Although from a codicological point of view this section indeed seems artificially attached to the main body of the volume, it may have been made expressly to occupy its current position, as an afterthought, when the book was nearing completion. It may have existed briefly as a book- let, but then was incorporated into MS E in order to complement and enhance that collection.
Cantiga in To CSM was transposed down a fifth to D, the same finalis as in the preceding song. Thus, the same pairing principle observed in the preceding feasts, using new or appropriate preexisting loores, is applied here too. This suggests that the FJC were eventually expanded along the same rationale as the FSM, though the end result has not survived. One may thus conclude with confidence that some form of paraliturgical performance in Seville, implying paired CSM, the start of an anthology of Marian miracles broadened the purpose of the codex by turning a work of personal devotion into an object suitable for rituals of public worship.
The rubricator, however, hesitates, either because he was used to providing refrain incipits in lines left blank by the first copyist or because he had CSM in E as a model and took a while to recognize the falsity of its refrain. This suggests that the FSM appendix could have been prepared after CSM was copied into the main body of E—that is, during or after its final stages of copying. The song may have been assigned afterward to the Octave of Epiphany. Modes of Transmission Aside from these liturgical instructions for selected feast days, the extant manuscripts of CSM offer few unambiguous clues as to how the cantigas were to be performed.
Who sang them, for whom, and where? What messages were they meant to convey, beyond the most overt praise of the Virgin Mary? Modern scholars have proposed a strikingly diverse array of answers to these questions, many of them quite speculative. In order to assess these competing claims, we will examine both the internal and external evidence.
The enticing idea that the CSM reached a wide medieval audience cannot be reconciled with the exist- ing evidence, which, as noted above, suggests quite a limited circulation. A careful evaluation of the internal evidence, both textual and formal, none- theless indicates that Alfonso did intend the CSM to circulate, and be per- formed, across a broad range of social classes, as part of an ambitious cultural program with both religious and political objectives.
These inten- tions were unfulfilled because of the ultimate failure of the monarch himself, and his posthumous denigration. The idea that the CSM had a very large audience in the Middle Ages has gained undeserved currency in modern Alfonsine studies. The fact that T and F are spectacular works of art has suggested to some modern inter- preters that they were meant as showcases: Artistic items of great value were to be seen in the treasuries of cathedrals, where many might have been displayed along with tapestries, jewels, and other priceless items.
Alfonso was very proud of the Cantigas. It is unlikely, then, that he would have kept the volumes hidden. Rather they should be seen as enameled writings accruing to the prestige of the monarchy: CSM claims that Alfonso X was cured by contact with the book of cantigas that traveled with him possibly To. A collection of CSM could thus acquire the thaumaturgic status of a relic, and accordingly deserve a magnificent wrapping, made of exquisite miniatures, generously inlaid with gold.
Keller, Pious Brief Narrative, Formal homogeneity is certainly a sign of coherent conception as opposed to piecemeal juxtaposi- tion, but it does not exclude relation to a living performance tradition, as we will shortly see in the discussion of form. The second argument is an argu- ment from silence, which is plausible only insofar as the survival of written descriptions, performance materials, or further manuscript copies of the CSM would be expected if they had actually been performed in public. Such an expectation is misplaced, considering the potential role of oral trans- mission, the nature of the extant medieval documentation note sheets were typically disposed of and ad hoc performance arrangements disregarded , and the personal nature of the CSM enterprise which made its diffusion vulnerable to adverse political contexts.
One must also consider the possi- bility that performance was locally initiated but not sustained because of in- sufficient practical support such as dedicated endowments, or confraternity statutes to ensure performance continuity for more than a few years , its documentary trail thus being reduced to nil. Griffiths does acknowledge that some compositions might have been meant to have a larger impact as performed songs, as implied by the traces of courtly circulation and intended practical use of specific sets of the CSM explored above.
She adds, however, that some songs, either singly or in small groups, may have been performed by clerics and court minstrels in public spaces, and possibly appropriated by jongleurs in those Marian sanctu- aries where the narrated miracles were located, thus extending their reach much beyond the court. One is thus led to believe that the CSM represented an almost private, playful activity, akin to troubadour engagement among courtiers. It will be argued below that, on the contrary, the collection reflects an ambi- tious political and religious agenda, and that it was designed at the outset to have aural public impact both within and beyond the court.
In the remain- der of this section I will argue the more fundamental point that Alfonso con- ceived the CSM as a collection of songs that should be publicly performed according to either established clerical usage or the courtly tradition with which he was intimately familiar.
In codex T fol. This represents the beginning of the project and seems to imply teamwork in the production of versified narratives. On the facing page fol. At the center the king, with an open book, raises his left hand with the index finger pointing—a conventional gesture of command—toward the copyist on his immediate left and looks at him. This is the continuation of the text begun on the left, on another roll held by a cleric who is running the index and middle fingers of his right hand over the words written there—the beginning of CSM 1—on which tetra- grams are superimposed: On the far right we see three clerics standing and holding an open book, their gaze directed toward another cleric with half-open mouth, possibly a solo singer.
This foursome represents a mode of performance that is vocal, unaccompanied, and eccle- siastical: This suggests a paraliturgical context. Finally, on the extreme left stand three jongleurs, identifiable by their instru- ments: This figure appears in color in the online version of the Journal. The jongleurs, separated from the singers, are only partially active and not coordinated among themselves.
They may symbolize the melody that the cleric next to them will soon try to capture in musical notation. But it seems just as plausible that they are meant to embody the idea of ulterior circulation that was intended to occur in reality, giving fur- ther kinds of life both vocal and instrumental to the CSM.
The image of minstrels singing a cantiga would not have been used if it were not a credible representation of what Alfonso intended to happen at his court. This interpretation expands and qualifies the one proposed in Ferreira, Cantus corona- tus, , The Medieval Fate of the Cantigas de Santa Maria civil war of —47 , and he himself became an important author of Galician-Portuguese troubadour songs. The CSM were a direct continuation of the Galician-Portuguese trouba- dour tradition, both in their choice of the established poetic language70 and in their array of literary techniques. In this context Galician retained its traditional association with poetry, while Castilian was used and actively promoted as a language of prose.
Connections between the CSM and Galician-Portuguese secular poetry as practiced by Alfonso himself and his fellow troubadours involve versification, turns of expression, and a rich palette of technical and rhetorical resources, summarized in Parkinson, Alfonso X, the Learned, 10— Galician was the western vernac- ular of the Leonese kingdom, as opposed to the northeastern Asturian- Leonese which was not acknowleged then as an independent Romance language and surfaced in writing only in local juridical documents.
This was a complex enterprise that involved deliberate juxtaposition of courtly and non- courtly models. On the one hand, Alfonso manipulated poetic and metri- cal forms from within the troubadour tradition that would highlight the digni- ty of his subject, the Virgin Mary. On the other, he chose forms from outside the troubadour tradition that were familiar to popular audiences, including recent converts from Islam, in order to encourage the penetration of his songs beyond the limited courtly circle of the troubadours, especially into the recently Christianized areas where the Islamic imprint was still strong.
Se vos trobar sabedes, If you well know your art, a por que Deus avedes, she through whom you have God: The large majority of CSM, narrative or otherwise, depart from the clerical precedent of Gonzalo de Berceo, and from troubadour precedent as well, in the overall choice of metrical and musical forms. This formal scheme, which encompasses all the miracle songs and three-quarters of the others, has been associated both with dance forms, namely the Occitanic dansa or French virelai, and with the Andalusian song of the zajal type.
