—

having regard to a request for defence of his immunity in connection with legal proceedings pending before a Greek court submitted by Jannis Sakellariou on 20 January 2003 and announced in plenary sitting on 29 January 2003,

—

having regard to Articles 9 and 10 of the Protocol on the Privileges and Immunities of the European Communities of 8 April 1965, and to Article 4(2) of the Act of 20 September 1976 concerning the Election of Representatives to the European Parliament by direct universal suffrage,

—

having regard to the judgments of the Court of Justice of the European Communities of 12 May 1964 and 10 July 1986 (1),

—

having regard to Rules 6 and 6a of its Rules of Procedure,

—

having regard to the report of the Committee on Legal Affairs and the Internal Market (A5-0309/2003),

A.

whereas Jannis Sakellariou was elected to the European Parliament in the fifth elections held from 10 to 13 June 1999, and whereas his credentials were verified by Parliament on 15 December 1999 (2),

B.

whereas Members of the European Parliament may not be subject to any form of inquiry, detention or legal proceedings in respect of opinions expressed or votes cast by them in the performance of their duties (3),

C.

whereas during the sessions of the European Parliament its Members enjoy, in the territory of any Member State other than their own, immunity from any measure of detention and from legal proceedings (4),

D.

whereas Jannis Sakellariou was elected to the European Parliament in the Federal Republic of Germany and may not therefore be subject to legal proceedings in the territory of the Hellenic Republic,

E.

whereas the immunity from legal proceedings enjoyed by Members of the European Parliament also covers immunity from civil proceedings,

1.

Decides to defend the immunity and privileges of Jannis Sakellariou;

2.

Instructs its President immediately to forward this decision and the report of its committee to the division for civil matters of the Athens Court of First Instance.

—

having regard to the letter from its President of 28 May 2003,

—

having regard to Rules 180 and 181 of its Rules of Procedure,

—

having regard to the report of the Committee on Constitutional Affairs (A5-0283/2003),

1.

Decides to amend its Rules of Procedure as indicated below;

2.

Points out that these amendments will enter into force on the first day of the next part-session;

3.

Instructs its President to forward this decision to the Council and Commission, for information.

—

having regard to Article 272 of the EC Treaty and Article 177 of the Euratom Treaty,

—

having regard to Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 1605/2002 of 25 June 2002 on the Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities (1) and particularly Articles 37 and 38 thereof,

—

having regard to the general budget of the European Union for the financial year 2003, as finally adopted on 19 December 2002 (2),

—

having regard to the Interinstitutional Agreement of 6 May 1999 between the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission on budgetary discipline and improvement of the budgetary procedure (3),

—

having regard to preliminary Draft Amending Budget No 4/2003 of the European Union for the financial year 2003, which the Commission presented on 28 May 2003 (SEC(2003) 626),

—

having regard to Draft Amending Budget No 4/2003 of the European Union for the financial year 2003, which the Council established on 15 July 2003 (10620/2003 — C5-0339/2003),

—

having regard to Rule 92 of and Annex IV to its Rules of Procedure,

—

having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgets (A5-0285/2003),

A.

whereas Draft Amending Budget No 4/2003 relates to the revenue side of the budget and comprises a number of elements affecting the level of contributions from Member States to the Community's own resources,

B.

whereas these elements relate to the annual revision of the forecasts for Customs Duties, VAT bases, GNI bases and a technical re-calculation of the contributions necessary to finance the UK rebate,

C.

whereas this Amending Budget also takes into account the repayment of the surplus from the Guarantee Fund for External Measures from 2002 and enters this as a revenue item in 2003,

1.

Approves unamended Draft Amending Budget No 4/2003;

2.

Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council and to the Commission.

—

having regard to the initiative by the Hellenic Republic (7180/2003 (1)),

—

having regard to the initiative by the Hellenic Republic (7179/2003 (2)),

—

having regard to Articles 30(1)(a) and (b), 31(a) and (b) and 34(2)(c) of the EU Treaty,

—

having regard to Article 39(1) of the EU Treaty, pursuant to which the Council consulted Parliament (C5-0149/2003),

—

having regard to the Protocol integrating the Schengen ‘acquis’ into the framework of the European Union, pursuant to which the Council consulted Parliament,

—

having regard to Rules 106 and 67 of its Rules of Procedure,

—

having regard to the report of the Committee on Citizens' Freedoms and Rights, Justice and Home Affairs (A5-0288/2003),

1.

Approves the initiative by the Hellenic Republic as amended;

2.

Calls on the Council to amend the text accordingly;

3.

Calls on the Council to notify Parliament if it intends to depart from the text approved by Parliament;

4.

Calls on the Council to consult Parliament again if it intends to amend the initiative by the Hellenic Republic substantially;

5.

