COMMUNITY LOANS POLICY

by Altiero Spinelli

SUMMARY: The European Parliament considers the Community loans policy for the second time on the basis of a report submitted by Spinelli on behalf of the Committee on Budgets. At issue on this occasion is the application of the 1978 decision relating to the creation of a new financial instrunent for the Community (the so called "Ortoli facilities"). "Speeches in European Parliament, 1976-1986", Pier Virgilio Dastoli Editor. (EP, 24 April 1979)

Mr President, I wish to comment briefly on the Commission's proposal to establish a New Community Instrument (NCI) to contract loans. We already discussed the merits of this proposal when adopting the initial 1978 decision which empowered the Commission to contract loans for the purpose of promoting investment within the Community. The present proposal is merely for a decision to implement that initial decision.

In the first place, I hope that the practice begun here some time ago of presenting financial documents without an adequate explanatory statement even without any explanatory statement - will cease. We should prefer it if in cases of this kind the Commission could indicate to us more clearly the type of projects it intends to promote in the form of general guidelines.

With the initial loan the Commission is proposing to finance essentially two categories of investment: firstly, infrastructures - notably in connection with transport, telecommunications, agricultural improvements, hydraulic constructions and environmental protection - and, secondly, in the energy sector, with a view to ensuring the independence, availability and diversification of the Community's energy supplies, notably through the development, exploitation, use, transport and storage of energy resources and energy conservation measures.

To be eligible for loans, projects must conform to the guidelines laid down by the Council, in other words they must be consistent with the relevant national and Community rules, increase the economic potential of the M ember Stat es concerned and contribute to reducing regional disparities and improving the employment situation.

Being very general, these guidelines allow the Commission the necessary margin for manoeuvre, as Parliament recommended. In fact, we did not want the Commission to be too restricted in its operations and, besides, the guidelines by themselves constitute a sufficient guarantee.

In the motion for a resolution we have also raised the still open question of the budgetization of these loans.

As the situation has still not been settled I believe it desirable that this ambiguity should be resolved as soon as possible and Parliament has therefore asked for the conciliation procedure to be opened with the Council on this matter before the end of April.

Subject to this reservation I recommend that Parliament gives its approval to this proposal for a decision.