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European Commission Spokesman's Briefing for 96-11-15
From: EUROPA, the European Commission Server at <http://europa.eu.int>
MIDDAY EXPRESS
News from the Spokesman's midday briefing
Nouvelles du rendez-vous de midi du Porte-Paroleb
15/11/1996
CONTENTS / CONTENU
[01] Visit of South Africa's Deputy-President Thabo Mbeki to the
Commission
[02] Commission joins the search to find Europe's Young Driver of the Year
[03] Petites et moyennes entreprises : Des services plus efficaces pour les
entreprises
[04] La Commission adresse un avis motivé à la Belgique concernant une
directive sur la teneur en soufre de certains combustibles liquides
[05] Commission sends reasoned opinions to Belgium, Ireland, Luxembourg,
Spain and Portugal on non-implementation of GMO directive
[06] Franz Fischler: Partnerships against hunger and malnutrition
[07] Christos Papoutsis: "We do not lack entrepreneurs nor dynamism, but we
must exploit the opportunities and talents available in the Union"
[08] Mario Monti at the Money Laundering Conference
[09] Ritt Bjerregaard on biodiversity: "We must now deliver the results of
what we have already decided"
[10] Anita Gradin: The fight against organized crime in Europe
[01] Visit of South Africa's Deputy-President Thabo Mbeki to the
Commission
South Africa's Deputy-President Thabo Mbeki visited the European Commission
yesterday, and had in-depth exchanges of views with President Jacques
Santer and External Relations Commissioner João de Deus Pinheiro. Talks
between the European Commission and the Deputy-President covered a wide
range of issues of mutual interest encompassing : the socio-economic and
political transition underway in South Africa, EU-South Africa development
cooperation, the current negotiations for a long-term agreement, regional
cooperation in Southern Africa, conflict prevention and crisis situations
in Africa with particular attention to the Great Lakes region, the
Information Society, and longer-term relations between the EU and Africa
beyond the year 2000.
[02] Commission joins the search to find Europe's Young Driver of the Year
As the grande finale of a six-week European road show to promote safer
driving standards, the European Commission will on Sunday November 17th
announce the winner of the search for the European Young Driver of the Year
and present the prize - a 10-day holiday for two in Europe. Every year
some 44,000 Europeans die on the road - the equivalent of a medium-sized
passenger jet crashing every day. Drivers under 25 - most especially males -
are the most at risk. Some two million young people qualify to drive every
year. Statistically, approximately 2,000 of them are destined to be killed
in a road accident in the first 12 months of their driving experience. It
was these stark facts that prompted the Commission to join other sponsors
in supporting the "Say 'Yes' to Safer Driving" campaign aimed at
encouraging Europe's newest drivers to take road safety seriously.
[03] Petites et moyennes entreprises : Des services plus efficaces pour les
entreprises
Accroître la visibilité et l'efficacité des services de soutien aux petites
et moyennes entreprises comme stratégie fondamentale pour atteindre un
niveau de compétitivité adéquat par est le thème principal du forum qui se
tient ces 18 et 19 novembre à Dublin. Le forum donnera l'occasion aux
autorités et organismes qui s'occupent de petites et moyennes entreprises
de s'informer sur les meilleurs pratiques en matière de services offerts à
ces entreprises, afin d'identifier les plus efficaces d'entre elles.
[04] La Commission adresse un avis motivé à la Belgique concernant une
directive sur la teneur en soufre de certains combustibles liquides
La Commission européenne a décidé d'adresser à la Belgique un avis motivé
pour non-communication des mesures de transposition de la directive
93/12/CEE du 23 mars 1993 concernant la teneur en soufre de certains
combustibles liquides.
[05] Commission sends reasoned opinions to Belgium, Ireland, Luxembourg,
Spain and Portugal on non-implementation of GMO directive
The European Commission, has decided to send reasoned opinions to five
Member States with a view to take them to court for failing to adopt
national legislation to give effect to Commission Directive 94/51/EC,
which updates and modifies Council Directive 90/219/EEC on the contained
use of genetically modified micro-organisms.