Instructs the President to forward its position to the Council and Commission, and the government of the Hellenic Republic.

—

having regard to the initiative by the Hellenic Republic (7179/2003 (1)),

—

having regard to the initiative by the Hellenic Republic (7180/2003 (2)),

—

having regard to Article 66 of the Treaty establishing the European Community,

—

having regard to Article 67 of the Treaty establishing the European Community, pursuant to which the Council consulted Parliament (C5-0148/2003),

—

having regard to the Protocol integrating the Schengen ‘acquis’ into the framework of the European Union, pursuant to which the Council consulted Parliament,

—

having regard to Rules 106 and 67 of its Rules of Procedure,

—

having regard to the report of the Committee on Citizens' Freedoms and Rights, Justice and Home Affairs (A5-0288/2003),

1.

Approves the initiative by the Hellenic Republic as amended;

2.

Calls on the Council to amend the text accordingly;

3.

Calls on the Council to notify Parliament if it intends to depart from the text approved by Parliament;

4.

Calls on the Council to consult Parliament again if it intends to amend the initiative by the Hellenic Republic substantially;

5.

Instructs the President to forward its position to the Council and Commission, and the government of the Hellenic Republic.

—

having regard to the Commission proposal to the Council (COM(2003) 91) (1),

—

having regard to the amended proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council concerning protection against subsidisation and unfair pricing practices causing injury to Community air carriers in the supply of airline services from countries not members of the European Community (COM(2003) 228) (2),

—

having regard to Article 83 of the EC Treaty, pursuant to which the Council consulted Parliament (C5-0107/2003),

—

having regard to Rule 67 of its Rules of Procedure,

—

having regard to the report of the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs and the opinion of the Committee on Industry, External Trade, Research and Energy (A5-0300/2003),

1.

Approves the Commission proposal as amended;

2.

Calls on the Commission to alter its proposal accordingly, pursuant to Article 250(2) of the EC Treaty;

3.

Calls on the Council to notify Parliament if it intends to depart from the text approved by Parliament;

4.

Asks the Council to consult Parliament again if it intends to amend the Commission proposal substantially;

5.

Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council and Commission.

—

having regard to the initiative of the Republic of Austria (14712/2002) (1),

—

having regard to Article 63 of the EC Treaty,

—

having regard to Article 67 of the EC Treaty, pursuant to which the Counci consulted Parliament (C5-0010/2003),

—

having regard to Rules 67 and 61(4) of its Rules of Procedure,

—

having regard to the report of the Committee on Citizens' Freedoms and Rights, Justice and Home Affairs (A5-0210/2003),

1.

Rejects the initiative of the Republic of Austria;

2.

Calls on the Council and Commission to submit to it as swiftly as possible the amended proposal for a Council Directive on minimum standards on procedures in Member States for granting and withdrawing refugee status (2), and to arrive at a solution to the issue of safe third States within that framework;

3.

Calls on the Republic of Austria to withdraw its initiative;

4.

Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council and Commission, and the government of the Republic of Austria.

—

having regard to the Council's recommendation of 15 July 2003 (C5-0332/2003),

—

having regard to Article 112(2)b of the EC Treaty,

—

having regard to Article 50 of the Protocol on the Statute of the ESCB and of the ECB,

—

having regard to Rule 36 of its Rules of Procedure,

—

having regard to the recommendation of the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs (A5-0307/2003),

A.

whereas at its meeting of 11 September 2003 the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs heard Mr Jean-Claude Trichet, the Council's nominee for the office of President of the European Central Bank, for a term of office of 8 years, and at the same meeting of 11 September 2003 considered the nominee's qualifications in the light of the criteria laid down by Article 112 of the EC Treaty,

B.

whereas the nominee has submitted a written statement and has given oral explanations in the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs on the 11 September 2003 for the consideration of the Parliament,

C.

whereas the ECB has to be politically independent, whereas, however, the nomination of the candidates for the ECB Executive Board is a political act,

1.

Confirms the appointment of Mr Jean-Claude Trichet as an appropriate candidate for the office of President of the European Central Bank;

2.

Instructs its President to forward this opinion to the President of the Council, for forwarding to the governments of the Member States.

—

having regard to the communication from the Commission (COM(2003) 37),

—

having regard to Rules 47(2) and 163 of its Rules of Procedure,

—

having regard to the report of the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs (A5-0282/2003),

A.

whereas the candidate countries and the Commission have reached agreement on the implementation and monitoring of employment-policy tasks in the Joint Assessment Papers,

B.

whereas the Guidelines for the Employment Policies of the Member States and the Conclusions of the Lisbon European Council of 23/24 March 2000 have laid the basis for measures to combat unemployment,

C.

whereas good management implies taking account of the unique character, capacity and ability of all people and giving them the opportunity to develop together with others at a place of work; whereas work is therefore important for people's potential to develop their identity,

D.

whereas the rapid adjustment processes required in industry, services and agriculture call for swift project-based support measures which guarantee sustainable development but also improve competitiveness,

E.

whereas the achievement of competitiveness should be based on better coordination of policies on employment, vocational training and social affairs,

1.

