Activites

• 1999/06/01 Final act published in Official Journal
  • Directive 1999/35
  • OJ L 138 01.06.1999, p. 0001
• #2174
• 1999/04/29 Council Meeting
• 1999/04/29 End of procedure in Parliament
• 1999/04/29 Act adopted by Council after consultation of Parliament
• 1999/04/19 Modified legislative proposal published
  • COM(1999)0168
• 1999/03/10 Decision by Parliament, 2nd reading
  • T4-0163/1999 summary

    At second reading under cooperation procedure, the European Parliament amended the Council common position on the proposal for a Council directive on a system of mandatory surveys for the safe operation of regular ro-ro ferry and high speed passenger craft services in the following areas: - specifying that exemption from compliance with some of the requirements with regard to voyage data recorders for a period of up to 5 years; - requiring the Commission to make information publicly available on the particulars of ro-ro ferries or high-speed passenger craft permitted to operate on domestic or international voyages or any operational limitations; - extending inspections of lifeboats and rescue boats to cover all life-saving appliances, to ensure that they are complete and in good order. The Parliament's rapporteur is Mark Francis Watts (PSE,UK).�

• 1999/03/09 Debate in Parliament
  • Debate in Parliament
• 1999/02/17 Vote in committee, 2nd reading
  • A4-0061/1999
• 1999/01/14 Committee referral announced in Parliament, 2nd reading
• 1998/12/21 Council position published
  • 12893/3/1998 summary

    The common position incorporates, in part or in full, 10 amendments adopted by the European Parliament at first reading and accepted by the Commission in its amended proposal. The incorporated amendments relate to the following: - the purpose of the directive, which is to create a mandatory survey regime; - the definition of "passenger"; - extending the directive to voyages by sea to and from the same port; - the definition of host state; - the deletion of Article 6 (3) of the proposal in order not to place on the company the burden of proof of compliance by the administration of their flag state with the requirements of the directive; - setting a time limit of not more than one month for carrying out the first survey; - communicating the main findings of the surveys to the flag state; - charging survey costs to the companies; - assessment by the Commission (first report 3 years after the entry into force of the directive and report on progress in the field of maritime passenger transport safety). While following the essential elements of the Commission proposal, the common position seeks to reinforce safety, reduce the costs levelled against maritime companies and administrations and ensure coherence of the directive with other instruments, whether those of the Community or those adopted by the IMO. In particular, the common position makes the following provisions: 1) extensive verifications and surveys of ships both before and after their entry into service: Member States will: - undertake an initial verification of ferries or craft with regard to their certification, classification, voyage data recorder and stability; - verify whether maritime companies are ensuring that the ship is appropriately run, and are fully disposed to cooperate with maritime accident investigations and whether the flag state is cooperating with those companies; - undertake an initial survey of these ships in order to verify whether they comply with the Convention on the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS); - during their use, conduct specific regular (annual) surveys of ships. The common position explains the rules to be followed by the administrations carrying out the surveys. Companies will be informed of the results of verifications and surveys. If norms are not complied with, companies will not be allowed to use the offending ships and will be required to rectify deficiencies. 2) Participation of the host state in maritime accident investigations: host states will be permitted to take full part in investigations into accidents affecting regular services to their ports. 3) Technical, organisational and surveillance requirements: Member States should make use of integrated navigational guidance schemes. The Commission will establish a database of ships covered by the directive in order to monitor the development of the safety of those ships which have been surveyed. Companies are required to draw up plans for dealing with onboard emergency situations.�

• #2153
• 1998/12/20 Council Meeting
• 1998/11/09 Modified legislative proposal published
  • COM(1998)0636 summary