The latter most probably provided the model for the CSM, for the reasons outlined below. Specialists in Andalusian Arabic and Hebrew poetry hold widely divergent views on the ultimate origins of the zajal—whether to see it as an imitation of earlier Iberian Romance song or as a local adaptation and expansion of an Arabic poetic precedent. Romance philologists also disagree on the ultimate origins of the virelai—whether it is an imitation of an Iberian precedent or a pan-European derivation from popular or Latin models. What we can confi- dently say is that in the thirteenth century the zajal was a long-established, popular genre in southern Spain, including its Mozarab population, and that it is almost certain that Alfonso was personally acquainted with zajalesque It was not conquered by Castilian or Aragonese knights, unlike other towns and regions of Andalusia, nor was its population and culture initially displaced by northern, Christian newcomers.
Alfonso, as an infante, led the occupying Christian army and resided in Murcia, then es- sentially a Muslim town, for at least a couple of months in both and They fought together at the siege of Seville in —48, to which the Granadan king contributed cavalry, and began a close friendship that lasted at least until Indeed, his rule encouraged the spread of Muslim-inspired Christian architecture. Of the rare surviving zajal-like secular songs in Galician-Portuguese, the earliest secure examples are authored by Alfonso X and two other troubadours When for four months in the king shared his dwellings with his former enemy the Emir of Morocco, who had come to his rescue with an army, he felt unsurprisingly comfortable and reinvigorated within this environment: References to the secular Galician-Portuguese cantigas follow current scholarly usage in identifying their manuscript sources and numerical position within them.
Four of the abovementioned cantigas use the most usual form of the zajal, AA bbbaAA. O genete B , V 74 , by Alfonso X, may also be interpreted as a zajal, although the manuscripts fail to repeat the initial lines as a refrain. There remain only two zajals of a later date: Pois min amor non quer leixar B bis, V is a zajalesque version of a cantiga by Airas Nunes, who was in the service of Sancho IV between and , and who may have previously been a collaborator of Alfonso X.
Updated biographical profiles of the medieval Galician- Portuguese authors, digital reproductions of the sources, and alternative editions can be found in the Cantigas Medievais database, http: I wish to thank Stephen Parkinson for his help in tracing potential cases of zajal form in secular cantigas. Zajalesque formal schemes occur in no more than twenty-four cantigas.
Before the mid-thirteenth century the scheme aaabBB appears in only three songs: With one exception these zajal troubadour songs employed the satirical regis- ter, which lent itself to contrafaction the use of an existing melody for a differ- ent text ; this choice of form found little echo in the secular manuscript tradition, yet it pervades the CSM. The connection between the CSM and southern Iberian song is reinforced by the fact that the music uses a kind of rondeau form found only in the Andalusian tradition, with an initial repeat in the strophe of section B rather than section A, as in the French variety.
The virelai, whose origin is disputed, is also found in the Andalusian musical heritage. Musically, only 11 of the CSM use typical troubadour forms, whereas have initial refrain and mel- odic recapitulation in the strophe. Of these, are of the virelai kind, while 86 correspond to the Andalusian rondeau and 19 to the French rondeau. The zajal probably used both the virelai and the Andalusian rondeau forms.
The simpler way to explain the formal, metrical, or musical novelties of the abovemen- tioned satirical songs and the CSM in the Galician-Portuguese context is therefore to assume that they were directly inspired by the Andalusian zajal. The connection with the zajal is recognizable even if the strophic structure of the poems is varied, thereby enriching the Galician-Portuguese metrical and rhyming vocabulary: The same could also be true of Afonso Paez and Johan Servando, both of unknown whereabouts.
This formal register was rooted in the mixed local culture of Toledo and of the newly occupied southern territories, forming an arc around the kingdom of Granada, from Seville in the west to Murcia in the east. Had the king been mainly concerned with the entertainment and approval of his courtly circle, the appropriation of familiar troubadour forms or Latin conductus and sequences, in the wake of Gautier de Coinci, or some upgrade of the repeti- tious epic or lai narrative styles, would have been the most obvious choice.
While such forms appear in the CSM, they are quite rare. As Elvira Fidalgo has argued, it invited easy public access to the miracle, as well as its easy diffusion, on account of its familiarity among the minstrels. Once the model had been chosen, the internal organization of the narrative unsympathetic toward the thesis of Arabic influence on Romance poetry: This is the more probable when the last line fails to repro- duce the rhyme and length of the previous lines; see Page, Owl and the Nightingale, 69— In addition to syllabic style and iterative melodic form with or without a short coda , clear metrical proximity to the Castilian narrative tradition is found in CSM 46, 90, and ; CSM can rather be connected to French examples.
The corre- sponding songs were composed after his death in , one of them CSM possibly by the king himself. He constructed them in a way that would allow them to serve as an exemplary, festive complement to clerical preaching, and to this end he must have imagined them reaching an appropriately large audi- ence. We can see this vision reflected not only in their musical and metrical forms, but in the subject matter of some of the song texts. It mentions, in hierarchical order, kings and emperors stanza 3 , preachers, and other people of religious standing stanza 4 , knights and honored ladies stanza 5 , and damsels, squires, burghers and city dwellers, villagers, artisans, common folk, and merchants mentioned last but, the poem assures us, not least; stanza 6.
All should be united in praise, as brothers, hands raised joined in a round? This is a strikingly different image from the elite worldview reflected in most troubadour poetry. A similar intention is conveyed by the Latin virelai Stella splendens in monte, copied into the Libre Vermell more than a century later; one may speculate that CSM either mirrors or explicitly proposes a socially encompassing agenda for Iberian Marian shrines.
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The picture it paints anyway suggests that jongleurs could have been required by Alfonso to learn selected cantigas and to sing them in urban parishes where images of Mary attracted popular devotion, and possibly in towns and villages along pilgrimage roads, to Christians and Muslims alike. It seems logical, in short, to conclude that the CSM were aimed at differ- ent kinds of audiences—sometimes the courtly circle, but mostly the larger audiences connected to palace and cathedral as well as other urban and even rural populations—and that the form of the songs could be modulated accordingly.
Martin Soarez, Cavaleiro, con vossos cantares B , V Manuscript versions, an on- line edition, and commentary may be found at http: As we have seen, the CSM left few traces beyond the books commissioned by the king himself, and seem to have circulated very little. The col- lection is presented as the result of a personal decision, and idealized por- traits of Alfonso in T and F underline his role in its compilation.
This usage is not consistent: This alterna- tion in voice highlights the use of the first person as a significant choice. As noted above, in Alfonso was chosen by a faction of electors to become Holy Roman emperor, a claim he failed to achieve but did not re- nounce until The western and eastern seats of the Roman Empire are referred to in several miracles, two of which CSM , allude to the proximity of the em- peror to the Virgin, an idea that had become ingrained in the West since the eleventh century.
His political ideology is coher- ently inscribed in the CSM insofar as the king provides an example of devotion Snow, review of Alfonso X. Full bibliographical guidance is found in Snow, Poetry of Alfonso X. The Medieval Fate of the Cantigas de Santa Maria to be followed by the people, and mobilizes all his learning poetic, musical, theological, and hagiographical to express it.
