SPEECH/08/337
Antonio
Tajani
Vice-President of the Commission
Presentation to the
European Parliament
European Parliament
Strasbourg,
16 June 2008
Address given by Mr Antonio Tajani, Vice-President of the Commission
Strasbourg, 16 June 2008
Mr President,
Honourable Members,
I am delighted to be standing before you for my first official appearance. Today is a great opportunity for me to launch an ongoing dialogue enabling joint construction of European transport policy.
We know each other very well.
For the last fourteen years we have worked together on exciting and varied issues.
It is a great honour for me to be here as Vice-President of the European Commission responsible for transport.
The fact of an MEP becoming a Commissioner merely confirms the increasingly important role played by the European Parliament.
In that context, I fully accept the institutional requirements and the obligations which are incumbent upon a Member of the Commission. I shall act independently of any national, local, political or economic influence.
The European Union is going through a difficult period: the result of the referendum in Ireland on the Lisbon Treaty, following the "no" by France and the Netherlands to the Constitutional Treaty, leads us to ask ourselves how citizens perceive the European institutions. Let us not forget that the integration process requires the peoples' consensus.
That is why we need more Europe, but it must be a Europe which is also capable of responding quickly to citizens' immediate problems. We need to give new impetus to the European political project and to continue the process of ratifying the Lisbon Treaty. We must move forward, pursuing an ambitious project as Europe's founding fathers did.
The time has come for us to demonstrate our courage. Transport policy is becoming more crucial than ever because it gives us the means to move forward. The Commission and the Parliament have a major responsibility: I wish to take on my share of it because I am convinced that without a strong transport policy there cannot be a united Europe.
That is why I want to promote transport which is competitive and of high quality, safe and sustainable, within a comprehensive framework.
Because transport is a crucial medium for economic and social development, for growth and employment. The Lisbon Strategy shows the way: efficient, high-quality transport at affordable prices and based on infrastructure which binds Europe together.
My two predecessors in the post of Transport Commissioner, the much missed Loyola De Palacio and the present Vice-President Jacques Barrot, to whom I pay tribute, took European transport policy forward in big strides.
I shall do my best to maintain this impetus until the end of the present Commission's mandate, while ensuring that commitments are met.
Today we face a major challenge: combating climate change and protecting our environment amid continually rising oil prices.
Recently we have all been able to see the intolerable effects of those price rises on our citizens and businesses. I am thinking in particular of the demonstrations by fishermen a week ago in Brussels and of the strikes held over the past few days by lorry drivers throughout Europe.
The Commission has already taken a first step to resolve this problem: a communication will be presented to you next Wednesday. But that is only a start and I am sure that the debate on this issue will continue, because more needs to be done.
That said, I shall continue to pursue a European transport policy based on four major strands:
Ø mobility
Ø the protection of citizens and the environment
Ø innovation
Ø the international dimension.
Mobility first.
We must remove the remaining obstacles to the smooth functioning of the internal market in certain sectors. To do this:
1. My first initiative, on 25 June, will relate to the European Single Sky.
This initiative is a priority in order to put an end to the fragmentation of air traffic control systems, particularly given the modernisation of air navigation under the SESAR project. Achieving the Single European Sky will reduce delays, make European air transport more competitive and also help to reduce CO2 emissions and fuel consumption, which is now becoming imperative. The creation of the Single European Sky will be complemented by implementing an ambitious action plan on airport capacity, because we also need to take action on the ground.
2. I shall also continue to promote the trans-European transport networks. With the help of the Coordinators, I shall make sure that the completion, including the financing, of our thirty priority projects is speeded up.
3. I shall ensure that Community law is properly applied and that competition is not distorted by the Member States' failure to apply Community rules uniformly. I shall also ensure strict control of compliance with State aid rules in the transport sector.
The decision taken by the Commission last Wednesday to open a formal investigation procedure on the Alitalia dossier is evidence of this.
But ensuring mobility alone is not enough:
Let us now look at protection.
Obviously mobility has to be sustainable. This is why we have introduced internal market rules which ensure a high level of protection for European citizens and the environment.
This means first and foremost safe transport. I am making this one of my priorities!
As far as road safety is concerned, it is regrettable, despite the substantial progress made, that even in 2007 some 43 000 people were killed on the roads. Further efforts must be made to achieve our objective of halving the number of road casualties by 2010.
In order to do this, I believe we should take simultaneous action in terms of both legislation and communication.
1-Legislation first. In the short term:
We should facilitate the cross-border application of penalties so that certain offenders can no longer benefit from the fragmented nature of national systems.
Furthermore, in 2009 we plan to update the legislation on the electronic tachograph in order to make fraud even more difficult.
We must also boost the safety of infrastructures. In this regard, I welcome the compromise between Parliament and the Council concerning the proposal for a Directive on infrastructure safety management – the Markov Report – which will be put to the vote this Thursday. In the long term, I shall continue working on the 4th road safety action programme which will cover the period 2011-2020.
2- Communication. Information and awareness-raising for everyone concerned is essential, in particular young people, especially to combat driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs. In this connection, on 13 October I shall be holding the second Road Safety Day in Paris.
With regard to maritime safety, we are working on the major project of the 3rd maritime package, which we must bring to a successful conclusion. We should take all measures necessary to prevent shipping disasters from affecting our coasts. With your support, I shall aim to seek the adoption of all these proposals and to increase the Maritime Agency's powers and resources.