[06] Franz Fischler: Partnerships against hunger and malnutrition
Addressing the World Food Summit in Rome today, Agriculture and Rural
Development Commissioner Franz Fischler hailed the Political Declaration
and the Action Plan on World Food Security as a great achievement. He
stated that there are two temptations the world community faces regarding
hunger and food security: the first is to find a scapegoat; why should we
take the lead to combat hunger if others are responsible for it? The second
is to disagree about the causes of malnutrition; as long as we disagree on
its causes, how can we agree on the means best suited to eradicate it? "The
moral thing to do", Mr Fischler stressed, "is therefore not to apportion
blame, but to enter into hundreds, not to say thousands of partnerships
against malnutrition and hunger." He added that the Commission offered its
full support to the FAO Committee on World Food Security in monitoring the
Plan of Action. "If - as this Plan says - all parties at local, national,
regional and international levels make determined and sustained efforts,
then the overall goal of food for all, at all times, will be achieved.".
[07] Christos Papoutsis: "We do not lack entrepreneurs nor dynamism, but we
must exploit the opportunities and talents available in the Union"
Addressing the annual Conference of "Europe's 500", the European Union's
500 fastest growing companies, organised today in Brussels, Commissioner
Christos Papoutsis, responsible for Enterprise Policy, said that "Europe's
500" are "not the biggest, not the subject of speculation on the Stock
Exchanges, they are simply the most dynamic and most enterprising". He
further said that in Europe the concept of enterprise is still "regrettably
undersold and maybe even undervalued" and he emphasized that in the Union
"we do not lack entrepreneurs nor the dynamism to develop the skills which
enterprise demands, we seem only to lack an appreciation of how to exploit
to our own best advantage the opportunities and talents available in the
Union." Mr. Papoutsis emphasized that, in this context, education plays a
crucial role in order to give a high priority to the attractions of being
an entrepreneur in relation to other career preferences, and that the
European Commission will examine "what possibilities are available to
stimulate and raise awareness of the challenges and rewards from successful
entrepreneurship."
[08] Mario Monti at the Money Laundering Conference
A successful and democratic market economy needs honest and sound financial
institutions. The fight against drug trafficking, organised crime and money
laundering is of crucial importance to meeting this requirement. This was
the message of the speech given by Financial Services Commissioner Mario
Monti at the Money Laundering Conference in Riga, Latvia on 14 November.
The EU‘s money laundering Directive has proved to be effective at
preventing criminals from enjoying their ill-gotten gains, from making
their dirty money respectable and from infiltrating legitimate business. As
the Baltic States try to establish successful and democratic market
economies, they need to put in place the necessary structures to combat
against organised crime and money laundering. Through the Phare programme,
the European Commission will continue to support the efforts already under
way, and, in this respect, this Conference shows the joint committment. The
twin principles on which the EU Directive is based, "know your customer"
and "report your suspicions", represent an investment by banks and other
financial institutions to preserve their good reputation and standing.
However, the situation is far from perfect. In its first report, in March
1995, on the functioning of the Directive, the Commission pointed to the
crucial need for increased coordination and cooperation between Member
States in the administrative, police and judicial fields and the need to
face the problems raised by the technological developments of the
Information Society.
[09] Ritt Bjerregaard on biodiversity: "We must now deliver the results of
what we have already decided"
Addressing the Third Conference of the Parties to the UN Convention on
Biological Diversity in Buenos Aires, Environment Commissioner Ritt
Bjerregaard urged all parties to the Convention to maximise efforts to move
forward and agree on a common strategy for action in favour of
biodiversity. "Every Party must now elaborate and implement the
biodiversity strategy foreseen under the Convention. Sectoral action in
favour of biodiversity is important but cannot replace the elaboration and
implementation of a comprehensive and cross-sectoral strategy." The
Commissioner underlined the strong attachment of the European Community to
this Convention, characterising it as one of the most important global
environmental agreements to date. "The European Community is deeply
committed to working together with all other Parties to find the best
solutions to the complex problems raised by the threefold objectives of the
Convention : the conservation of biological diversity, its sustainable use
and the equitable sharing of the benefits arising from the use of genetic
resources".
[10] Anita Gradin: The fight against organized crime in Europe
The European Commission will present a communication on trafficking in
women for sexual purposes in a few days. The Commission is also working
hard for the protection of sexually abused children. "The slave trade with
women and the exploitation of children are now high on the political
agenda", said Justice and Home Affairs Commissioner Anita Gradin in an
intervention at the Conference on Women and the Future of Europe in Vienna
on Thursday.
MIDDAY EXPRESS
From EUROPA, the European Commission Server at http://europa.eu.int/
© ECSC - EC - EAEC, Brussels-Luxembourg, 1995, 1996
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