In demonstrating his superior devotion and culture the king underlines his divine right to occupy the throne. While Alfonso must have hoped that this joint Marian and dynastic exal- tation would be joyfully undertaken throughout the kingdom by subjects of high and low station alike, a careful reading of some internal references sug- gests that these hopes were soon frustrated.
Even before the project was completed it seems to have met with some resistance from his own aristocrat- ic circle. The expansion of the collection may in fact have eroded rather than consolidated his courtly audience. It may be that this interpretation makes too much of what is merely conventional literary rhetoric. Alfonso had often opposed the extended authority and particular interests of both feudal nobility and northern Spanish bishops.
Although this drastic legal outcome was avoided and Alfonso retained the crown for another two years, his pow- er was limited to little more than the county of Seville, and his diplomatic ef- forts to secure outside help were ignored by his fellow Christian kings. Sancho and his allies had in the meantime initiated a propaganda campaign against Alfonso that depicted him as impious, arrogant, and unworthy of the crown.
After Sancho had deposed him in all but name, Alfonso denounced and disinherited his son in a dramatic public ceremony. In this environment, both courtly and non-courtly circulation op- portunities for the CSM would have become narrower than ever—ironically, just when the repertory was booming and the most splendid manuscripts were being produced. He had tried, in word and deed, to present himself as a pious king. Yet his reputation suffered severely after he was succeeded, against his wishes, by his rebellious son.
The character assassination of Alfonso X, by means of the attribution to him of a spurious blasphemous remark, traversed the Pyrenees and ultimately found its way into an influential history of music; see Lipsius, Monita et exempla politica, ch. The romance is first recorded in a manuscript from the mid- fifteenth century: The scant evidence sug- gests that his request may have initially been put into effect but was halted within a few years.
One cannot separate the Work may have continued for a while, but priorities must have changed and eventually the completion of F was abandoned. His corpse was eventually interred in the same chapel as those of his parents; this chapel, completed before , was presided over by an image of Mary, the Virgen de los Reyes. Kirstin Kennedy remarked that he did not attempt to establish any new form of ritual, having been seemingly content to subsume the devotional objects associated with him into the wider practices of the Catholic liturgy.
He seems to have had a blind confidence in the transformative power of devotional song, the multiplying effect of his exemplary piety, and the compliance of the local clergy with his will. Wills were often violated in the thirteenth century, the more so when private funding for the fulfillment of specific duties, in the form of, for example, land revenues, was lacking. The trumpet and kettle band was at that time an inescapable symbol of heraldic and military might and a valuable addition to communicational and psychological warfare.
The CSM were not supported by an independent urban tradition akin to the Italian devotion- al confraternities that were encouraged by mendicant friars.
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Once the Learned King was defeated and disgraced and buried in Seville, his Marian cantigas were, for most purposes, buried with him. The Franciscan friars in Castile, however close to the king as attested by the presence of music theorist Juan Gil de Zamora at court and attuned to his Marian theology and devotional program, are not known to have had any role in the transmission of individual CSM. Homenagem a Luciana Stegagno Picchio, 3— Origen, progresos y estado actual de toda la literatura.
Don Antonio de Sancha, Ex Typographia Antonii de Rubeis, Imprensa Nacional—Casa da Moeda, Alfonso X el Sabio. Dictionnaire historique et critique. As poesias de Martin Soares. Studies in Honor of Edward H. American Institute of Musicology, Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press, Xunta de Galicia, Segunda parte da Monarchia Lusytana.
Reprinted as Monarquia Lusitana. Castro, Bernardo Monteiro de. As Cantigas de Santa Maria: Editora da Universidade Federal Fluminense, Nascimento and Cristina Almeida Ribeiro, 2: Chronicle of Alfonso X. University Press of Kentucky, Faculdade de Letras da Universidade do Porto, Centro de Estudios Galegos, Dept. Available online at http: The Liturgical Drama in Medieval Spain. Pontifical In- stitute of Mediaeval Studies, Real Acade- mia de la Historia, Homenagem da cultura portuguesa a Giuseppe Tavani, edited by Manuel G. O som de Martin Codax: The Musicological Fate of the Cantigas.
French versus Arabic Precedent. Philological and Musical Evidence. Fidalgo Francisco, Elvira, ed. Studi mediolatini e volgari 38 Uni- versidade de Santiago de Compostela, The Last Almohad Caliph? Afonso X e Galicia, e unha escolma de cantigas. Real Academia Gallega, Traballos dispersos — , 53— Traballos dispersos — , — The Question of Intended Audience.
Juan de la Cuesta, Frenk Alatorre, Margit, ed. Academia de la Llingua Asturiana, Linguistic, Sociolinguistic and Legal Aspects. Mercator Working Paper Alfonso X El Sabio.
Do you share the view of the PVV that EU citizens will interpret this as another foolish act by the European elite, who ought to set the very example of thrift and prudence and manage the natural materials available to us as correctly as possible? The European Commission is implementing a new visual identity. This has the simple aim to rationalise the current situation. Unlike all other EU institutions, the European Commission did not have, until now, a single logo or graphic charter. The new visual brand is therefore replacing hundreds of logos and graphic charters that were so far used by the different European Commission services and programmes.
This rationalisation effort will result in considerable savings as all services are ceasing the creation of new logos, visual identities and graphic charters and are incorporating the new logo and visual brand in any new communication activity or product. Introducing the new visual identity is a process that is being implemented making the most responsible use of existing resources.
To this end, the Commission will use all existing material, such as publications, leaflets, and other corporate materials e. La Commission peut-elle donner son avis sur la question? As a result, honey containing pollen from MON maize is now prohibited from sale and must be destroyed. This maize can be sown in spring. Thus in July the bees would be due to leave the regions where it grows, which is almost everywhere. The impossibility of coexistence has been demonstrated through the pollution of honey by means of a simple GMO test in Germany. The honey harvested contains traces of GMOs above the limit of 0.
Can the Commission give its opinion on this matter? Is it permissible to allow Monsanto to drive beekeepers out of production in this way? Should not beekeepers be informed of all GMO plantations so they can move their hives? Should not procedures be put in place? The EU legislative framework on GMOs aims, inter alia , to ensure that the cultivation of GM crops can coexist in a sustainable manner with other conventional farming activities.
The said locations must be notified to the competent authorities and made known to the public. Matters concerning financial compensation or liability for economic damage due to the unintended presence of GMOs in other products, e. Finally, the Commission reminds the Honourable Member that, to date, no validated detection methods exist for accurately recording the presence of GM pollen in honey.
The Joint Research Centre of the Commission is currently working on such detection methods. Rinder, Schafe und Ziegen: Der Ursprung des Virus ist unbekannt. Die derzeit vorliegenden Daten untermauern diese Aussage. Si sono nel frattempo manifestati nuovi casi in altri paesi?
- O Egregio Encuberto;!
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- Gonna Get There Someday;
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In caso di risposta affermativa, quali misure di sicurezza ha preso o propone di prendere, e in quali paesi, al fine di prevenire la diffusione del virus in altri allevamenti nei paesi interessati e in altri Stati membri? Quali misure ha adottato per garantire che casi sospetti non entrino nella catena alimentare del bestiame e generalmente nella catena alimentare? Quali misure sono state prese per contenere epidemia di questo tipo, nel caso si verificasse?