Observes that the demands on the candidate countries aimed at establishing a stable employment policy call for special efforts and, on the part of the Member States of the Union, particular empathy;

2.

Calls on the Commission to propose measures to facilitate access to funds from the various support programmes, for example by eliminating red tape;

3.

Supports the establishment of a social security system in the candidate countries which complies with high standards and is accessible for all; calls, in this connection, for further efforts to prevent and combat illegal employment, which seriously jeopardises the financing of solidarity-based social security systems, particularly health insurance and pension schemes;

4.

Observes that, in designing social security systems, the subsidiarity principle should apply and all persons should be guaranteed access to high-quality services, irrespective of economic, social and geographical factors;

5.

Calls on the candidate countries to draw up employment strategies for particular crisis regions in order to avert further emigration and impoverishment;

6.

Calls on those countries in which youth unemployment stands at 20% or more to make special efforts at least to reduce it to the average level of unemployment in the European Union in order to prevent neglect and radicalisation;

7.

Calls for a selective business location policy in the candidate countries in order to avert the tendency towards impoverishment of the population due to job losses and the associated loss of training and further training establishments; considers that it is also of great importance to foster a positive spirit of enterprise, for example through school education;

8.

Calls, in the context of structural aid institutions, for the introduction of an additional aid instrument to prevent regions from becoming impoverished as a result of industrial restructuring;

9.

Emphasises that the existence of a representative and autonomous social dialogue constitutes an indispensable element of the accession preparations and calls on the candidate countries to involve the social partners and NGOs closely in economic and social policy-making processes;

10.

Calls for the promotion of cross-border contacts and co-operation between social partners in border regions so as to help disseminate EU social partnership models;

11.

Calls for measures to develop planned mixed-economy structures which will prevent the emergence of industrial monocultures and promote a diversified economy; points out that, in the transition to a market economy, certain fields of activity may be usefully developed by third sector enterprises (production cooperatives, for example);

12.

Recalls the fundamental precondition for the development of industrial and commercial mixed-economy structures, namely a broad and adaptable training and education strategy which facilitates lifelong learning;

13.

Calls for further implementation of the ‘acquis communautaire’ in the field of health and safety at work; acknowledges the extraordinarily high costs involved in implementing the ‘acquis’ in this field; calls on the candidate countries, in order to improve living and working conditions, to submit to the Commission a realistic assessment of the difficulties associated with the practical implementation of the ‘acquis’ in the field of health and safety at work; calls on the candidate countries to reinforce their industry inspection services, particularly in performing their task of assisting undertakings with the implementation of the ‘acquis communautaire’;

14.

Calls on the Commission to give high priority to efforts to secure a good working environment in the new Member States;

15.

Recalls that corporate governance is regarded as a fundamental precondition for the efficient and sustainable development of competitive businesses and that it should involve employees and employers as an essential feature of a modern management system; considers that a balanced business strategy will ensure greater respect for workers' rights and render businesses more aware of their ethical and social responsibilities;

16.

Calls for public funding to be made available for investment in human capital and R &D; considers that tax incentives for innovation may also be created in this connection;

17.

Calls on private investors from the EU to earmark part of their investment for training and further training of their employees in order to support workers in the event of difficulties of adjustment in new deregulated labour markets;

18.

Considers that, in a modern employment policy, the mobility of workers must be expressed, for example, in training systems and further specialist training and a consolidated spirit of enterprise; takes the view that only a mobility policy based on this principle will make it possible to prevent the creation in an enlarged Europe of regions of emigration, which workers will be forced to leave because there is too little employment;

19.

Calls on the Commission to identify financial barriers to education and further education in other countries for citizens of the new Member States and to consider the establishment of further measures promoting cross-border mobility in the area of education;

20.

Welcomes efforts to create modern, demand-oriented labour market institutions, but calls for more to be done to establish a network of regional and local service institutions in view of the fact that there exist in the candidate countries regions which have particular weak spots;

21.

Calls on the Commission not only to assess farms from the point of view of business economics but to recognise both their significance for environmental protection and landscape conservation and the relief which they will continue to afford in the social field until such time as enough alternative jobs come into existence outside farming; stresses in this context the importance of training programmes to develop the skills needed to deal with these changes and, in particular, to enable women in the farming sector to develop innovatory activities;

22.