In the aviation sector, my aim is to guarantee the highest level of safety and security for citizens, while reducing the burden on travellers. We have to find the right balance. Compromise is not possible where safety is at stake.
In this respect, I intend to arrange a hearing before Parliament so that we can hear the views of the Member States' experts, because I believe that security measures should be proportionate to risks and understood by passengers.With this in mind, I shall soon be publishing most of the security rules, in particular those directly affecting passengers. Only standards and requirements whose publication would pose a direct threat to aviation security will not be divulged. Starting this summer, I shall be presenting a new version of Implementing Regulation 622/2003 to Parliament.
I also intend to draw up a road map on replacing the Regulation on liquids by an alternative method for detecting dangerous liquids. This replacement will be possible thanks to technological developments enabling us to ease restrictions.
Protection in transport also means greener transport
Making transport policy more sustainable will likewise be one of my priorities. Accordingly, on 8 July a package of measures to make transport more sustainable will be presented to the College. We will present to you a strategy and a methodology for internalising external costs which will be valid for all modes of transport. We will propose to you, at the same time, revising the "Eurovignette" Directive and I shall also announce a legislative proposal on noise in rail transport. I am counting on Parliament's cooperation to reach agreement on these proposals before the end of its legislature.
Other measures will follow. For example, a plan aimed at making urban transport more sustainable will be presented to you this autumn. I can already assure you that this plan will be in accordance with the subsidiarity principle.
Protection also means upholding passengers' rights for all modes of transport.
Passengers' rights must be recognised and respected. The Regulation on air passengers' rights is tremendous proof that Europe protects its citizens. We now need to ensure that this Regulation is fully applied.
I am actively committed to securing the adoption under this legislature of the proposal on the third maritime package, which aims to establish passengers' rights in this sector in the event of an accident. We will subsequently be able to strengthen maritime passengers' rights for persons with reduced mobility.
I also intend to propose rights for bus and coach passengers, as soon as the current discussions on drivers' working time and rest periods have been completed.
Lastly, I shall ensure that citizens are well informed about the new rights of rail passengers and of air passengers with reduced mobility, rights which they owe in large part to this Parliament.
Lastly, protection means social standards enabling fair competition in an enlarged Europe
Transport safety and fair competition between firms depend on working conditions, access to employment in the sector, equal opportunities for training, and the progressive removal of the last remaining barriers to the internal market. We have progressively developed harmonised rules specific to transport which supplement general social legislation. In this regard I welcome the political agreement, obtained at the last Council meeting on transport, concerning the road package and I am counting on Parliament's support to bring it to a successful conclusion.
I also hope that there will be a broad consensus among the sector's professionals in order to resolve the problem of driving time for coach drivers.
As regards the maritime sector, the Union will have social standards for maritime work thanks to last year's agreement on the application of the International Labour Organisation standards. Formal signature of the agreement by the social partners is scheduled for the beginning of July.
I will now turn to innovation
Innovation plays a key role in developing policy on competitive transport. This is an area in which Europe can demonstrate its true added value.
We must ensure the success of Galileo. In order to do this, I shall devote all my energy to ensuring that the Commission is able to take on the management of this programme in an efficient manner. There is still a long way to go. I intend to involve you fully in this process and I know that I shall be able to count on your support to overcome any difficulties encountered.
As I have already announced, I shall oversee the development of the SESAR project. For rail, I shall likewise oversee the development of the ERTMS project.
In order to improve the flow of road transport and make it safer, this autumn I intend to propose a legislative framework aimed at developing intelligent road transport systems.
Lastly, I believe that technology can also help to create a maritime area without barriers.
Lastly, I will look at the international dimension.
1-Firstly, integrating into transport policy the western Balkan countries with a European perspective. I shall strive for the rapid conclusion of a transport treaty, for which the Council has just authorised the opening of negotiations.
2- Secondly, negotiations with third countries for the mutual recognition of security measures for tax-free sales. In the next few months I wish to conclude agreements with Croatia, the United States and Canada.
3-Lastly, I shall negotiate the second stage of the air agreement with the United States and I also hope to reach agreement on flights over Siberia. As you know, the last Council meeting on transport also gave the go-ahead for starting negotiations with Australia and New Zealand concerning general agreements on air transport. In all these cases, I shall ensure that our aviation industry has the means to remain highly competitive on the world stage.
In conclusion, I would like to confirm that I wish to work with you all.
With that in mind, I undertake to meet each month with the Chair and the coordinators of the transport committee, not only to inform them about the work currently in progress but above all to listen to the European citizens' representatives. But I want to go beyond that monthly meeting: whenever my presence is considered necessary in order to bring certain dossiers to a successful conclusion, I shall be there with you.
As regards my work programme, the scenario for the next few months is that outlined by Vice-President Barrot on 22 April, and I can assure you that I am going to adhere to the commitments made. That said, I would like to focus on six priorities:
- European Single Sky
- Greening Package
- Conclusion of the Maritime Package
- Road safety
- Passengers' rights
- Deployment of Galileo
As I have emphasised during my address, I wish to achieve these priorities in a context of increased safety, development and growth – particularly as regards employment – in order to safeguard the fundamental interests of all European citizens.