    The Commission's amended proposal incorporates the European Parliament's amendments in as far as they do not affect coherence with other directives and regulations on maritime security and the objectives cannot be achieved by means of the proposed committee procedure. The Commission accepts the amendments relating to the objective of the directive: the creation of a regime of compulsory surveys by host states with a view to establishing a uniform level of safety in the use of regular roll-on roll-off ferry services and high speed passenger craft destined for or departing from ports of the Member States of the Community. Several additional definitions already used in Directive 98/18/EC (e.g. "port area") have been introduced. The Commission accepts the principle that the burden of proof that a flag state has accepted the company's commitment to comply with the directive as regards those of its ships sailing under a third country flag should not lie with the company. Similarly, the Commission agrees on the inclusion of the idea of requiring those users who fail to comply with the norms, as an additional means of dissuasion, to pay the survey costs. It also proposes drafting a report evaluating the effectiveness of the directive 3 years after the date of its entry into force. The Commission was unable to accept those amendments which: - change the definition of "regular service" and which refer directly to Directive 94/57/EC; - lead to the automatic application of future amendments to Resolution A.746 (18) by the IMO; - rule out any possibility of exemption from compliance with the performance norms for voyage data recorders installed in existing ships, on justified technical grounds, after a period of 5 years; - ensure complete transparency without taking account of reliability and safety, and without providing guarantees against commercial abuse; - impose the provision of information which is not required by international conventions or Community legislation with regard to maritime safety.�

• 1998/10/07 Decision by Parliament, 1st reading/single reading
  • T4-0555/1998 summary

    In adopting the report by Mr Mark WATTS (PSE, UK), the European Parliament wished to specify that the purpose of this Directive was the setting up of a mandatory survey regime by the host States with a view to a uniform level of safety in the operation of regular ro-ro ferry and high speed passenger craft services to or from ports in the Member States of the Community. Parliament considered that ro-ro ferry or high speed passenger craft services from and to the same port should also comply with the requirements of the Directive if the voyage extends beyond the port area. Information on the particulars of ro-ro ferries or high speed craft permitted to operate on domestic or international voyages or any operational limitations should be made publicly available as well as forming the basis for an annual report to be submitted by the Commission.�

• 1998/10/06 Debate in Parliament
  • Debate in Parliament
• 1998/09/02 Vote in committee, 1st reading/single reading
  • A4-0310/1998
• #2108
• 1998/06/17 Council Meeting
  • 2108
• 1998/03/13 Committee referral announced in Parliament, 1st reading/single reading
• 1998/02/18 Legislative proposal published
  • COM(1998)0071 summary

    OBJECTIVE: to achieve in practice, through commonly agreed principles, an increased harmonization of the interpretation of international safety requirements; to ensure the effective application of these requirements; to ensure transparency on the conditions required for operating ro-ro ferry and high speed passenger craft on regular services to and from ports of a Member State, for all parties involved, host and flag administrations, as well as companies. SUBSTANCE: the proposal basically seeks to: - list all the conditions related to maritime safety issues which have to be fulfilled by a company to operate its ro-ro ferry or high speed passenger craft on a regular service to or from European ports, as well as, although indirectly, by a flag State, whose flag such ships or craft are flying; - establish a regime for verifying and inspecting compliance with all conditions, including operational conditions, for ro-ro passenger ships and high speed passenger craft operating to or from EC ports, prior to their entry into service and subsequently at regular intervals; - ensure the participation of host States in any investigation of maritime accident involving a ro-ro ferry or high speed passenger craft operating on a regular service to or from an EC port; - avoid unnecessary expanded PSC inspection procedures for ferries and craft which have demonstrated compliance with the conditions of the directive; - facilitate within the Community the putting into operation on a specific regular service of ships and craft confirmed to be in compliance with the requirements of the Directive as well as the transfer of such ships and craft to other regular services with similar operational conditions�

Documents

• Legislative proposal published: COM(1998)0071
• Debate in Council: 2108
• Committee report tabled for plenary, 1st reading/single reading: A4-0310/1998
• Debate in Parliament: Debate in Parliament
• Decision by Parliament, 1st reading/single reading: T4-0555/1998
• Modified legislative proposal published: COM(1998)0636
• Council position published: 12893/3/1998
• Committee recommendation tabled for plenary, 2nd reading: A4-0061/1999
• Debate in Parliament: Debate in Parliament
• Decision by Parliament, 2nd reading: T4-0163/1999
• Modified legislative proposal published: COM(1999)0168
• : Directive 1999/35
• : OJ L 138 01.06.1999, p. 0001

History

(these mark the time of scraping, not the official date of the change)