Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2010-07-05-Speech-1-086"
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"en.20100705.17.1-086"2
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"Mr President, when a container is transported from Gdansk to Antwerp by a lorry, then that container remains within the EU and the goods do not have to be customs-cleared on arrival or departure. However, when you ship the same container from Gdansk to Antwerp, you first have to clear the goods on departure and then again on arrival, as if that container has left the EU. That is to the detriment of coastal transport and I think the Commission is right in wanting to rectify this disadvantage. I also think that coastal transport could take on a larger share of EU goods transport and that we ought to encourage that.
In that context, I welcome the agreement we have reached and I thank the people in the Council who worked on that, the people in the Commission and members in this House. We have reached a good agreement. The basic line taken by that agreement, the principle of administrative simplification and harmonisation, has been accepted. Data will always be exchanged electronically and everyone concerned will be able to view or enter data via what is known as a
. That will allow computer systems to communicate with each other. Everything only has to be entered once and that is an enormous improvement.
Ships calling only at EU ports will also be granted an exemption from administrative formalities. What we have not achieved is permission for a ship to be granted exemption on the basis of its cargo, in respect of that cargo, if a ship has called at a port in a third country. The Commission will now look into how we might resolve this, that is, exemption on the basis of a ship’s cargo. The Commission will also consider how we might interconnect the maritime and inland shipping systems so that we can establish a continuous and a fully sustainable chain for water-borne transport.
We have not reached any agreement on the use of a single communication language in shipping, in this case English, which was our proposal, and I think that is a pity. Many members here had objections to that. For the Council, it was absolutely out of the question. The most we were able to obtain here is to have a recital in the directive to the effect that Member States will seek to establish a common means of communication for written and oral communication. That could lead to a single language being used and I hope that will be the final outcome.
Still less have we been able to introduce anything into the directive about pilotage or the possibility of captains of coastal ships who regularly call at a particular port being granted exemption from compulsory pilotage. The Commission and the Council have now issued a statement to the effect that they will consider this issue. I hope that we will opt for a European framework in this respect and that this will become a reality within the earliest possible timeframe.
We had to strike a compromise regarding the date. The Council wanted to postpone the date too far ahead, whereas, in the Council’s view, we wanted to set it too early. In the end, we agreed on 1 June 2015. I would have liked it to have been earlier, but I think that we can still condense this timeframe, thanks to the fact that we have reached a compromise in the first reading.
Mr President, I think that, all things considered, we have made a step forward. That is hugely important for the internal transport market. It is also a link in the sustainability of the transport sector in Europe and there are many more stages to follow, and the Commission knows that. Encouraging coastal trade is an important link. However, one thing which I keep noticing, time and again, is that the Council is being obstructive about this. The Council only looks at the costs and never wants to talk about what benefits a particular measure might spawn. The Council always wants implementation to take place as late as possible and never wants to consider the importance of faster completion of the single European market. That reluctance of the Council and that negative attitude towards a genuine European transport policy continue to both amaze and irritate me. I am pleased that Parliament, as well, has, on this occasion, urged that European solutions be found and that these solutions should preferably be found as soon as possible. I am therefore happy with the agreement we have reached and I would ask you, members of the House, to give it your support."@en1
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