Explanatory Memorandum to COM(2006)646 - Amendment of Directive 2006/…/EC laying down technical requirements for inland waterway vessels

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dossier COM(2006)646 - Amendment of Directive 2006/…/EC laying down technical requirements for inland waterway vessels.
source COM(2006)646 EN
date 24-10-2006
1. INTRODUCTION

In order to avoid further delays in the entry into force of Directive 2006/.../EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of [...] 2006 laying down technical requirements for inland waterway vessels and repealing Council Decision No 82/714/EEC i, the measures necessary for the implementation of this Directive need as a matter of urgency to be aligned with Council Decision No 1999/468/EC i.

Contents

1.

Directive 2006/.../EC establishes harmonised conditions for issuing technical certificates for inland waterway vessels throughout the Community's inland waterway network


The technical requirements set out in the Annexes to Directive 2006/.../EC for the most part incorporate the provisions laid down in the Regulation on Inspection of Shipping on the Rhine, in the version approved in 2004 by the member states of the Central Commission for Navigation on the Rhine (CCNR). The conditions and technical requirements for issuing inland navigation certificates under Article 22 of the Revised Convention for Rhine Navigation are updated regularly and are recognised as reflecting current technological developments.

In order to prevent distortions of competition and varying levels of safety, it is desirable, specifically in the interests of promoting harmonisation at European level, to adopt equivalent technical requirements for the whole of the Community's inland waterway network and, subsequently, to update them at regular intervals in order to maintain equivalence.

Directive 2006/…/EC should facilitate the adaptation of these technical requirements in the future, by way of a comitology procedure, in the light of technical progress and of developments arising from the work of other international organisations, in particular that of the CCNR. The second indent of Article 20 i specifies that “ Those amendments shall be made rapidly in order to ensure that the technical requirements necessary for the issuing of the Community inland navigation certificate recognised for navigation on the Rhine give a level of safety equivalent to that required for the issuing of the certificate referred to in Article 22 of the Revised Convention for Rhine Navigation .”

In order to facilitate these rapid amendments, the co-legislators have selected the advisory procedure as the most appropriate of those laid down by Council Decision 1999/468/EC of 28 June 1999 laying down the procedures for the exercise of implementing powers conferred on the Commission i.

With a view to involving the co-legislators more fully in scrutinising executive acts, Council Decision 2006/512/EC of 17 July 2006 i amending Council Decision 1999/468/EC introduced a regulatory procedure with scrutiny (Article 5a of Decision 1999/468/EC, as amended).

Undifferentiated application of this procedure would entail considerable delays in adapting the Annexes to Directive 2006/…/EC, which would go against the express wishes of the co-legislations as mentioned above. In view of the fact that the Rhine standards are adapted regularly, these delays would be such as to produce the risk of substantial discrepancies between the levels of navigation safety on the Rhine and on other inland waterways in the Community. This would constitute a distortion in competition for Community operators wishing to operate shipping on the Rhine. It would compromise the very effectiveness of the Community inland navigation certificate issued pursuant to Directive 2006/…/EC.

For the above reasons, provision must be made for the Commission to be able to apply the emergency procedure provided for in Article 5a i of Council Decision No 1999/468/EC in respect of adaptation of the Annexes or adoption of temporary provisions enabling it, after receiving the assent of the Committee, to adopt and immediately implement such measures. Furthermore, for reasons of effectiveness, the time limits normally applicable under the regulatory procedure with scrutiny should be shortened for any other measure to be taken concerning the safety of inland navigation.

2.

2. AMENDMENTS TO ARTICLES OF THE DIRECTIVE


3.

2.1. Article 19


A reference to the new regulatory procedure with scrutiny introduced by Council Decision 1999/468/EC, as amended, should be added in Article 19 concerning the Committee procedure.

As mentioned above, taking navigation safety reasons into consideration, in order to prevent distortions of competition and in order to enable rapid amendments as provided for by Article 20 i of the Directive, the Commission must be able to apply the emergency procedure provided for by Council Decision 1999/468/EC, as amended. The new Article 19 i stipulates that Article 5a i, i and i and Article 7 of Council Decision 1999/468/EC are applicable, having regard to the provisions of Article 8 thereof.

The new Article 19 i stipulates that Articles 5a i to i, Article 5a(5)(b) and Article 7 of Council Decision 1999/468/EC are applicable, having regard to the provisions of Article 8 thereof. For reasons of effectiveness, the time limits provided for in Articles 5a(3)(c), 5a(4)(b) and 5a(4)(e) of Council Decision 1999/468/EC are set at 21 days for Article 5a(3)(c), 15 days for Article 5a(4)(b) and one month for Article 5a(4)(e).

4.

2.2. Article 20


The adaptation of the Annexes in accordance with the first indent of Article 20 i of Directive 2006/.../EC constitutes a measure of general scope aimed at amending certain non-essential elements of the basic instrument, including by deleting such provisions or supplementing them by adding new non-essential elements. In accordance with Article 2 i of Council Decision 1999/468/EC, as amended, such measures must be adopted in accordance with the regulatory procedure with scrutiny.

For the above reasons, a reference to the emergency procedure as laid down in the new Article 19 i of the Directive should be added.

2.3. Annex II to the Directive, Article 1.06

Article 1.06 of Annex II to the Directive provides for the possibility of adopting temporary provisions “ where it is found urgently necessary, for the purposes of adaptation to technical progress of inland waterway transport, to allow derogations from the provisions of this Directive before an expected amendment of this Directive itself or to allow tests .”

In respect of the adoption of such provisions, a reference to the emergency procedure as laid down in the new Article 19 i of the Directive should be added.

5.

2.4. Annex II to the Directive, Articles 10.03a and 10.03b


Article 10.03 of Annex II to the Directive provides for application of the Committee procedure in respect of the recognition of additional standards concerning the type-approval of certain fire-fighting systems.

Article 10.03 of Annex II to the Directive provides for application of the Committee procedure in respect of certain additional extinguishing agents.

These being measures of general scope which typically are not urgent, to each Article should be added a reference to the regulatory procedure with scrutiny as laid down in the new Article 19 i of the Directive.