Considers that privatisation must not be allowed to result in the destruction of services of general economic interest; calls on the Commission, in accordance with the subsidiarity principle, to respect the role of national, regional and local authorities, which must ensure the well-being of their citizens and guarantee opportunities to make democratic choices; stresses the importance of the involvement of the local authorities in drawing up employment strategies geared to the specific problems of the regions affected by industrial conversion and restructuring and in revitalising the areas particularly concerned by the transformation of the agricultural sector;

23.

Notes that there is a need for action in relation to particularly disadvantaged people (poor qualifications, age), the disabled and minorities in the form of programmes to prevent discrimination pursuant to Article 13 of the EC Treaty, and calls on the Commission to facilitate access to the funding provided for that purpose in Community programmes;

24.

Stresses the role of nongovernmental organisations in providing social services for ethnic minorities and people with disabilities; stresses the fact that the candidate countries must enable the Roma minority to become increasingly involved in planning, implementing and assessing projects and specific measures to foster their integration;

25.

Welcomes the national action plans to combat discrimination and improve the living conditions of minorities in the candidate countries; notes that discrimination persists and therefore calls on the candidate countries to make further efforts to approximate their legislation to EU provisions for the prevention of discrimination;

26.

Calls for special programmes to ensure quickly and appropriately equal treatment of the disabled in employment and occupations and to increase the employment rate in stages; considers that the basis for this should be regular, complete and genuinely transparent surveys of workers with disabilities;

27.

Calls on the candidate countries to participate actively in European efforts to achieve social integration using the open coordination method;

28.

Calls for the development of appropriate individual measures in the respective accession states to promote equality opportunities for women and men;

29.

Calls for employment measures and practices based on equal status for both sexes (equal pay for equal work) and practical measures (as provided for in Article 141 of the Treaty) to improve women's access to education, vocational training and employment, improve the position of women and men on the labour market, make it possible to combine family and working life and prevent discrimination;

30.

Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the European social partners and the parliaments of the Member States and candidate countries.

—

having regard to the Commission proposal to the European Parliament and the Council (COM(2002) 488) (1),

—

having regard to Article 251(2) and Article 95 of the EC Treaty, pursuant to which the Commission submitted the proposal to Parliament (C5-0449/2002),

—

having regard to Rule 67 of its Rules of Procedure,

—

having regard to the report of the Committee on Industry, External Trade, Research and Energy and the opinions of the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs and the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Consumer Policy (A5-0295/2003),

1.

Approves the Commission proposal as amended;

2.

Calls on the Commission to refer to Parliament again if it intends to amend its proposal substantially or replace it with another text;

3.

Insists on the appropriateness of the legal base proposed by the Commission and asks for the matter to be referred to it again, should the Council intend to amend the legal base;

4.

Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council and the Commission.

(1)

Directive 98/30/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 June 1998 concerning common rules for the internal market in natural gas (5) has made very important contributions towards the creation of an internal market for gas. Directive 98/30/EC allows Member States the possibility of imposing public service obligations on natural gas undertakings, inter alia, in relation to security of supply;

(2)

The European Council at Barcelona agreed on a rapid adoption of the pending proposals for completion of the internal market for gas and electricity. Completion of the internal market for gas will significantly change the market framework and must be supplemented with common rules concerning security of supply and the appropriate policies required in this respect;

(3)

The guarantee of a high level of security of supply is therefore a key condition for the successful operation of the internal gas market. With a view to completing the internal market for gas and thereby ensuring a level playing field, a minimum common approach to supply security is necessary throughout the Community in order to avoid market distortions;

(4)

Gas is becoming an increasingly important component in EU energy supply. In view of the increased importance of gas, ensuring the proper functioning of the single EU natural gas market by safeguarding security of gas supply also becomes of higher strategic importance;

(5)

A competitive single EU gas market necessitates transparent and non-discriminatory security of supply policies compatible with the requirements of such a market. Definition of clear roles and responsibilities of all market actors is therefore crucial in safeguarding the proper functioning of the internal market and security of gas supply while at the same time avoiding creating obstacles to new entry or significant difficulties for companies with small market shares;

(6)

As indicated by the Green Paper ‘Towards a European strategy for the security of energy supply’, the European Union will in the longer term become increasingly dependent on gas imported from non-EU sources of supply . The European Union's dependence on natural gas imports could, according to the Commission, reach a level of 75 % by 2020. With a further rise in dependency on natural gas imports, the risk of an insecure natural gas supply will also increase ;

(7)

As is indicated in the Commission communication on alternative fuels for road transportation, natural gas is one of the three medium-term options for the replacement of petroleum-based motor vehicle fuels;

(8)

