Considerations on COM(2003)227 - Proposal for a Council framework Decision to strengthen the criminal law framework for the enforcement of the law against ship source pollution - Main contents
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| dossier | COM(2003)227 - Proposal for a Council framework Decision to strengthen the criminal law framework for the enforcement of the law against ... |
|---|---|
| document | COM(2003)227  |
| date | July 12, 2005 |
(2) In this context, the Commission adopted on 13 March 2001 a proposal for a Directive on the protection of the environment through criminal law, i which requires Member States to create criminal or other offences and penalties in respect of a number of activities committed intentionally or with serious negligence, if they breach the rules of Community law protecting the environment as set out in the Annex and/or rules adopted by Member States in order to comply with such Community law.
(3) The fight against intentional or negligent ship-source pollution is among the European Union's priorities. The conclusions of the Copenhagen European Council of 12 and 13 December 2002 (points 32 to 34) and the statement of the JHA Council of 19 December 2002 following the shipwreck of the tanker Prestige, in particular, express the Union's determination to adopt all the measures needed to avoid recurrences of such damage.
(4) To this end, as the Commission stated in its Communication to Parliament and the Council on improving safety at sea in response to the Prestige accident, i the legislation of the Member States must be approximated.
(5) The purpose of Parliament and Council Directive 2003/... /EC on ship-source pollution and on the introduction of sanctions, including criminal sanctions, for pollution offences i is to undertake this approximation with regard to the definition of the relevant offences and commission, participation and incitement, on the one hand, and the nature, possibly criminal, of the penalties that can be imposed. It also contains technical and operational supporting measures.
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(6) To supplement these provisions, there should be an approximation of, among other things, the level of penalties corresponding to the seriousness of offences in relation to the natural or legal persons who commit them or are liable for them, in accordance with the conclusions of the JHA Council of 25 and 26 April 2002.
(7) Provisions must be laid down to facilitate criminal investigations. Member States must be able, where necessary, to set up joint investigation teams with which Europol could be associated.
(8) Rules on cooperation must be laid down to ensure that the offences to which Directive 2003/... /EC applies can be effectively prosecuted. To this end, the European Union must supplement the results obtained in regional or international organisations. The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 1982, signed by all the Member States of the Union and with the European Community as a party, is particularly important in this context.
(9) The best possible cooperation must be organised between the Member States to guarantee the swift transmission of information from one Member State to another. Operational contact points must be designated and identified.
(10) Since the objectives of the proposed action cannot be achieved adequately by the Member States separately, but can, owing to the cross-border character of the damage which may be caused by the behaviour concerned, be better achieved by the Union, the Union can take measures, in accordance with the subsidiarity principle enshrined in Article 5 of the Treaty. In accordance with the proportionality principle as declared by that Article, this Framework Decision does not go beyond what is necessary to achieve these goals.
(11) This Framework Decision fully respects the fundamental rights and the principles recognised in particular by the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union.