Bovini, ovini e caprini: Con un comunicato stampa diffuso all'inizio del mese di gennaio la Commissione europea ha messo in guardia gli Stati membri dal rischio di una possibile epizoozia tra i ruminanti che sarebbero in queste ore colpiti dal nuovo virus Schmallenberg. Scoperto nell'autunno scorso, trasmesso da zanzare e moscerini, il virus causa febbre, diminuzione consistente dei rendimenti di latte e anche malformazioni congenite tra i nuovi nati.
Quali sono le misure in corso di adozione per contenere la diffusione del virus? Risposta congiunta data da John Dalli a nome della Commissione. In base alle informazioni disponibili si ritiene che il rischio per la salute degli animali sia limitato. Inoltre, come affermato dall'ECDC, non vi sono prove del fatto che tale virus possa provocare malattie nell'uomo o costituire una minaccia alla sicurezza alimentare.
I dati attualmente disponibili confermano queste considerazioni. Schmallenbergvirus, volksgezondheid en voedselveiligheid. Het Schmallenbergvirus, dat door muggen en vliegen wordt overgedragen, is recentelijk bij herkauwers aangetroffen. Zijn er intussen ook in andere landen gevallen opgespoord?
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En welke veiligheidsmaatregelen heeft de Commissie genomen of is ze van plan te nemen om de verspreiding naar andere boerderijen in de getroffen landen of in andere lidstaten tegen te gaan? Wat is de oorsprong van het virus? Welke maatregelen heeft ze genomen om iets dergelijks onder controle te houden? Nieuw virus onder rundvee, schapen en geiten in Europa. In een persbericht van begin januari heeft de Commissie de lidstaten gewaarschuwd voor het risico van een mogelijke dierziekten onder herkauwers, die nu blijkbaar worden getroffen door het nieuwe Schmallenbergvirus.
Welke maatregelen worden er genomen om verspreiding van het virus in te perken? Welke maatregelen worden gepland voor herstel en ondersteuning van de veehouderij, die van vitaal belang is voor de economie van vele gebieden en regio's in Euro. De oorsprong van het virus is niet bekend. De beschikbare gegevens lijken erop te wijzen dat dit virus slechts een beperkt gevaar oplevert voor de diergezondheid.
Zoals het ECDC heeft verklaard, zijn er bovendien geen aanwijzingen dat het mensen ziek kan maken of gevaar kan opleveren voor de voedselveiligheid. Dit wordt gestaafd door de thans beschikbare gegevens. Daar het Schmallenbergvirus wordt overgedragen door vectorinsecten, zal verdere verspreiding ervan wellicht zeer moeilijk te vermijden zijn. The Schmallenberg virus, which is transmitted by mosquitoes and flies, has recently been detected in ruminants.
To date, it has been detected on 20 farms in Germany in cattle and sheep , on 52 farms in Holland in sheep and goats and 14 in Belgium in sheep. What measures has the Commission taken to deal with this disease on the farms where it has already been detected, and more generally to ensure close supervision and monitoring of the disease? Have new cases come to light in other countries in the meantime? If so, what safety measures has the Commission taken or does it propose to take, and in which countries, to prevent the virus spreading to other farms in the countries affected and to other Member States?
What measures has it taken to ensure that suspect occurrences do not affect livestock food chains and the food chain generally? What is the initial place of origin of the virus, to what extent is it possible for there to be direct infection between animals and for this virus also to be transmitted to humans?
What measures have been taken to contain such an outbreak should it occur? Discovered last autumn and transmitted by mosquitoes and gnats, the virus causes fever, a consistently decreased milk yield and even congenital deformities in neonates. The official data now available show that sheep, cattle and goats have been found to have been affected by the virus in Germany 21 , the Netherlands 55 and Belgium 17 , while the heads of the national veterinary services in France, Luxembourg and the United Kingdom have already alerted farmers, who are monitoring the situation.
What measures are being adopted to contain the spread of the virus? What measures are being planned to repair and support the livestock sector, which is vital for the economy of many territories and regions of Europe, such as the Veneto region? Is the Commission now in a position to give a detailed statement with regard to the existence or otherwise of potential harmful effects of the virus for human health?
This virus resembles other viruses of the Simbu serogroup found in ruminants in Africa, Asia, Australia and Middle East, that may cause mild disease in adults and congenital malformations in newborn animals or sub-clinical infections only. The origin of this virus is unknown. Information available suggests that the risk posed by this virus to animal health is limited. In addition, as stated by the ECDC there is no evidence that it can cause illness to humans or pose a threat to food safety.
Data currently available supports this statement. Given that the SBV is transmitted by means of insect vectors, prevention of its further spread may prove to be very difficult. The Commission has asked EFSA to provide assistance and advice on this issue, including on likely future scenarios as well as an overall assessment of the impact of this infection on animal health.
The Commission is also exploring ways to provide financial assistance to Member States to study this problem. Europol vurderer, at op mod en fjerdedel af solgte pesticider fra Baltikum er forfalskede. Hvilken viden ligger Kommissionen inde med omkring denne ulovlige import af ulovlige og falske pesticider til Europa? The phenomenon appears to be spreading rapidly and is affecting almost one-quarter of the total number of deliveries and sales in certain EU Member States.
Does the Commission have information concerning the Member States in which this problem is particularly acute? Can it give a breakdown by EU Member State of cases that have been confirmed? Major European ports are in danger of admitting ships from Asia with cargoes of counterfeit pesticides. According to Europol, the winter months of January and February are the peak period for the import of illegal herbicides, which are spread on fields where European food is grown, posing a danger to the environment, as well to farmers and consumers.
Europol estimates that up to a quarter of pesticides originating from the Baltic States are counterfeit. Europol also notes that due to inadequate coordination and harmonisation between the Member States, organised criminals can reap annual profits of up to five billion DKK. Is the Commission aware of this problem? If so, what steps is it considering taking? This illegal trade is being organised by sophisticated criminal networks that use legal businesses to camouflage their activities.
According to Europol, the profits from this illegal trade run to many billions per year. These illegal and fake pesticides pose a serious threat to the European environment, its consumers and farmers. It is therefore of the utmost importance to stop the illegal import of these pesticides into Europe. The Commission should therefore draw up an action plan on how to deal with this problem in the future. What does the Commission know about the illegal import of illegal and fake pesticides into Europe?
What steps has the Commission considered taking in the future to combat this illegal import? The Commission is concerned about the counterfeiting of plant protection products PPP and possible negative consequences they may have on human and environmental safety and on the economy. Several legal instruments exist to prevent the entry on the market and the distribution of counterfeited products, including PPP. It also provides for record keeping by users, producers and the distribution chain of PPP, for controls by Member States on compliance with the regulation and for a legal basis for the Commission to monitor these activities regularly.
Action taken on the basis of this regulation requires an application by the holder of the rights allegedly infringed. The Commission does not possess enough data to comment on the dimension of the problem in Member States or on their possible shortcomings in tackling it. Could the Commission clarify its position with regard to the definition of electromagnetic disturbances concerning radio signalling? Has the Commission made provision for amateur radio producers in formulating policy regarding this directive?
Has the Commission consulted organisations such as the International Telecommunication Union and the International Electrotechnical Committee with regard to the revision of this directive? Could the Commission clarify its position concerning the need to revise the current EMC directive? The Commission proposal for a revision of this directive COM final includes a minor change to the wording of this definition, resulting in a clearer formulation of the current definition without modifying its substance.