In order to meet growing demand for gas and diversify gas supplies as a condition for a competitive internal market for gas, the EU will need to mobilise significant additional volumes of gas over the coming decades, much of which will have to come from distant sources and be transported over long distances;

(9)

The European Union has a strong common interest with gas supplying and transit countries in ensuring continued investments in gas supply infrastructure . At the same time, the problem of dependence on natural gas imports must not be neglected. Dependency carries risks arising from political instability in the producer countries, which could endanger security of gas supply ;

(10)

Long-term contracts have played a very important role in securing gas supplies for Europe and will continue to do so. Whilst the current level of long-term contracts is more than satisfactory on the Community level, it is believed that such contracts will continue to make a significant contribution to overall gas supplies as companies continue to include such contracts in their overall supply portfolio and it is appropriate to provide a safety net in this respect;

(11)

The development of liquid gas supplies in the internal market plays an important role in enabling the internal gas market to function properly and competitively. Considerable progress has been made in developing liquid trading platforms and through gas release programmes at national level. This trend is expected to continue. Nonetheless, it is appropriate to provide for a safety net in this respect;

(12)

It is important that Member States lay down an unambiguous framework which will facilitate security of supply and is conducive to investments in gas supply infrastructure. It is important to monitor that appropriate measures are taken to ensure regulatory and fiscal frameworks for exploration and production, storage and transport of natural gas which provide appropriate incentives for investment;

(13)

Domestic gas resources and measures , such as feed-in of biogas, designed to extend their availability in a non-discriminatory manner that is compatible with the requirements of a competitive single market for natural gas and with the competition rules, contribute to enhancing the level of security of supply in the internal gas market;

(14)

In the interest of a well functioning internal market for gas to which secure gas supplies are crucial, the supply/demand balance in individual Member States should be monitored and appropriate action taken if security of supply is compromised on a Community level;

(15)

To ensure the proper functioning of the internal market for gas and security of supply, solidarity between Member States in emergency supply situations is essential;

(16)

It is inherent to the creation and development of an internal market that Member States become increasingly interdependent regarding security of supply issues. Failure to adopt adequate measures in one Member State can have serious consequences regarding the operation of the internal market throughout the Community. It is therefore essential, in order to ensure the proper functioning of the internal market, to provide for a minimum level of harmonisation regarding security of gas supply policies in each Member State;

(17)

In the event of extraordinary gas supply situations, the Commission shall take appropriate action commensurate with the gravity of the supply situation to ensure that the necessary measures to provide specific assistance to those Member States particularly affected by the gas supply disruption are implemented in order to safeguard, as far as possible, the continued functioning of the internal market for gas;

(18)

With a view to assisting in preparing and implementing Community legislation in the field of safety and security of gas supply, to monitoring its application and assisting in evaluating the effectiveness of the measures in force as well as to better monitor the development of security of gas supply, a European Observation System of hydrocarbons should be established within the services of the Commission;

(19)

The necessary measures for the implementation of this Directive should be adopted in accordance with Council Decision 1999/468/EC of 28 June 1999 laying down the procedures for the exercise of implementing powers conferred on the Commission  (6) ;

(20)

Since the objective of the proposed action, namely the creation of a fully operational internal gas market, based on fair competition and secure natural gas supplies, cannot be sufficiently achieved by the Member States acting individually, and can therefore by reason of the scale and effects of the action be better achieved at Community level, the Community may adopt measures in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity as set out in Article 5 of the Treaty. In accordance with the principle of proportionality, as set out in that Article, this Directive does not go beyond what is necessary to achieve that objective,

1.

‘source of gas supply’ shall mean gas supply originating from one single gas supply country;

2.

‘long-term contract’ shall generally mean a gas supply contract with a duration of 15 or more years ;

3.

‘vulnerable customers’ shall mean private households and other end users who are not able to switch to other fuels at short notice.

a)

the importance of ensuring continuity of gas supplies under objectively severe conditions for household customers as defined in Article 2(25) of Directive 2003/55/EC (7) ;

b)

the need to create incentives for new gas supplies from internal and external sources to the single European gas market or, where appropriate, to ensure adequate levels of gas storage or alternative back-up fuels ;

c)

the risk of the most serious system failure or of disruption of the largest natural gas supply source and the cost of mitigating such supply disruption;

d)

the internal market and the possibilities for cross-border cooperation in relation to security of gas supply;

e)

the importance of long-term contracts and their flexibility.

a)

interruptible customers

b)

gas storage

c)

supply flexibility

d)

spot markets

e)

diversification of gas supply sources, including the use of biogas.

—

interruptions of supplies along individual transport routes, or

—

a halt to supplies from an entire natural gas-producing country or countries,

—

having regard to the Commission proposal to the Council (COM(2002) 767) (1),

—

having regard to Article 308 of the EC Treaty, pursuant to which the Council consulted Parliament (C5—0009/2003),

—

having regard to Rule 67 of its Rules of Procedure,

—

having regard to the report of the Committee on Legal Affairs and the Internal Market (A5-0236/2003),

1.

