin on transit between Kaliningrad and other parts of Russia and the introduction in the long term of a general visa-free regime between Russia and the EU. The EU side said it was willing to consider the proposal of a general visa-free regime between Russia and the EU at some point in the future. But it continued to insist that a solution must be found within the Schengen rules, in agreement with the candidate countries concerned and with full respect of the sovereignty of these countries. The EU will show "maximum flexibility" in the implementation of the Schengen rules, the EU Presidency said, but it also emphasised that Kaliningrad is only one of several subjects on the EU-Russia agenda, and that the importance of progress in other areas of common interest should not be forgotten. It was agreed that a solution should be found before the EU-Russia Summit in Copenhagen on 11 November 2002.

Czech farmers concerned at "misunderstanding"

Czech farmers' leaders came to Brussels on 9 September to deliver a warning that the accession terms that are being offered by the EU so far are "unacceptable". "It is particularly important to win better quota terms for our priority production areas: milk, yields for cereals, live cattle, and sugar," insisted Miroslav Jirovsky, the president of the national agricultural association. But, he said, the EU continues to work on the basis of a "fundamental misunderstanding". The EU fears of candidate countries' farmers becoming too rich are misconceived, he said: Czech farm wages are not rising in real terms, because of the effects of transition, variations in the Czech currency, and the EU's reference points. "Franz Fischler, European Commissioner for Agriculture, Rural Development and Fisheries, speaks of a 60% income increase for Czech farmers after accession, even without direct payments - but it is an invalid calculation, relating only to the standard of living, not to Czech agriculture", said Jirovsky.

Irish referendum edges closer

The legal framework is now in place for a second Irish referendum on the Nice Treaty. Ireland's ratification is required for the Treaty to come into effect, and the Treaty introduces many of the provisions essential for bringing in new EU member states. On 13 September the Irish Senate finalised the necessary legislation, and all that remains now is for the government to set the date - expected to be in October.

Attention TV and production companies...

As part of its communication strategy for enlargement, the Commission has launched a call for proposals valued at 4.5 million euro to support radio and TV broadcasters interested in broadcasting information-related programmes on the theme of the enlargement of the EU. For full details see

http://www.europa.eu.int/comm/enlargement/communication/index.htm#call

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