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European Commission Spokesman's Briefing for 02-07-02

Midday Express: News from the EU Commission Spokesman's Briefings Directory - Previous Article - Next Article

From: EUROPA, the European Commission Server at <http://europa.eu.int>


CONTENTS / CONTENU

  • [01] Commission clears purchase by Australian firm Amcor of the plastic packaging (PET) and closure businesses of Schmalbach-Lubeca
  • [02] Commission clears BP acquisition of sole control of Germany's Veba Oel
  • [03] La Commission autorise la prise de participation d'EPC dans SAARMontan
  • [04] La Commission autorise la prise de la contrôle de la Coface par le groupe Natexis Banques Populaires
  • [05] Commission clears the take-over of Andersen UK's business by Deloitte & Touche
  • [06] Mai 2002 : le chômage dans la zone euro stable à 8,3% ; l'UE15 en hausse à 7,6%
  • [07] June 2002 : Economic sentiment indicator remains almost unchanged in the EU
  • [08] June 2002 : the Business Climate Indicator for the euro area fell in June
  • [09] Commission acts against Portugal, Spain, Italy, Sweden, Belgium, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, France and Greece for not complying with water quality
  • [10] Combating the brain drain : Commission devotes €1.580 billion to human resources in science
  • [11] 15 indicateurs de qualité des résultats en matière d'éducation et de formation tout au long de la vie en Europe
  • [12] BSE : Scientists publish geographical risk assessments (GBR) for seven countries - Bulgaria, Croatia, Iceland, Latvia, San Marino, Turkey and Vanuatu
  • [13] Rencontre entre Viviane Reding et Danis Tanovic, réalisateur de "No man's land", Prix Media 2002 de l'UE le 10 juillet à l'UGC De Brouckère
  • [14] Autre matériel diffusé Midday Express 02/07/2002 TXT: FR ENPDF:DOC:Midday Express 02/07/2002

  • [01] Commission clears purchase by Australian firm Amcor of the plastic packaging (PET) and closure businesses of Schmalbach-Lubeca

    The European Commission has approved the acquisition by the Australian company Amcor Limited of the world-wide plastic packaging (PET) and closure businesses of the German company Schmalbach-Lubeca AG. Amcor will continue to face competitive constraint from its rivals.

    [02] Commission clears BP acquisition of sole control of Germany's Veba Oel

    The European Commission has authorised BP Plc's proposed acquisition of the whole of German oil and petrochemicals producer Veba Oel, currently a joint venture between BP and E.ON. The Commission concluded that the change from joint to sole control does not give rise to competition concerns.

    [03] La Commission autorise la prise de participation d'EPC dans SAARMontan

    La Commission européenne a autorisé l'acquisition par l'entreprise française Société Anonyme d'Explosifs et de Produits Chimiques (EPC) d'une participation de 50% dans l'entreprise allemande de forage et de minage SAARMontan, qui est actuellement une filiale à cent pour cent de Deutsche Montan Technologie GmbH (DMT). A l'issue de l'opération, SAARMontan sera contrôlée conjointement par EPC et DMT. L'opération envisagée ne soulève de problèmes de concurrence sur aucun des marchés où les parties exercent leurs activités.

    [04] La Commission autorise la prise de la contrôle de la Coface par le groupe Natexis Banques Populaires

    La Commission européenne a autorisé le groupe bancaire Natexis Banques Populaires à prendre le contrôle de l'assureur-crédit Coface, tous deux français. Le rachat ne présente pas de problèmes de concurrence puisque Natexis devra faire face à des rivaux sérieux sur les marchés concernés.

    [05] Commission clears the take-over of Andersen UK's business by Deloitte & Touche

    The European Commission has granted regulatory clearance to the proposed acquisition of most of Arthur Andersen UK's business by UK-based Deloitte & Touche, which is part of the global audit and accounting firm Deloitte Touche Tohumatsu. The Commission examined the merger's impact particularly for large companies quoted in the London Stock Exchange, which tend to chose one of the Big Five players to audit their accounts. It concluded that the disappearance of Andersen UK was inevitable in view of the serious problems facing Andersen US, which has been convicted of obstruction of justice in a US probe into the collapse of energy trader Enron Corp. A number of UK customers also defended that the acquisition was preferable to the disorderly disappearance of the UK Andersen partnership.