Approves the Commission proposal as amended;

2.

Calls on the Commission to alter its proposal accordingly, pursuant to Article 250(2) of the EC Treaty;

3.

Calls on the Council to notify Parliament if it intends to depart from the text approved by Parliament;

4.

Calls for initiation of the conciliation procedure under the Joint Declaration of 4 March 1975 if the Council intends to depart from the text approved by Parliament;

5.

Asks the Council to consult Parliament again if it intends to amend the Commission proposal substantially;

6.

Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council and Commission.

—

having regard to the initiative by the Federal Republic of Germany (14848/2002 (1)),

—

having regard to Article 63(3)(b) of the EC Treaty,

—

having regard to Article 67 of the EC Treaty, pursuant to which the Council consulted Parliament (C5-0011/2003),

—

having regard to Rules 67 and 63 of its Rules of Procedure,

—

having regard to the opinion of the Committee on Legal Affairs and the Internal Market on the proposal's legal basis,

—

having regard to the report of the Committee on Citizens' Freedoms and Rights, Justice and Home Affairs (A5-0104/2003),

—

having regard to the second report of the Committee on Citizens' Freedoms and Rights, Justice and Home Affairs (A5-0291/2003),

1.

Approves the initiative by the Federal Republic of Germany as amended;

2.

Calls on the Council to amend the text accordingly;

3.

Calls on the Council to notify Parliament if it intends to depart from the text approved by Parliament;

4.

Calls on the Council to consult Parliament again if it intends to amend the initiative by the Federal Republic of Germany substantially;

5.

Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council and Commission and to the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany.

—

having regard to the ‘Erika’ I and II packages;

—

having regard to its resolution of 21 November 2002 on the ‘Prestige’ oil tanker disaster off the coast of Galicia (1), and to its earlier resolutions on safety at sea,

—

having regard to its resolution of 19 December 2002 on safety at sea and measures to alleviate the effects of the ‘Prestige’ accident (2),

—

having regard to the Commission communication of 3 December 2002 on improving safety at sea in response to the ‘Prestige’ accident (COM(2002) 681 — C5-0156/2003)),

—

having regard to the conclusions of the Transport Council of 6 December 2002,

—

having regard to the Presidency Conclusions of the Copenhagen European Council of 12 and 13 December 2002,

—

having regard to the Commission communication of 5 March 2003 on action to deal with the effects of the ‘Prestige’ disaster (COM(2003) 105),

—

having regard to the report of the Spanish Ministry of Transport of 7 March 2003 on maritime safety and the ‘Prestige’ accident,

—

having regard to the Commission staff working paper of 17 March 2003 on the loss of the tanker ‘Prestige’ (SEC(2003) 351),

—

having regard to the International Association of Classification Societies (IACS) report on the ad hoc audit of American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) related to the loss of the ‘Prestige’,

—

having regard to the ABS technical analyses related to the ‘Prestige’ Casualty of 28 February 2003,

—

having regard to the written statement of Captain Apostolos Mangouras, Master of the ‘Prestige’, to the European Parliament (Public Hearing of 19 and 20 March 2003),

—

having regard to the statements of Mr Serafin Diaz Regueiro, Harbourmaster of La Coruña and of Mr H. van Rooij, managing director of Smit Salvage, to the European Parliament (Public Hearing of 19 and 20 March 2003),

—

having regard to the report of the manager of the ‘Prestige’, Universe Maritime LTD,

—

having regard to the conclusions of the Spring European Council of 20 and 21 March 2003,

—

having regard to the decision of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) International Conference (12-16 May 2003) on the Establishment of a Supplementary Fund for Compensation for Oil Pollution Damage,

—

having regard to Rule 163 of its Rules of Procedure,

—

having regard to the report of the Committee on Regional Policy, Transport and Tourism and the opinions of the Committee on Industry, External Trade, Research and Energy, the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs, the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Consumer Policy and the Committee on Fisheries (A5-0278/2003),

A.

Considers that this parliamentary report represents an important step towards clarifying the causes of the ‘Prestige’ accident. However, in the light of the numerous developments which have occurred recently, such as the new estimations as to the amount of fuel lost by the wreck, and the need to identify all responsibilities, parliamentary work should be updated and pursued in order to have a full picture of the causes and consequences of the accident.

