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European Commission Spokesman's Briefing for 96-06-03
From: News Distribution Manager <dist@hri.org>
MIDDAY EXPRESS
News from the Spokesman's midday briefing
Nouvelles du rendez-vous de midi du Porte-Paroleb
03 / 06 / 1996
CONTENTS / CONTENU
[01] Hans van den Broek protests against new press restrictions in the Former
Republic of Yugoslavia
[02] European regional planning seminar on central regions and capital cities to
be held in Maastricht, 4 June 1996
[03] Yves-Thibault de Silguy: "La Banque Européenne d'Investissement est un
instrument essentiel pour l'Europe"
[04] Ritt Bjerregaard on priorities for EU water policy
[05] Martin Bangemann: the consumer will be the king of the Information Society
[01] Hans van den Broek protests against new press restrictions in the Former
Republic of Yugoslavia
Hans van den Broek, Commissioner in charge i.a. of relations with ex-Yugoslavia,
strongly protested last Friday against the takeover the day before by the FRY
authorities of Radio Smederevo. This radio station broadcasting in the area of
Smederevo was forcibly taken over by the local authorities. This radio station,
the only independent medium in Smederevo, existed since 1993 and, as a
member of the Association of Independent Electronic Media (ANEM) has been
a beneficiary of financial support by the European Commission. Obviously, such
support cannot be continued with regard to a station which is under control of the
authorities.
[02] European regional planning seminar on central regions and capital cities to
be held in Maastricht, 4 June 1996
A European regional planning seminar will be held in Maastricht on the 4th of
June 1996. It is one of a series of six being held around Europe throughout
1996, as a joint initiative of DG XVI of the European Commission (Regional Policy
and Cohesion) and the Committee of the Regions. It is to be hosted by the
Province of Limburg and seeks to consider the main spatial planning themes
across the "Central Regions and around Capital Cities", the traditional urban and
economic heartland of Europe.
[03] Yves-Thibault de Silguy: "La Banque Européenne d'Investissement est un
instrument essentiel pour l'Europe"
Lors de l'Assemblée Générale de la BEI à Luxembourg, Yves-Thibault de Silguy,
Commissaire responsable des Affaires économiques et monétaires, a notamment
souligné les excellents résultats de la Banque en 1995 en dépit du ralentissement
de la conjoncture. "Maintenant (...) il importe de mettre l'accent davantage sur
la valeur ajoutée de son intervention". Il faudra également examiner si, dans ce
cadre, une utilisation plus optimale pourrait être trouvée pour les importants
excédents de gestion enregistrés chaque année. 'L'objectif premier est le soutien
au développement régional. Un autre objectif majeur est la réalisation des
réseaux transeuropéens", a ajouté M. de Silguy.
[04] Ritt Bjerregaard on priorities for EU water policy
Speaking to environmental NGO's in Copenhagen today, Environment
Commissioner Ritt Bjerregaard, outlined the priorities for EU environmental policy.
"Water policy is, without question, one of the most important areas of EU
environment policy", Mrs Bjerregaard said. "A proper water policy requires more
than legislation which discourages or prohibits anti-social, dangerous or polluting
behaviour. We will continue to require some elements of the "command and
control" type of action although the legislation of the past is not necessarily the
ideal form of legislation for the future. Secondly our policies must be based on
clear and accurate information on the status of the environment, on the impact
of particular activities and substances and on the objectives and the kind of
environment which we are seeking to achieve. Thirdly it is essential to ensure
consultation and participation of the general public. That is the reason why I
stress that provisions on public information and consultation must be included in
the new water resource framework directive", Ritt Bjerregaard said.
[05] Martin Bangemann: the consumer will be the king of the Information Society
In his opening speech at the 10th World Congress on "Technology and Services
in the Information Society" in Bilbao, Spain, Industrial Affairs Commissioner
Martin Bangemann said: "The trend towards a service-based economy will
continue. The consumer will be king in the Information Society. The European
way towards the Information Society is based on a profound societal dialogue, not
only with industry but also within society." In order to be competitive worldwide,
Europe must concentrate on "added value", Mr Bangemann said. "We are
moving towards a knowledge-based economy and a knowledge-based society.
Education and training will be crucial in this transition. The main areas of growth
are in hardware, software and services. The service sector is the key to creating
new employment, and not just in the IT and telecommunications sectors. The
decisive factor is where new technology can best be used to improve customer
service and satisfaction. Examples of this are in medical services, in
entertainment and in the retail sector."
MIDDAY EXPRESS
From EUROPA, the European Commission Server at http://www.cec.lu/
© ECSC - EC - EAEC, Brussels-Luxembourg, 1995, 1996
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