The proposal maintains the current regulatory policy for products covered by the directive, and in particular does not change provisions for radio equipment used by radio amateurs.
Autor:Cláudio Manuel da Costa
Following implementation of the revised directive, the Commission will consider whether further revision of the directive is necessary. European companies have great difficulty in acquiring funding from the capital markets, since they do not have adequate cash liquidity to carry out many investment projects or to offer sustained support for research and innovation activities,. In Portugal, several financial instruments supporting SMEs through venture capital and business angels are under implementation.
The manufacturer has developed a procedure for inspection and repair of the cracks which will be carried out during routine, scheduled maintenance. Accordingly, the sole liability for the answer remains with EASA. The Commission will send the Agency's reply to the Honourable Member as soon as received. In een recent interview plaatst een gerenommeerd Prof.
Bij BEN-woningen zou dit reboundeffect zich in omgekeerde zin kunnen manifesteren. Verder noemt de Prof. Want terwijl de terugverdieneffecten zich voo. Welke maatregelen neemt de Commissie, samen met de bevoegde overheden, om een antwoord te bieden op deze gevolgen? Overweegt de Commissie om op basis van deze kritiek, de doelstelling te herzien? Zo ja, op welke manier en wanneer? Zo neen, waarom niet? De Commissie is niet op de hoogte van het interview waarnaar het geachte Parlementslid verwijst. Zonder duidelijk bewijsmateriaal kan de Commissie de stellingen van de professor emeritus niet naar behoren beoordelen.
In a recent interview, a renowned emeritus professor from the Catholic University of Louvain cast serious doubt on this target. The professor warns, first of all, of three possible rebound effects of the NZE target:. The high price of such homes would lead to the construction of more detached houses in suburbs, which could be detrimental in terms of efficiency, energy performance and environmental impact.
The professor also describes this target as antisocial because it may make new homes unaffordable and a privilege of the lucky few. Because while cost is recovered mainly in the long term, the home still needs to be paid for at the start. It is also not certain whether the often very high investment costs of pushing down the energy consumption level can yield sufficient added value. The professor also describes the target as irrational. From what I hear in my region of Flanders, the supply is currently lagging behind the demand, there are also problems with material supply and because of that not all the commissions can be carried out in the field of social housing, for example.
And, finally, there are also many issues regarding health problems in passive houses, mainly triggered by malfunctioning ventilation systems. What measures is the Commission taking, together with the competent authorities, to counter these effects? Is the Commission considering the possibility of reviewing the target, based on this criticism? If so, how and when?
The Commission is not aware of the interview referred to by the Honourable Member and, without any significant substantiating evidence, it is not in a position to properly assess the claims made by the Emeritus Professor. Griekse militaire aankopen voor miljarden euro's. Losse wapenaankopen maken geen deel uit van de programmavoorwaarden. Are these arms purchases part of the conditions for the bailout, as widely reported? Do they amount to state aid from France and Germany to French and German manufacturers via the bailout mechanism and the Government of Greece?
Can the Commission comment on whether it feels that military spending is a suitable priority for the Greek Government, given the impact of the financial crisis on the Greek economy and society at large? Is the Commission prepared to verify the facts of the case and, if the report is accurate, take this up with the Greeks? Is the Commission prepared to turn off the money supply to Greece immediately and to encourage Greece to leave the euro area as soon as possible?
The Commission is not aware of any plans by the Greek authorities to acquire the abovementioned military equipment by the amounts indicated. Moreover, the amounts mentioned in the question are neither consistent with the information received during discussions of the medium-term spending plans between Greece and the Commission, IMF and ECB staff teams in the context of the Greek economic adjustment program.
No individual arms purchase is part of program conditionality. The construction of a metre-high dam is planned for irrigation and hydroelectric purposes by DEI on the River Aliakmonas in the Elafi area, Grevena region. The River Grevenitis will be almost entirely flooded from the city of Grevena to its confluence with the Aliakmonas. A preliminary environmental impact assessment has been completed and the full environmental impact assessment is at the completion stage. Has the Commission been informed by the Greek authorities about this project?
What measures does it intend to take so that these areas are not destroyed? What measures does it intend to take to avoid this potential destruction? The Commission has not been informed by the Greek authorities about this project. Flypassagerers rettigheder forordning EF nr. According to my information, it would appear that many EU citizens who have their claims upheld by their National Enforcement Body do not receive the compensation they are entitled to because the airline in question ignores the request by the National Enforcement Body. How will the Commission ensure that EU citizens can receive the compensation they are entitled to, without having to initiate long and costly legal proceedings against a particular airline?
There are no statistics on the number of complaints upheld by a National Enforcement Body NEB and rejected or ignored by the airline concerned. The Commission does not think that an airline should ignore a decision from a NEB. The Commission constantly verifies that the NEBs carry out their obligations properly and provides its views when appropriate.
Although the NEB can provide passengers with a well-founded opinion on the circumstances of their specific case, the NEB opinion on individual cases is not legally binding in the sense that it cannot be enforced without a court decision, where in any event it can be used as evidence. In the preparation of the review of the regulation, the Commission is looking to other means in order to ensure full respect of passenger rights.
Elektro-Autos — mangelnde Infrastruktur. Trotz ihres enormen Potenzials ist die Nachfrage nach Elektro-Autos noch gering. Hauptproblemfeld scheint nach wie vor die mangelnde Infrastruktur von Ladestationen zu sein. In diesem Zusammenhang laufen bereits Kooperationen mit Einkaufszentren, Restaurantketten, Parkgaragen etc.
Informationen zu Projekten sind auf folgender Website zu finden: In spite of their enormous potential, the demand for electric cars is still very low. It would seem that generous subsidies are still not enough to persuade end-users who are concerned about flexibility and suitability for daily use to switch to more environmentally-friendly electric cars.
The main problem still appears to be the lack of infrastructure, in the form of charging stations. Are figures available at EU level concerning the use of electric cars and the development of the necessary infrastructure, in the form of charging stations, in the Member States? Have best-practice comparisons been conducted at EU level and what measures are being planned for the future? Information on projects is available on the following website: A recent call of the European Green Car Initiative includes research on improving the convenience of the charging infrastructure by developing wireless systems.
These projects will most probably be launched by the end of Could the Commission state what action it is taking to promote water conservation in the Member States? The Commission is currently analysing the river basin management plans to see to which extent Member States have included, for instance, measures for water conservation. The result of the assessment will be published in the third implementation report, as part of the Blueprint to Safeguard Europe's Water Resources package, which will come forward at the end of The Blueprint will also cover possibilities for water efficiency in the Member States.
A key element of the Blueprint is the review of the Water Scarcity and Droughts policy. The Water Scarcity and Droughts policy lays down a water hierarchy under which water demand management should come first, and alternative supply options — such as desalination plants — should only be considered once the potential for water savings and efficiency has been exhausted.
Given the wide regional diversity of the problems with regard to water scarcity and drought, the water hierarchy is not a regulatory obligation, which allows for regional approaches to deal with these challenges in the most cost-effective way. Water stress in Argentina and Brazil is raising concern over the levels of world production and world stocks of maize, wheat and soya.
