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European Commission Spokesman's Briefing for 04-06-01Midday Express: News from the EU Commission Spokesman's Briefings Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: EUROPA, the European Commission Server at <http://europa.eu.int>CONTENTS / CONTENU
MIDDAY EXPRESSNews from the Press and Communication Directorate General's midday briefingNouvelles du rendez-vous de midi de la Direction Général Presse etbCommunication01/06/04[01] Bathing Water Report 2003 : continued quality improvements in the EU15Just ahead of the summer holiday season, the European Commission today presented the annual report on the quality of Europe's bathing waters. Overall, the picture is good : bathing water quality in the EU15 continues to improve. The annual report is based on the requirements of the 1976 Bathing Water Directive and issued every year before the summer holiday season to allow citizens to check the quality of the bathing water in their favourite holiday destinations. In 2003, 98.6% of the EU coastal bathing waters and 92.3% of all fresh waters complied with the Directive. This confirms the positive trends of recent years. Many Member States are now very close to full compliance with the quality standards and the monitoring requirements under the Directive. However, one worrying aspect remains : in some Member States, there is a tendency to ban bathing or declassify bathing sites when there are problems, rather than removing the source of pollution.[02] Financial Services Action Plan : good progress but real impact depends on good implementationThe completion on schedule of nearly all (93%) of the legislative measures in the Financial Services Action Plan (FSAP) has been a major success for the EU according to the European Commission's latest Progress Report on the FSAP, which will be presented to the 2 June Council of Economics and Finance Ministers. This progress has been made possible by a clearly defined objective and timetable, a carefully planned strategy, high quality resources, systematic monitoring, and the goodwill of Member States, the European Parliament and market participants. The FSAP is already a powerful vector for change. However, it is much too early to evaluate whether the FSAP has achieved its stated objectives : that will depend on the correct and timely implementation and enforcement of all FSAP measures. Future priorities, in addition to implementing successfully what has already been agreed, include the rapid adoption by the Parliament and Council of the 8th Company Law Directive on Statutory Audit and of forthcoming Commission proposals for a Third Money Laundering Directive and for a Directive on Capital Adequacy.[03] Commission indicator forecasts euro area quarterly GDP growth of 0.3% to 0.7% for the 2nd and 0.4% to 0.8% for the 3rd quarter of 2004The indicator-based model for quarterly GDP growth for the euro area, developed by the European Commission's Directorate General for Economic and Financial Affairs, forecasts a range of 0.3% to 0.7% for GDP growth in the second quarter of 2004. Given some improvement in the underlying data, the range for the third quarter is higher at 0.4-0.8%. Both forecasts are unchanged compared to the previous release.[04] Premières estimations pour le premier trimestre 2004 : le PIB de la zone euro et celui de l’UE25 en hausse de 0,6% ; +1,3% et +1,6% respectivement par rapport au premier trimestre 2003Au cours du premier trimestre 2004, le PIB de la zone euro et celui de l'UE25 ont augmenté de 0,6% par rapport au trimestre précédent, selon les premières estimations publiées aujourd'hui par Eurostat. Au cours du quatrième trimestre 2003, les taux avaient été de +0,4% dans la zone euro et de +0,5% dans l'UE25. En comparaison avec le premier trimestre 2003, le PIB de la zone euro a enregistré une croissance de 1,3% et celui de l'UE25 de 1,6%, contre respectivement +0,7% et +1,1% au trimestre précédent.[05] Commission clears merger between Group 4 Falck and Securicor subject to conditionsThe European Commission has granted regulatory clearance to the proposed merger between Securicor and Group 4 Falck after the companies successfully resolved concerns about reduced competition in some security service markets in Luxembourg, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. The Anglo- Danish merger will create the second largest security company in the world after Securitas of Sweden.