Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, we find ourselves today at the second reading stage of a draft Regulation that I regard as being of great significance and which in particular makes one thing clear, namely that, particularly through the committed involvement of the responsible Commissioner, the lack of what should long ago have been a matter of fact in the field of air travel has, in recent months, at length been successfully made good. I refer to the fact that air travel should know no frontiers and regulations and safety measures affecting air travel should naturally, therefore, also be without borders, meaning, in this instance, that they should be organised, as is appropriate, on a uniform basis across Europe or at least throughout the Member States. The regulation we are reading for the second time establishes an agency for aviation safety and ensures that assessments will in future be made uniformly as to which aircraft are to be built in accordance with which criteria before being licensed to enter service. It is obvious that the uniform assessment of designs makes this step significant in terms of air safety, but it is in my view also self-evidently essential to the aircraft industry, which has hitherto had to apply for authorisation in each individual Member State, but will in future be in a position to sort these problems out with one authority and with one agency, and get the relevant certification from them. The task of the Aviation Safety Agency will be to approve aircraft, certify them and oversee their operation. At the same time, supervision of the flight crew, as also maintenance and other measures, all of which are factors in aviation safety, are in future to be regulated by law, something for which we clearly expressed a desire during discussions in committee and during preparations for second reading. Let me repeat the clear message that this regulation's principal objective is the creation of a uniformly high standard for aviation safety in Europe. There are of course further objectives or knock-on effects associated with this, which can be described quite briefly. These are, on the one hand, greater cost-effectiveness for the aircraft industry, and on the other, which I consider equally important, the fact that it will be guaranteed that relevant standards will be interpreted in a uniform way, thus promoting and enhancing the Community's position in the world, that is, with especial reference to the American situation. The committee's concern was that the Aviation Safety Agency's general political independence, for the issues involved are exclusively of a technical nature, in which decisions are to be taken by authoritative experts and specialists rather than by politicians in Parliament or the Council. It was also important to guarantee the Agency's autonomy, meaning that the Executive Director really is the head of the authority and, at the same time, that the Management Board is in a position to lay down appropriate guidelines for the Agency and influence the way in which it works. I know that this puts us into a conflict situation with the Council and the Commission, but I believe that our numerous discussions have brought solutions which of course ensure that the Commission's responsibility is made clear, that it will continue, so to speak, to supervise the Aviation Safety Agency, but that it is clear at the same time that the Aviation Safety Agency must also take responsibility for itself in its area of expertise. I am confident that a conciliation procedure will be avoided, that we will be able to activate this regulation with the Council's agreement, and that the Agency will indeed be able to start work twelve months after that. We have, in my judgment, taken a great step forward in the area of aviation safety. I will take this opportunity to thank all of those who set this legislative project in motion and supported it, especially my colleagues in the Committee on Regional Transport and Tourism. I also thank the Commission and the Council for their willingness to seek compromises, and now hope that today's vote will enable us to complete this report, and that we will then begin a new chapter in the history of aviation safety in Europe. (Applause)

Political group: PPE-DE