91999E2093

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2093/99

by Alexander Radwan (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(19 November 1999)

Subject: Reduction of the areas eligible for assistance in West Germany including Berlin

In July 1999 the Commission decided to reduce the area designated by the Federal Government as eligible for assistance in the West German Länder and Berlin from 23,4 % to 17,6 % and to initiate proceedings against the Federal Republic of Germany to examine this assistance.

1. Will the Commission reconsider its position, on the basis of infringement of the principle of equality, and consider leaving the assisted area based on a 23,4 % ceiling?

2. If the Commission considers that a return to the 23,4 % ceiling is impossible, could it envisage a joint agreement with the Federal Republic of Germany on the approved area for assistance which is appreciably higher than 17,6 %?

3. How does the Commission view the proposal that the previous transitional solution should be retained, whereby consideration could be given to applications for assistance made before a district was excluded from the areas eligible for assistance?

Answer given by Mr Monti on behalf of the Commission

(10 January 2000)

The first two questions are at the moment being closely scrutinised as part of state aid investigation No C 47/99. All the grounds that were taken into consideration by the Commission in initiating proceedings are given in the relevant decision, which was published in the Official Journal(1).

With a view to achieving the objective of cohesion and in the light of the forthcoming enlargement, the Commission has decided to reduce regional aid coverage in the Community to 42,7 %. For Germany, this means a reduction to 34,9 %.

The relative reduction in coverage in Germany is smaller than that for the Community as a whole.

The figure of 34,9 % applies both to the areas covered by Article 87(3)(a) (ex-Article 92) of the EC Treaty and to those covered by Article 87(3)(c). On the basis of socio-economic data, a population coverage of 17,3 % was set for Article 87(3)(a) areas (five new Länder) and one of 17,6 % for Article 87(3)(c) areas (assisted areas in western Germany and Berlin).

This figure was calculated using an objective method that was applied equally to all Member States and is described in Annex III to the guidelines on national regional aid(2). The Commission also took account of several objectives of the Treaty and, in the interests of the general good, weighed them against one another. This did not suggest any unfair discrimination between the different situations in the individual Member States.

The third question likewise relates to a ongoing notification procedure (No 209/99). The Commission is unable at the moment to comment on the transitional arrangements for the areas to be excluded from the joint Federal Government/Länder scheme in question since the Commission is awaiting the reaction of the German Government.

(1) OJ C 340, 27.11.1999.

(2) OJ C 74, 10.3.1998.