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European Commission Spokesman's Briefing for 02-11-06
From: EUROPA, the European Commission Server at <http://europa.eu.int>
CONTENTS / CONTENU
[01] Vers une approche communautaire de la sûreté nucléaire dans l'UE
[02] Commission proposes to ensure the continuing availability of Euratom
loans for nuclear safety and decommissioning projects in candidate and
other non-member countries
[03] La Commission adopte un règlement qui facilite les aides d'Etat en
faveur de l'emploi
[04] Brian Gray appointed Deputy Director General of DG Budget
[05] Commission establishes new administration offices to increase its
internal efficiency and reallocate resources to core tasks
[II] Other news - Autres nouvelles
[06] Commission proposes fisheries action plan to counter the socio-
economic impact of stock depletion
[07] Commission clears acquisition of ABB's financial services business by
GE
[08] Commission clears acquisition by RTL of Holtzbrinck's stake in the
German TV channel n-tv
[09] Further liberalisation of agricultural trade with Slovenia
[10] Franz Fischler visits Czech Republic
[11] Textiles quotas eliminated under EU-Brazil agreement signed today
[12] Pascal Lamy meets UN Secretary General Kofi Annan (05/11, New York)
[13] Vice Prime-Minister Khristenko and Director-General Lamoureux open the
EU-Russia Technology Centre as a platform for the EU-Russia Energy Dialogue
[14] Autre matériel diffusé
Midday Express 06/11/2002
TXT: FR ENPDF:DOC:Midday Express 06/11/2002[I] Résultats de la Commission
de ce jour - Outcome of today's Commission meeting
[01] Vers une approche communautaire de la sûreté nucléaire dans l'UE
(! embargo 15h00 !) La Commission européenne a proposé un paquet inédit de
mesures en vue de doter enfin l'Union européenne d'une véritable approche
communautaire de la sûreté nucléaire et de la sécurité d'approvisionnement.
Ces propositions concernent la sûreté des installations nucléaires en
exploitation et en cours de démantèlement, la gestion des déchets
radioactifs et le commerce des matières nucléaires avec la Russie. Elles
visent la mise en place de normes communes et de mécanismes de contrôle qui
garantiront l'application uniforme des mêmes critères de sûreté ayant force
de droit sur le territoire de l'UE. "Il est de notre responsabilité
d'assurer une approche commune de la sûreté nucléaire et de la gestion des
déchets : les citoyens européens ne nous pardonneraient pas l'inaction de
l'UE dans ce domaine", a déclaré Loyola de Palacio, vice-présidente en
charge de l'Energie et des Transports. "Indépendamment des choix de
politique énergétique des Etats membres, une action cohérente de l'UE dans
ce secteur est nécessaire, encore renforcée par l'échéance prochaine de
l'élargissement. Les lacunes de la législation communautaire en matière de
sûreté nucléaire doivent être comblées", a-t-elle également rappelé.
[02] Commission proposes to ensure the continuing availability of Euratom
loans for nuclear safety and decommissioning projects in candidate and
other non-member countries
On behalf of Euratom, the European Commission has agreed to ask the Council
to increase the borrowing ceiling to cover Euratom lending to eligible
projects, notably related to nuclear safety and decommissioning of
installations in candidate and other non-member countries. The proposals
also require agreement of the Council and the European Parliament.
[03] La Commission adopte un règlement qui facilite les aides d'Etat en
faveur de l'emploi
La Commission européenne a adopté un règlement sur les aides à l'emploi
destinées à faciliter les initiatives de création d'emplois des Etats
membres. Selon le nouveau règlement, ceux-ci peuvent accorder des aides à
la création d'emplois et à l'embauche de travailleurs défavorisés et
handicapés sans devoir solliciter l'autorisation préalable de la
Commission. Pour les chômeurs de longue durée et autres travailleurs
défavorisés, les Etats membres peuvent prendre à leur compte jusqu'à
l'équivalent de 50% des charges salariales et des cotisations obligatoires
de sécurité sociale d'une année. Dans le cas des handicapés, les Etats
membres peuvent prendre à leur charge jusqu'à 60% de ces coûts. Le nouveau
règlement ne préjuge pas d'autres catégories d'aides à l'emploi, mais ces
mesures devront être notifiées et seront examinées par la Commission cas
par cas.