Countries such as Spain and Portugal, where bullfights are legal, are using EU funds for activities relating to bullfighting, such as the renovation of bullrings. There are also examples of this happening in Portugal. The plaque displayed to mark the inauguration of the renovated bullring has EU logos on it. This shows a lack of respect for true European cohesion and solidarity. Spending public funds on bullfighting festivals is the norm in countries in which bullfighting still takes place. However, some Member States are also using all kinds of EU funding to finance everything from rearing the livestock involved to repairing the equipment used for bullfighting.
It is highly problematic that a poster advertising an activity that is banned in most Member States should bear the corporate image of the European Union. Projects financed by both cohesion policy and rural development policy have to comply with applicable Union and national law. The related EU programmes are implemented under shared management. It is the responsibility of Member States to select the projects which may best contribute to the objectives of these policies, to ensure respect of the applicable rules and conditions and to keep a record of these projects.
The Commission's responsibility is to ensure compliance with EU legislation; it includes, in particular, audits focused on the management and control systems established by Member States. Both policies can support the preservation of cultural heritage for making places more attractive to invest in and can work as a driver for socioeconomic development. This is a subject Member States decide upon themselves.
In the case of the Galician village mentioned in one of the questions, the ERDF did not support the bullfighting festival. Can the Commission indicate how it plans to ensure that the recommendations and conclusions contained in its new proposals for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on safety of offshore oil and gas prospection, exploration and production activities are carried out?
Can the Commission indicate what penalties will be handed down to individuals or companies that do not comply with the new proposals regarding the regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on safety of offshore oil and gas prospection, exploration and production activities? The Commission's proposal referred to by the Honourable Member aims to establish a clear set of obligations on national administrations, regulators and the industry, covering different types of oil and gas activities undertaken offshore.
While the responsibility for safety of operations remains with the industry, the proposal aims to create very strong national regulators who will be properly competent and endowed with resources to fulfil their supervisory duties effectively. In addition, the provisions on transparency will promote diligence and compliance by putting both industry and supervisory bodies under closer public scrutiny. The best regulatory practice will be further promoted by the provisions on cross-border collaboration and by the establishment of a new forum for cooperation between national regulators, stakeholders and the Commission EU Offshore Authorities Group.
Moreover, in order to ensure compliance and to complement the supervisory duties of national authorities, Member States will be obliged to define penalties which should apply whenever transgressions are identified. The precise nature of the penalties will be left for Member States to determine, in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity. Contaminare cu OMG a orezului importat din India. The French authorities, who are legally obliged to follow up in tracing and removing any contaminated product from the market, carried out an investigation.
The results of this investigation were that remaining stocks of the contaminated basmati rice were removed from the market, and that the importing company instigated additional controls on subsequent imports, which were negative. The investigation also concluded that due to the mixing of lots at the point of import the exact origin of the contaminated lot could not be conclusively established. No further alerts have been issued by any Member State concerning lots of basmati rice contaminated with non-authorised GM rice originating from India.
The Romanian authorities take the view that, with regard to businesses in the agricultural sector, farm subsidies are taxable, being subject to corporate tax and value added tax. This is being disputed by the businesses concerned, which argue that this constitutes discrimination against them since they are being treated less favourably than owners who are natural persons and exempt from tax. As regards direct taxation, and in the absence of specific harmonisation measures Member States remain in principle free to design their tax systems as they see fit, provided only that they comply with the general rules set out in the Treaties.
The same would apply in regard to a system in which subsidies are subject to direct tax in regard to some taxpayers, but not in regard to others. The VAT treatment of subsidies depends on the type of subsidy. Given that the Honourable Member did not mention the type of subsidies concerned, the Commission is not in a position to provide a specific answer on this aspect. The regional education authority responsible for Borgomanero Novara, Italy has announced its intention of making access to central kindergartens dependent on citizenship as the main criterion, thereby excluding non-Italian children.
As a result, children of non-Italian EU citizens could be deprived of decent education in areas situated near their home. Can the Commission make known its official position regarding the conformity of such a decision with EU anti-discrimination law? In any case, the Commission will keep the Honourable Member informed of the outcome of its investigation. Less than one month from the signature of an agreement between the Israeli prison authorities and Palestinian inmates with a view to ending a hunger strike by the latter, the Israeli authorities have repeatedly infringed the agreement, leading to resumption of the action.
While the signature of the agreement between the inmates and the authorities was in effect a promising development, it has unfortunately remained a dead letter. It is too early to assess long term prospects for the agreement that ended the large scale hunger strike by Palestinian prisoners in Israeli prisons.
Some Progress has been made towards the full implementation of the agreement. The practice of solitary confinement has been radically curtailed and family visits from Gaza are now taking place. This strategy is intended to step up EU support for human rights in the region. Since it is clear that this strategy has not been effective in improving human rights in the countries concerned, what changes to the strategy are being considered by the Commission? The promotion of human rights and democratisation forms a key part of the EU's Central Asia Strategy. The EU is not limiting human rights discussions to these regular human rights dialogues.
The human rights situation in all five countries remains of serious concern. The EU is committed to further develop relations and support political, social and economic reforms in the region and human rights continue to form an important part of its agenda. Egypte is lid van de OIE: Doelstelling van deze organisatie is het wereldwijd bevorderen van dierenwelzijn. In Egypte is daar in de praktijk niets van te merken; in tegendeel zelfs. Op internet circuleert een filmpje, een compilatie van dierenbeulerij in Egypte: Veroordeelt de Commissie de betreffende dierenbeulerij die in het filmpje te zien is?
De Commissie heeft van een organisatie voor dierenwelzijn een film over het slachten van dieren. In practice, one would not guess this fact from seeing what happens in Egypt itself; rather the contrary, indeed. A film clip is circulating on the Internet which presents a compilation of instances of cruelty to animals in Egypt: A number of environmental organisations have called on Denmark and Sweden to impose a total ban on eel fishing.
What is the situation regarding eel stocks in general in Europe, and what regional and national differences are there in the state of eel stocks? In which EU Member States are eels still being caught — and how many are caught in each country? The stock of European eel, which is a single stock, is considered to be in very poor shape across the board. Based on the available scientific information, the trend in the eel stock prior to the implementation of the eel regulation and the CITES trade ban could have led to a collapse of the stock. The information available does allow the Commission to estimate the effect of a total fishing ban on eel in any Member State or areas.
A temporary total ban on eel fishing could have a positive effect on the stock, but this effect would be difficult to quantify based on current scientific knowledge. Verlassene Liegenschaften aufgrund der Krise. Auf Grund der anhaltenden Wirtschaftskrise und hohen Arbeitslosigkeit ist in den Vereinigten Staaten von Amerika eine hohe Abwanderung aus den Gemeinden festzustellen. Due to the continuing economic crisis and high unemployment, many people in the United States have moved out of the areas in which they used to live. A knock-on effect of this is that properties in which people can no longer afford to live are simply abandoned and the local authority has to look after them.
What would the procedures be for dealing with such an eventuality? Are there already plans to prevent the situation reaching this point? Population loss has been affecting many EU regions and is expected to continue for the next decades. In Greece, although emigration seems to have increased in the wake of the crisis, homes appear not to be abandoned, mainly thanks to close family ties; the Greek law grants some protection to home-owners with difficulties with loan repayment.