    [06] Mai 2002 : le chômage dans la zone euro stable à 8,3% ; l'UE15 en hausse à 7,6%

    Le taux de chômage de la zone euro corrigé des variations saisonnières, était de 8,3% en mai 2002, inchangé par rapport à avril, selon les données publiées aujourd'hui par Eurostat. Il était de 8,0% en mai 2001. Le taux de chômage de l'UE15 était de 7,6% en mai comparé à 7,5% en avril. Il s'élevait à 7,3% en mai 2001. En mai 2002, les taux les plus bas ont été enregistrés au Luxembourg (2,3%), aux Pays-Bas (2,6% en avril), en Autriche (4,1%), au Danemark (4,2%), au Portugal (4,3%) et en Irlande (4,4%). Le taux de chômage de l'Espagne (11,4%) est resté le plus élevé de l'UE.

    [07] June 2002 : Economic sentiment indicator remains almost unchanged in the EU

    The economic sentiment indicator for the EU remained largely unchanged in June with a value of 100.0, which compares with 100.1 in May. In the euro area, the economic sentiment indicator fell by 0.3 percentage points, from 99.9 in May to 99.6 in June. The economic sentiment indicator rose in Spain, Finland, Sweden (0.3 percentage points), the United Kingdom (0.2), Greece and Austria (0.1) while it remained unchanged in Germany. The indicator decreased in Ireland (1.0), Italy (0.7), and the Netherlands (0.6), and to a much lesser extent in France, Portugal (0.3), Belgium and Denmark (0.1). Full document available on : http://europa.eu.int/comm/economy_finance/indicators/businessandconsumersurveys_en.htm

    [08] June 2002 : the Business Climate Indicator for the euro area fell in June

    The Business Climate Indicator (BCI) for the euro area fell by 0.2 percentage points between May and June, reaching a value of -0.43 (-0.20 in May). This is the second dip recorded by the BCI within a 7-month period, where the general trend is positive. This decrease was mainly driven by the worsening in the assessment of production trends in the recent past, and the increase in stocks of finished products. Order books, including export order books, fell slightly and production expectations remained unchanged. Full document available at 12.00 on : http://europa.eu.int/comm/economy_finance/indicators/businessclimate_en.htm

    [09] Commission acts against Portugal, Spain, Italy, Sweden, Belgium, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, France and Greece for not complying with water quality

    The European Commission has decided to take further legal action against Portugal, Spain, Italy, Sweden, Belgium, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, France and Greece for non-compliance with EU laws on water quality legislation. The laws in question are the Directives governing bathing water, drinking water, urban wastewater, nitrates, and discharges of dangerous substances. The Bathing Water and Drinking Water Directives set quality standards for water used for bathing and drinking, respectively, with the objective of safeguarding the public. Breaches can endanger human health. The Urban Waste Water Directive sets requirements for treating waste water from major cities and towns, so helping to avoid breaches of standards such as those of the Bathing Water Directive. The Nitrates Directive aims to complement such treatment by reducing pollution from agriculture. The Directive on Dangerous Substances requires controls on polluting discharges from industries and other activities. Non-compliance with these laws often manifests itself in polluted rivers, lakes and coastal waters.

    [10] Combating the brain drain : Commission devotes €1.580 billion to human resources in science