B.

whereas the sinking of the ‘Prestige’ caused serious damage to the marine environment and to the coastal areas of Spain and France and to Galicia in particular as well as to those living in those areas and to their way of life,

C.

whereas the steps taken by the Spanish local authorities, combined with the extraordinary efforts in the months following the disaster by the local population and thousands of volunteers belonging to environmentalist and other organisations, have saved the coastal areas affected from even more severe damage,

D.

whereas heavy fuel from the ‘Prestige’ continues to reach the coasts of Galicia, the northern Iberian peninsula and the French Atlantic coast, moving past Brittany and even threatening the English coastline,

E.

whereas the first priority must be to regulate adequately for arrangements to accommodate vessels in distress and the availability and accessibility of safe havens and harbours,

F.

whereas the real cause of the damage caused to the ‘Prestige’ will be very difficult to determine because the vessel sank in very deep water and cannot be salvaged,

G.

whereas a large part of the cargo remains submerged with the vessel, and may present a further hazard in the longer term,

H.

whereas it has been established that the ‘Prestige’ was damaged on 13 November 2002 in the very area of the ballast tanks where major repairs had been made in Guanzhou (China) in 2001, only 18 months earlier; whereas, in the most recent inspection carried out in Dubai in May 2002, the insides of the above-mentioned ballast tanks were not examined by the inspectors from the classification society ABS,

I.

whereas the ‘Prestige’ had been used for about one year as a floating reservoir, which meant that other vessels were constantly being docked and undocked at the same point against the vessel's side; whereas it is essential for any such hazardous use to be reported to the classification society so that it can step up its monitoring or concentrate it on any such specific risk,

J.

whereas the assessment by the Spanish authorities of the vessel's condition, the expertise of its crew and the quality of the inspections the vessel had already undergone do not tally with the testimony of, in particular, the Smit salvage company, the insurers and the classification society; whereas the presence of a ‘black box’ could have helped to clarify the situation,

K.

whereas the time factor is always crucial in such disasters; whereas it was not possible to reach the emergency towing machinery at the back of the vessel because of the condition the vessel was in at the time, and whereas, partly because of a shortage of manpower, it took nearly twenty four hours for the ‘Prestige’ to be taken in tow by tugs,

L.

whereas all concerned parties considered from the outset that the ‘Prestige’ was so badly damaged that it would not survive in a storm,

M.

whereas the vessel had lost only between 1 000 and 3 000 tonnes of oil when it could have been brought into a safe haven, as stated by experts at Parliament's hearing,

N.

whereas further spills could have been prevented in a safe haven and the means of extracting the oil spilt could have been concentrated, thereby preventing widespread pollution and the sinking of the vessel,

O.

whereas the Spanish authorities gave instructions for the battered vessel to be towed out into open waters because they were convinced that they would then have more time to combat pollution; whereas that decision in fact resulted in the eventual pollution being spread over a much wider geographical area; whereas, according to the information known, the Spanish government authorities, before deciding what to do with the ‘Prestige’, failed to carry out the inspections necessary to gauge the extent of the damage to the vessel's hull,

P.

whereas the decision to tow away the vessel was supported by the majority of people living in the area close to the site of the accident and by local institutions,

Q.

whereas, on the other hand, the salvage operators and captain repeatedly asked for the vessel to be brought into a safe haven or harbour, because they were convinced that they would then be in a position to contain the pollution and try to save the vessel, and whereas the Spanish authorities consistently refused to grant this request,

R.

whereas the analysis of what happened shows that all parties concerned in any emergency are forced, while working under severe pressure of time, faced with the risks which such situations entail for people, property and the environment and in arduous circumstances, to take decisions that can have a far-reaching economic and ecological impact; whereas, consequently, it is essential for the authorities responsible to have at their disposal a protocol for joint action, clear chains of command, contingency plans and well-equipped safe havens,

S.

whereas the production losses incurred by the Galician fishing industry (according to official statistics) in the first 15 weeks of 2003 stood at EUR 32 million compared with the same period in 2002, and in some ports these losses represent up to 50% of the previous year's production; whereas, moreover, catches in the whole of Galicia stand at no more than 50-60% of the previous year's catches for the same period; whereas from a biological point of view a decline has been noted in some species and in the marine habitat (algae) in which they live,

T.

whereas, according to Spanish government sources, almost 400 soldiers who took part in work to clean up the oil spilt by the ‘Prestige’ were affected by various health problems up to March 2003, while effects on the health of the population and volunteers are still under investigation and the number of cases may turn out to be still higher,

U.

whereas the captain of the ‘Prestige’ is required by a court decision to remain at the disposal of the Spanish judicial authorities, with the result that he was, to the European Parliament's regret, unavailable to attend the open hearing in person; whereas the IMO, regrettably, went likewise unrepresented on that occasion,

1.