In Latvia and Lithuania, in spite of massive depopulation, the market has been able to reabsorb abandoned or unfinished homes. In Ireland, there is indeed a significant number of homes abandoned at various stages of completion; these are a burden to their local communities. The European cohesion policy as a whole supports the Member States and regions with investments in smart, sustainable and inclusive growth in their territory. It is planned to increase expenditure in the area of external relations from 5. How can this in fact be achieved, however, in the wake of the latest, dramatic, developments in the European Union Spain and Cyprus need ESM aid, Italy is teetering on the brink , especially in the light of such problems as the high youth unemployment rate in many EU Member States and the need for greater investment in the labour market in general?
The Commission proposal for the next Multiannual Financial Framework MFF means that overall annual spending over the period will be stabilised at the level of the current MFF in real terms. Europe must more than ever look outwards and engage in the world. Our security and prosperity depend on what happens beyond our borders, which is illustrated by the recent developments in the Southern Mediterranean.
The proposed increase is also necessary in order to respect the EU's formal undertaking to commit 0. What are the requisites for this post? Are those designated public servants, business representatives or experts? The Commission would like to draw the attention of the Honourable Member to the website of the SME Envoy Network which contains the names of all national Envoys and, were applicable, their official deputies: All SME Envoys are governmental representatives and occupy a senior position in their national administration.
Some Envoys are members of government Ministers and State Secretaries , others are senior level administrators. The Commission looks forward to continuing the good cooperation with the members of this network. This allows a very direct and lively exchange of views and increases the efficiency of the network. Dieselabgase werden nunmehr als Karzinogene der Gruppe 1 eingestuft. According to a study by the International Agency for Research on Cancer IARC initiated by the World Health Organisation, diesel fumes cause lung cancer and are even more carcinogenic than second-hand cigarette smoke.
There is also evidence linking diesel fumes to bladder cancer. Diesel fumes are now classified as group I carcinogens. Is the Commission going to reintroduce a proposal to tax CO 2 emissions? If so, when will the next initiative be taken? If not, can the Commission give a detailed account of its reasons for not taking such an initiative? The EU budget only covers health costs indirectly, through the sickness insurance of EU employees.
This includes costs that may be associated with lung cancer caused by diesel fumes. The Commission is also not aware of any study that would provide the exact statistics on lung cancer cases caused by diesel fumes alone, or any established methodology to calculate health costs of lung cancer caused by diesel fumes. This proposal is still under discussion in the Council. Welche Schritte gedenkt die Kommission angesichts dieser Ergebnisse zu unternehmen? In the review on the Thematic Strategy of Air Pollution further measures at national or possibly EU level to speed up the phasing out of old vehicles with high tailpipe emissions will be considered.
Presently, the Commission has a good overview of the occurrence in the Member States of the key pollutants and specifically for particulate matter, nitrogen oxides and ozone, whereas data are less complete for individual hydrocarbons and PAHs. An increasing number of EU citizens are being given long prison sentences in the United Arab Emirates for bounced cheques which were written as security for business transactions and were never intended to be cashed.
Those arrested can only be released upon repayment of their debts, which is difficult in custody, and suffer under harsh prison conditions in the meantime. This will supplement bilateral efforts being made by countries including EU Member States whose citizens are serving sentences in Emirati prisons because of these alleged offences. He has been held in an Israeli jail for three years under an administrative detention order despite never having been formally charged or put on trial.
The EU has a long standing concern about the extensive and disproportionate use by Israel of administrative detention. All detainees have the right to be informed of the reasons for their detention and be subject to a fair trial without undue delay. The increase in poverty and malnutrition in a number of Member States as a result of the economic crisis has meant that women are a particularly vulnerable group.
What health and nutrition strategies does the Commission intend to implement with a view to preventing undernourishment and malnutrition? The Commission has foreseen — in its proposal for the next multi-annual financial framework. Member States are responsible for the delivery of health and long-term care. The Commission does not have the competence to intervene on nutritional care in care facilities. As healthcare is delivered in the Member States, potential costs caused by malnutrition affect national budgets which are the responsibility of national authorities.
The strategy for Europe on Nutrition, Overweight and Obesity-related health issues. Welche negativen Auswirkungen hat es nach Auffassung der Kommission, wenn Kinder und Jugendliche Gewalt verherrlichenden interaktiven Medien ausgesetzt sind? Journalists, child advocacy organisations, parents and psychologists argue that the sexualisation of girls is an increasing and wide-ranging problem that is harmful to girls.
Has the Commission examined the broad issues raised by advertising aimed at children? The Commission is aware of reports indicating that hypersexualisation of children might have a negative psychological impact on the development of children; that hypersexualisation concerns both girls and boys; that it is a threat to gender equality as it accentuates gender stereotypes and that there are several potential negative impacts ranging from poor body image and eating disorders through to sexual violence and abuse.
Finally, in , the Daphne programme may co-finance specific practical projects that aim to bring about attitudinal and behavioural change in the context of sexualisation, in order to prevent violence against children, young people and women. The Connecting Europe Facility proposal envisages supporting the Safer Internet Centres, activities of which could include sexualisation-related awareness campaigns. Currently, policy on maternity leave varies widely across the European Union. Some governments have warned that the proposed week fully paid leave will further burden taxpayers.
Criticism has also come from business leaders who say increased maternity leave could endanger gender equality in the workplace. Discussions have continued, but the Council is not in a position to anticipate at this stage their outcome or duration. Since then, no further progress has been achieved and no specific discussion on possible gradual implementation of the revised Directive has taken place.
The EU is about to formulate a bilateral agreement with Cuba. The Parliament, as far as I understand, is following this process with great interest. Three priority sectors were identified for this Strategy Paper: Democracy and human rights were not included as top priorities in this strategy paper. There is a great need for clarification on how European aid to Cuba over the next budget period will be targeted at improving democracy and human rights. Why are efforts for democracy and human rights not among the top priorities in the current strategy paper?
What steps does the Commission aim to take in order to make democracy and human rights top priorities in future strategy papers and in the upcoming bilateral agreement negotiations? Democracy and human rights are at the centre of EU relations with all countries, including Cuba. These questions are and will continue to be addressed in the context of the EU-Cuba political dialogue and in contacts at all levels with the Cuban authorities both in Brussels and in Havana.
This was discussed with the EP on the occasion of the adoption of the Country Strategy Paper which addresses important priorities for Cuban citizens and supports the ongoing reform process in the agriculture sector. There has been no decision by the Council to launch negotiations for a bilateral agreement with Cuba. This work is ongoing. Has the Commission collated any data relating to child mental health at EU level subsequent to the publication of this background paper? Does the Commission consider that EU action has adequately addressed the issue of child mental health so far?
Statistics on specific mental and behavioural disorders for all age groups, including suicidal attempts, are addressed by a Eurostat Task Force for developing a regular data collection on diagnosis-specific morbidity statistics. Finally, children and young people are an important target group of the work under the European Pact for Mental Health and Well-being.
As everybody knows, Greece is facing a major economic crisis that has forced many small and medium-sized companies to shut down, resulting in increased unemployment. New measures to reduce smoking are to be implemented. Among them is a measure to make all packages identical, with large labels warning consumers of the health hazards of smoking.
However, according to fears expressed by the Greek Chamber of Commerce and Industry, such alterations will push down the price of cigarettes, leading to increased consumption. More seriously, it is feared that younger people will choose to smoke cheaper cigarettes of poorer quality. Attention is also drawn to the loss of significant tax revenue. With the aforementioned side effects in mind, does the Commission think that now is the appropriate time to put in place new measures on the smoking industry in Greece?