[06] Commission clears CRH stake in Secil, a Portuguese building materials firmThe European Commission has granted clearance under the Merger Regulation to the acquisition of joint control of the Portuguese building materials firm Companhia Geral de Cal e Cimento, S.A. (Secil) by CRH plc, an Irish company active in the same field, and Sociedade de Investimento e Gestao, SGPS S.A. (SEMAPA). Portuguese investment firm SEMAPA previously held sole control in Secil. (The operation, notified on 26 April 2004, was examined under the simplified merger review procedure)[07] EU and Egypt strengthen their relationsThe Association Agreement between the European Union and the Arab Republic of Egypt enters into force today, opening a new era in their relationship. Following ratification by the two parties, all aspects of the Agreement – political, economic, and social - are now operational. The trade and trade related provisions of the Agreement entered into force provisionally on 1 January 2004. The Agreement will be instrumental in bringing Egyptian law more closely in line with EU legislation and promoting economic reform. It will also upgrade the current political dialogue with the objective of developing shared political values. This is the sixth Association Agreement to enter into force in the Mediterranean region, bringing one step closer the region-wide Free Trade Area which the Barcelona Process aims to create by 2010.[08] Sri Lanka co-chairs meetingToday ChrisPatten, European Commissioner for External Relations, will preside at a meeting of the Co-chairs of the Tokyo Conference on Reconstruction and Development of Sri Lanka (the United States, Japan, Norway and the European Union). They will review the status of the Sri Lankan Peace Process, review assistance efforts and assess how best the international community can support Sri Lanka on the road from the Ceasefire Agreement to a permanent peace settlement. They will voice their support the resumption of the Norwegian facilitated Peace Talks between the Government of Sri Lanka and Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) which have been suspended for over a year.[09] International Agreement on Passenger Name Records (PNR) enters into forceAn International Agreement was signed on 28 May between the European Community and the United States that makes possible the transfer of air passenger data to the US, under certain conditions. It enters into force with immediate effect. The agreement was signed in Washington DC by US Secretary for Homeland Security Tom Ridge, Ambassador Noel Fahey of Ireland representing the EU Presidency, and Ambassador Guenter Burghardt, Head of the European Commission Delegation in Washington. This agreement goes hand- in-hand with the Decision adopted two weeks ago by the European Commission, establishing the adequacy of US Bureau of Customs and Border Protection's personal data protection.[10] Agreement reached on coke with ChinaThe European Commission announced on 28 May, after further intensive but constructive discussions with the Chinese government, that agreement had been reached on the export of coke from China to the EU for 2004. The agreement reached will ensure that quantities of coke supplied to EU industry in 2004 will be no less than in 2003 (4.5 million tonnes) and that export licences will be delivered without cost or delay (so prices of the coke should be fair, transparent and non-discriminatory vis a vis Chinese domestic industry). Both sides agreed to monitor developments and consult closely, and in particular will to try to solve jointly in the forthcoming weeks the questions relating to licensing post-2004. Trade Commissioner Pascal Lamy said : "We are obviously very pleased that agreement has been confirmed on 2004 coke exports from China, which are obviously of vital importance to EU steel industry. It shows the growing maturity and strength of the EU-China trade relationship. I hope we can tie up the remaining aspects quickly and finally put this one to bed."[11] Autre matériel diffuséBathing Water Report 2003 - Overview of the results for individual Member StatesCarte européenne d'assurance-maladie - foire aux questions Note sur la préparation du Conseil Ecofin Speech by Janez Potočnik : "Enlargement and the European Neighbourhood Policy" at the plenary assembly of Eurochambres (28/05) Discours de M. Jacques Barrot : "Compétitivité et territoires : les clés d'une stratégie industrielle réussie en Europe" la World Investment Conference (28/05, La Baule) Speech by Pascal Lamy : "The role of Europe in today's globalised world" at the 7th Conference on Globalisation – Felix Meritis Connecting Cultures (31/05, Amsterdam) From EUROPA, the European Commission Server at http://europa.eu.int/ |
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