Calls on the Conference of Presidents to give favourable consideration to any request for the setting-up of a temporary committee that, after a detailed analysis, will deepen the examination of the causes and consequences of the ‘Prestige’ disaster, assess maritime safety standards more generally and compliance with EU law, seek to ensure implementation of the recommendations contained in this resolution and propose any additional measures which are found to be necessary, to avoid a repeat of the ‘Prestige’ disaster and its consequences;

2.

Urges the Commission to inform Parliament and the general public of the latest outcome of the investigations into the causes and circumstances of the ‘Prestige’ disaster, of the plans which the Member States have adopted and put into operation in order to recover the oil contained in the wreck and put an end to the constant polluting spills, and of the financial compensation made to all injured parties, of the resumption of all economic activities adversely affected and the containment of and repair to environmental damage in the regions affected;

3.

Expresses its admiration for the extraordinary work done in Galicia and the other countries affected by seafarers and their representative organisations and by volunteers, which was instrumental in preventing the fuel oil from entering river estuaries and in enabling the huge cleaning operation needed in the sands and rocks to be successfully completed;

4.

Welcomes the fact that there was no loss of human life involved in this accident since the primary objective of the rules governing safety at sea is to safeguard human lives;

5.

Takes the view that the priorities are, firstly, to protect the safety of people at sea since, in the event of a serious accident at sea, it must always be possible to locate and save the crew and, secondly, to safeguard their economic activity and ensure that the resource is protected;

6.

Calls for the recovery of the starboard ballast tank plate lost at sea before the accident in order to analyse the quality of the steel and the welding;

7.

Regrets that, almost a year after the accident, the wreckage — which still contains more than 14 000 tonnes of fuel — is still leaking; is alarmed in this respect at the lack of transparency associated with the decisions and the procedure adopted to date, which have not prevented the repeated occurrence of oil spills along the Atlantic coastline; calls upon the Council, the Commission and the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) to assist the Spanish authorities with all available technical resources to stop the leakage and to recover the wreck; calls on the Commission to provide regular updates on the treatment of the wreck; asks for the recovered oil to be processed and stored in a suitable protected place; in this connection, calls for a list of the places in which pollutants from previous oil spills along the EU's shores are stored, for information to be requested from the authorities concerned on the treatment of waste and the treatment systems used, and for a timetable to be drawn up for the disposal or processing of such substances, permitting incineration as a processing method only if it is done in accordance with Community legislation;

8.

Stresses that, with the two ‘Erika’ packages in particular, all important measures have been taken to make shipping in European waters safer, and that the rapid and complete introduction, and above all strict implementation, by Member States of the rules and regulations concerned must be the first priority; welcomes the Commission proposals to shorten the implementation deadlines;

9.

Notes that the ‘Prestige’ disaster has clearly shown that arrangements to accommodate vessels in distress are inadequately regulated; calls on Member States to cooperate with EMSA in ensuring timely and full compliance with national emergency planning arrangements and the designation of safe havens, with Member States in particular specifying under what circumstances they will make the use of safe havens compulsory and providing them with the resources needed to implement their respective emergency plans;

10.

Calls on the Commission to submit proposals not later than February 2004 for financial compensation for safe havens and to study the possibility of establishing a financial liability regime for ports refusing to give access to ships in distress;

11.

Insists that each Member State must have at its disposal a clear decision-making structure and chain of command for maritime emergencies, together with an independent authority that in turn has at its disposal the necessary judicial, financial and technical say in taking decisions having binding effect in emergencies within territorial waters and the exclusive economic zone;

12.

Calls on the Commission to arrange for EMSA to take an inventory of the different command structures and authorities responsible in maritime emergencies (cf. the French ‘Préfecture maritime’ and the British Secretary of State's Representative), and to submit recommendations for exchanging best practice, promoting cooperation between Member States and introducing European guidelines or minimum requirements in that connection;

13.

Considers it necessary to draw up specific emergency plans in areas where there is a large volume of shipping traffic and that the authorities of the regions concerned should have the autonomy they need to take action in the event of serious accidents;

14.

Calls on the European Union to establish, through the offices of the Commission, a coordination and intervention structure that enables it to respond to emergencies by channelling European assistance as soon as they arise;

15.

Welcomes the Commission's proposal to provide EMSA with anti-pollution vessels and associated technical equipment;

16.

Calls upon the Council and the Commission to initiate within the IMO the establishment of compulsory routes and traffic separation zones in ecologically sensitive and navigationally difficult areas using existing experience in the Member States, and to report back to the Parliament;

17.

Calls upon the Commission to submit a proposal to the Council and Parliament as soon as possible to ensure that bunker oil for engine fuel in new ships is also stored in safer, double hull tanks since freight or container ships often contain heavy fuel as engine fuel in their bunkers, the quantity of which may considerably exceed the cargoes of smaller oil tankers;