The economic, social and health impacts of different possible measures are being carefully analysed before any decision is taken on this matter. Is the Council aware of the timetable which the Spanish Government intends to follow in order to request this aid? Does it not consider it necessary to draw up a new calendar for its objectives? Does the Council see a possibility of reopening ESM negotiations to establish a line for the direct recapitalisation of financial bodies?
Does it see a way to eliminate this feature? These measures should lead to increased European control and regulation of the financial system. Or do they simply maintain the idea that each State is responsible for its own financial system? The recommendation establishes headline deficit targets of 6. The Council is currently analysing the details of the Commission proposal and has not yet established its position. Did the Commission regard this request as admissible? What was its final decision regarding funding for the centre?
Given that over three months have now elapsed from the launching of the programme, can the Commission say whether Greek SMEs have evinced any interest in loans under the new liquidity instrument? As agreement with financial intermediaries is under negotiation, information is not available at this stage on the level of interest expressed by SMEs for the new guarantee mechanism. Synergies between funds should be exploited further for other measures e. Women's Entrepreneurship targeting women aged Can the Commission say whether lobbies are governed by framework regulatory provisions in all EU Member States?
Does it consider that further initiatives by the Commission itself and the Member States in this area will be necessary? The Treaties do not confer any powers on the European Union concerning the regulation of lobbies by the Member States.
- Das Streichelinstitut: Roman (German Edition).
- Trainingsplanung mittels Mehrwiederholungskrafttest und Literaturrecherche zum Thema „Effekte des Krafttrainings bei arterieller Hypertonie“ (German Edition)?
- Reversed Forecast / Small Holdings?
- Simons Katze – Hoch die Tatzen!: Jubiläumsausgabe (German Edition).
- Search results?
The Commission therefore has no plans for any initiative to draw up rules for them. Concerning the interinstitutional agreement with Parliament at European level and joint initiatives, the Commission recalls that this agreement provides that the common register will be subject to review no later than two years following its entry into operation.
Should any measure be envisaged to improve the functioning of this register, it will have to be considered by both institutions within this process due to take place in To which main areas of the Greek project did the Commission queries principally relate and has Greece replied? Regarding the infrastructure projects proposed by Greece in the draft annual programme for External Borders Fund, the Commission requested additional clarification on financial aspects, timeframes and procurement procedures. So far, Greece has not submitted a revised programme addressing these requests. Convenzione sui lavoratori domestici.
La Convenzione sui lavoratori domestici stabilisce le norme sul lavoro ratificate dall'Organizzazione internazionale del lavoro nel giugno che tutelano i lavoratori domestici. Human Rights Watch ha pubblicato un articolo che plaude agli sforzi profusi finora e che auspica la ratifica della Convenzione da parte di un numero maggiore di paesi. L'Unione europea promuove standard occupazionali a livello internazionale facendo leva su vari strumenti, sia attraverso le sue politiche interne che con le sue relazioni estere.
Nearly a year later, Uruguay became the first country to ratify the convention, which cannot go into effect until it has been ratified by at least two countries. The Philippines are poised to be the second to ratify the proposal, and other countries including Belgium, Benin and Mauritius have promised to do likewise. According to information released by the International Labour Organisation, domestic workers make up the largest segment of the nearly Their plight can easily go undetected, as they may be hidden away in private residences, where some then become voiceless victims of physical and sexual abuse.
Human Rights Watch has published an article praising the efforts made thus far and encouraging more countries to ratify the convention. The European Union promotes international labour standards through various means, both in its internal policies and in its external relations. Ales Bialiatski, the Belarusian human rights activist and head of the Viasna Human Rights Centre, who is currently serving a four-and-a-half-year term in a maximum security prison, is being persecuted by the prison authorities, according to letters sent to Valentin Stefanovich. In the last six months he has received three reprimands — for irregular footwear, not having the correct stripes at the workplace, and sleeping at the workplace.
This is not the first instance of repression and persecution of political prisoners by prison authorities. Mikalai Statkevich and Mikalai Autukhovich were recently sentenced to harsh conditions, and Mikalai Dzyadok was placed in solitary confinement. Does the Commission have any information about the persecution of Belarusian political prisoners and does it intend to take any action in the matter? The Commission is aware of continued reports regarding the unacceptable conditions to which political prisoners are subjected in Belarus detention facilities.
The EU has repeatedly, both in bilateral contacts with Belarusian authorities and through public statements, highlighted its concerns about reports of inhumane and degrading treatment of prisoners in Belarus. The EU has reminded the Belarusian authorities of their obligations under international law to treat prisoners according to international human rights standards. The EU has no access to Belarusian prisons to monitor the conditions of imprisonment. The EU Delegation in Minsk has, on numerous occasions, requested to visit political prisoners at their place of detention, so far to no avail.
The EU Delegation in Minsk remains however in close contact with family members of the political prisoners. The proposal, which is currently at the public consultation stage, sets, among other things, the ecological volume for the Ebro basin. However, the ecological volumes now being proposed by the National Hydrological Plan PHN bear no resemblance to this report.
The current proposal violates the terms of the Water Framework Directive, by proposing clearly inadequate ecological volumes which prioritise the commercial use of water over the wellbeing of the river ecosystem, which in the case of the Ebro River is an extremely fragile one, threatened by decline and subsidence, coastal erosion and salinity.
Does the Commission consider that the new ecological volumes proposed within the framework of the hydrological plan for the Ebro basin meets the environmental indicators and criteria established by the Water Framework Directive? Does the Commission consider that the proposal by the CHE and ACA concerning management volumes, regenerating volumes for spate conditions and continuity volumes for drought conditions for the Segre River and Catalan tributaries of the Ebro meets the environmental indicators and criteria established by the Water Framework Directive?
Does the Commission consider it acceptable that the proposed new volumes are not based on the proposal by the CHE and ACA concerning management volumes, regenerating volumes for spate conditions and continuity volumes for drought conditions for the Segre River and Catalan tributaries of the Ebro? Does the Commission have access to the technical studies on which the proposed system of ecological volumes was based?
The Commission will assess the contents of Spain's RBMPs and any other supporting document available as soon as they are adopted and reported to the Commission. The Commission will then take all necessary measures on the basis of this assessment. While other countries are facing genuine economic difficulties which are also threatening the stability of the euro area, failure to use all available resources cannot be regarded as compatible with sound, effective and optimal management of public funding, which is now necessary in respect of to both European and national budgets.
Moreover, Greece must not neglect to implement the necessary policies if it is to effect a return to growth. In this connection, support for SMEs in the form of European co-funding and loans under the new European Guarantee Funds are essential to restore the dynamism and competitiveness of the Greek economy.
Aside from administrative shortcomings and economic uncertainty, can the Commission give the reasons for the under-utilisation of European funding in Greece? Does a similar situation exist in other European countries in absolute or relative terms? Does the state of advancement of the priority projects in Greece receiving European funding indicate that they are likely to be completed within the current financial framework?
Could the uncertainty affecting the political situation in the country slow down or compromise the projects? What measures are being envisaged by the Commission if the funding is not utilised by Greece? Nevertheless, the implementation of EU funds has been hindered by a heavy and complicated National Strategic Reference Framework NSRF management system weakening the initial strategic planning and leading to non-targeted investments and inefficient monitoring.
Delays have also been caused by the broader legal framework i.