WRITTEN QUESTION E-3045/02

by Paulo Casaca (PSE) to the Commission

(24 October 2002)

Subject: Hospital privatisation in Portugal

The newspaper Diário Económico reported on 15 October 2002 that Portugal's draft budget for 2003 includes a heading to the sum of EUR 662,1 million for the privatisation of public hospitals.

Reports publicly circulating suggest that the Commission has refused to endorse the inclusion in the budget of capital transfers to public transport enterprises, on the grounds that such transfers are intended to cover social costs and are not profit-seeking investments.

In these circumstances, can the Commission state whether it endorsed the inclusion in the budget as financial assets of the transfers made under the heading of hospital privatisation in 2002, and whether it will do the same for 2003?

If the Commission endorses those measures, will it justify its position on the grounds of the profitability in business terms of the Portuguese public hospitals, by contrast with the presumed unprofitability of the publicly funded transport enterprises?

Answer given by Mr Solbes Mira on behalf of the Commission

(21 November 2002)

Last Spring 2002, Eurostat analysed the capital injections into public transport enterprises in Portugal and has concluded to treat these payments as capital transfers instead of financial transactions, because these payments were made to cover repetitive losses of these enterprises.

However, Eurostat does not interfere in the preparation of the national budgets. It examines actual deficit and debt data. The payments foreseen for 2002 for the new model for management of hospitals will be analysed in the March 2003 notification of debt and deficit of Portugal.

Eurostat will also examine the appropriate sectoral classification of hospitals according to the European System of national and regional accounts (ESA 95) rules.