    The European Commission will allocate €1.580 billion to help combat the brain drain of scientists from the EU to other parts of the world a rise of almost 50% from the previous research programme. This amount, representing almost 10% of the available budget, corresponds to an increase of €1,1 billion. The European brain drain is difficult to measure, but it is a reality. Many of the best European researchers seem keen to move elsewhere, particularly to the United States. This loss of human and intellectual wealth robs European science of valuable resources. Higher salaries and better facilities outside the EU encourage researchers to extend their stay abroad beyond their normal training period, and, consequently, to carry out the most profitable part of their work in other parts of the world. Within its Sixth Research Framework Programme (FP6), the Commission is boosting the share of funds available for human resources by €1,1billion. This is the strongest single increase among all research priorities from the Fifth to the Sixth FP. "This investment will be implemented inter alia through the expansion of return and reintegration financial schemes for researchers", said Research Commissioner Philippe Busquin. "We will also focus on the creation of a European network of customised assistance centres for researchers ; on the improvement of Internet-based information services ; and on the transfer of knowledge towards the less developed regions of the Union and the Candidate Countries". Other Commission initiatives to combat the brain drain deal with the removal of legal and administrative obstacles to the mobility of researchers (as regards for instance entry conditions, social security, recognition of diplomas, etc.), and the coordination of national policies in the research area.

    [11] 15 indicateurs de qualité des résultats en matière d'éducation et de formation tout au long de la vie en Europe

    Le premier rapport européen consacré aux indicateurs de qualité de l'éducation et de la formation tout au long de la vie est désormais disponible. Il examine la qualité de l'éducation et de la formation tout au long de la vie dans 35 pays d'Europe, dans quatre domaines essentiels : qualifications, compétences et attitudes, accès et participation, ressources pour l'éducation et la formation tout au long de la vie, et stratégies et systèmes. Le rapport montre que l'Europe, dans l'ensemble, n'obtient pas les résultats adéquats dans le domaine des qualifications et compétences.

    [12] BSE : Scientists publish geographical risk assessments (GBR) for seven countries - Bulgaria, Croatia, Iceland, Latvia, San Marino, Turkey and Vanuatu

    GBR is a qualitative indicator of the likelihood of the presence of one or more cattle being infected with BSE. Where its presence is confirmed GBR gives an indication of the level of infection. The evaluation focuses on the risk for animals to incubate the disease. There are four categories : I Highly likely ; II Unlikely but not excluded ; III Likely but not confirmed or confirmed, at a lower level ; IV Confirmed at a higher level. The Scientific Steering Committee which advises the European Commission on BSE related issues has concluded that it is highly unlikely that cattle infected with the BSE agent are present in the domestic herds in Iceland and Vanuatu (GBR level I). They concluded that it is likely that BSE is present in the cattle herds of Bulgaria, Croatia, Latvia, San Marino and Turkey, although this is not yet confirmed (GBR level III). The full texts of the opinions are available at : http://europa.eu.int/comm/food/fs/sc/ssc/outcome_en.html#reports

    [13] Rencontre entre Viviane Reding et Danis Tanovic, réalisateur de "No man's land", Prix Media 2002 de l'UE le 10 juillet à l'UGC De Brouckère

    Viviane Reding, membre de la Commission européenne en charge de la Culture et de l'Audiovisuel, vous invite à assister à la projection privée du film auquel elle a décerné le Prix Media 2002 de l'Union européenne à Cannes en mai dernier : "No man's land" de Danis Tanovic, en présence du réalisateur. "No man's land", qui est une co-production entre des sociétés française, italienne, belge, britannique et slovène, a été distribué dans sept pays en dehors de son pays d'origine avec le soutien du programme Media et il a été vu par plus de 500.000 spectateurs en Europe. Créé en l'an 2000, le Prix Media est attribué au premier ou deuxième long métrage d'un jeune réalisateur qui a été distribué dans le plus grand nombre de territoires en dehors de son pays d'origine et qui a reçu le soutien du programme Media pour sa distribution. Le Prix Media est d'une valeur de 25.000 €, auxquels s'ajoute une oeuvre d'art verrier. Les deux premières éditions du Prix Media étaient allées à Damien O'Donnell pour "East is East" (2000) et à Frédéric Fonteyne pour "Une liaison pornographique" (2001). Les invitations pour la projection privée de "No man's land", qui aura lieu le 10 juillet à 19h30, sont disponibles en nombre limité auprès du porte-parole.

    [14] Autre matériel diffusé

    Discours de M. Prodi : "Le sommet de Séville : élargissement, immigration et réforme" au PE (Strasbourg)

    From EUROPA, the European Commission Server at http://europa.eu.int/
    © ECSC - EC - EAEC, Brussels-Luxembourg, 1995, 1996


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