[04] Brian Gray appointed Deputy Director General of DG Budget
The European Commission has appointed Mr Brian Gray, Commission official of
British nationality, Deputy Director General of DG Budget. Mr Gray will be
responsible for relations with the Budgetary Control Committee of the
European Parliament, the Court of Auditors and for the discharge procedure.
He will participate in the implementation of the reform of the Commission,
particularly in financial management and in the modernisation of the
Commission's accounting system.
[05] Commission establishes new administration offices to increase its
internal efficiency and reallocate resources to core tasks
The European Commission has approved the establishment of three new Offices
aimed at rationalising the day-to-day management of administrative and
support services, particularly those that are currently carried out by the
Directorate General for Personnel and Administration. In transferring part
of the tasks to three Offices, one for the payment of all Commission staff
entitlements, the other two for the management of Commission infrastructure
in Brussels and Luxembourg, the Commission is seeking to increase the
effectiveness of the delivery of these services to the benefit of staff.
The new Offices, due to begin work in January, will lead once fully
operational and after the end of the transition phase - to annual savings
on overall operating costs of up to €12 million, roughly 14% of the current
cost of providing these services. These efficiency gains could increase
further if the other EU institutions agreed to pool their responsibilities
in these fields. The decisions adopted today follow exhaustive
consultations with the Commission staff unions.
[II] Other news - Autres nouvelles
[06] Commission proposes fisheries action plan to counter the socio-
economic impact of stock depletion
The European Commission has proposed an action plan to respond to the
potential social, economic and regional consequences of restructuring the
fishing industry caused by the dire state of several fish stocks. This
action plan, which was prepared after consultations with the Member States,
identifies the possible impact of the fishing effort limitation in certain
areas for certain stocks proposed by the Commission in the context of the
reform of the Common Fisheries Policy. The measures set out in the action
plan should be used by Member States to alleviate the short-term
consequences of the proposed conservation measures for affected fishermen
and other operators in the fishing industry. They include the reprogramming
of €611 million under the FIFG for social measures and for reducing fleet
capacity, specific measures in favour of small-scale fishing, the
improvement of living and working conditions on board, as well as social
protection in the fisheries sector and measures to help young fishermen.
Substantial EU funds can be used to help affected fishermen, vessel owners
and other operators to cope with economic and social problems. Currently
only 3% of the total amount of financial aid under the FIFG have been
programmed for social measures, compared to 22% for fleet renewal and
modernisation. The action plan concludes that although there will be a
social cost to reducing fishing effort within the framework of multi-annual
management plans, the cost of postponing the measures required by the
present over-exploitation of common fisheries resources would be even
greater. Bilateral consultations with Member States have confirmed that it
is not possible at this stage to make a reliable estimate of affected jobs,
as no decision has been taken yet on multi-annual management plans.
[07] Commission clears acquisition of ABB's financial services business by
GE
The European Commission has granted clearance under the Merger Regulation
to the proposed acquisition of ABB's Structured Finance Business (ABB SF)
by GE Capital Corp. (GE Capital), a subsidiary of US-based General Electric
Corp. A careful analysis of the transaction has shown that GE Capital's
business will be constrained by sufficient competition from the remaining
players in the market and, therefore, consumers and vendors will face an
environment where a wide choice of financial solutions and suppliers is
maintained. The acquisition has an impact mainly in the business equipment
leasing markets in Norway and Sweden.
[08] Commission clears acquisition by RTL of Holtzbrinck's stake in the
German TV channel n-tv
The European Commission has cleared the acquisition by RTL Television of
Holtzbrinck's 47% stake in the joint venture n-tv, a German news TV
channel. Following this transaction n-tv will be jointly controlled by RTL
and AOL Time Warner.
