Specific research programme 1994-1998: agriculture and fisheries

The Commission's amended proposal took over the European Parliament's amendments concerning: the implementation schedule for the programme (the first appropriations would be allocated within twelve months of the adoption of the programme); the measures to simplify and improve the procedures and make them more transparent; the staff and administrative expenditure; the reference to the financial perspective; the establishment, in the fisheries sector, of a specific budget line to finance the collection of information and development of databases, in cooperation with the Member States. With regard to the technical content of the programme, the amendments accepted by the Commission concerned: research on the treatment of agricultural and agro-industrial waste to obtain by-products or agricultural fertilisers; research to be carried out in the agricultural sector in areas relating to the preservation of genetic heritage and biodiversity in seeds of indigenous species; the development of water management models; work to improve the selection of fishing material. The Commission did not accept the amendments concerning comitology, international cooperation (extension of the Commission's negotiating mandate to the countries of the Mediterranean Basin) and the systematic priority for SMEs in the selection of projects. �