[09] Further liberalisation of agricultural trade with Slovenia
In the framework of the "double profit" agreements between the EU and
candidate countries, the European Commission today adopted a proposal for a
Council Decision in view of additional liberalisation of agricultural trade
with Slovenia. The agreement with an additional duty free trade coverage of
around €100 million incorporates a substantial improvement in existing
concessions and addresses further new concessions in the cereals sectors.
The deal includes granting reciprocal duty-free tariff quotas of 20000
tonnes on wheat, 9000 tonnes on rye, 32000 tonnes on barley and 20000
tonnes for maize. Both sides agreed complete liberalisation for other
cereals, malt and molasses, as well as over 220 other agricultural products,
in particular in the fruit and vegetable sectors. The agreement also
involves a commitment from the parties to remove export refunds for the
cereal sectors. The proposal has now to be adopted by the Council and will
most likely enter into force on 1 January 2003. In parallel, the Slovenian
authorities are in the process of implementing the concession agreed for EU
exports to Slovenia.
[10] Franz Fischler visits Czech Republic
With the enlargement negotiations approaching the finishing line and
following the Brussels Summit, European Commissioner for Agriculture and
Rural Development Franz Fischler's visit will serve as an excellent
opportunity to touch base on the state of play of the enlargement
negotiations on agriculture and on the preparations in the Czech Republic.
"I intend to use this trip to reinforce support for the EU accession of the
Czech Republic. I want to inform, to explain and to discuss in order to
address the concerns and fears of the Czech people. Let there be no doubt.
Being in the EU is far better for the Czech rural sector, and offers a far
more stable and secure future, than staying out. I am also looking forward
to meet my colleagues from all candidate countries to discuss the latest
developments regarding the enlargement negotiations", Mr Fischler
commented.
[11] Textiles quotas eliminated under EU-Brazil agreement signed today
Under the EU-Brazil Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on textiles trade
liberalisation signed today, the EU will lift all textile quotas it applies
vis-à-vis Brazil. In return, Brazil will respect maximum tariff levels,
refrain from applying any non-tariff barriers to EU textile and clothing
exports, and discontinue the application of an additional tax on textile
and clothing imports. European Trade Commissioner Pascal Lamy said : "This
agreement is a clear sign that the EU is ready to anticipate opening up its
textile market ahead of the WTO deadline of 2005, provided its trading
partners are ready to provide better access to their markets. The
elimination of trade barriers in textiles is also a contribution to the on-
going EU-Mercosur negotiations bringing progress in the roadmap we agreed
during our ministerial meeting in July."
[12] Pascal Lamy meets UN Secretary General Kofi Annan (05/11, New York)
During his visit to New York on 5 November, European Trade Commissioner
Pascal Lamy met UN Secretary General Kofi Annan. Purpose of the visit was
to compare notes on the progress achieved to date in the ongoing WTO
negotiations under the Doha Development Agenda (DDA) and in particular to
explain EU proposals to better integrate developing countries into the
multilateral trading system.
[13] Vice Prime-Minister Khristenko and Director-General Lamoureux open the
EU-Russia Technology Centre as a platform for the EU-Russia Energy Dialogue
Russian Vice-Prime Minister Victor Khristenko and European Commission
Director-General for Energy and Transport François Lamoureux, the sole
interlocutors for the EU-Russia Energy Dialogue, opened the EU-Russia
Technology Centre in Moscow on Tuesday, 5 November 2002. As noted by Mr
Lamoureux : "Concrete progress has been made in the dialogue so far, paving
the way for a future long-term EU-Russia common energy house."
[14] Autre matériel diffusé
Note sur les résultats du Conseil Ecofin
From EUROPA, the European Commission Server at http://europa.eu.int/
© ECSC - EC - EAEC, Brussels-Luxembourg, 1995, 1996
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