Madam President, Mr President-in-Office of the Council, Commissioner, this first package of directives on maritime safety is without doubt one of the most important actions our House is going to implement in the course of 2000. France may have been especially hit by various maritime disasters, in particular by the recent wrecks of the Erika and the Ievoli Sun off the coast of Brittany, nevertheless what is at stake is the responsibility of the entire European Union, which managed to draw the necessary conclusions. The European Union has demonstrated its willingness to accept responsibility by putting forward strong proposals aimed at avoiding a recurrence of such serious accidents. I thank Mr Gayssot who, on behalf of the French Presidency, has shown great conviction and skill in dealing with these issues effectively. Nonetheless, we must be aware that these proposals which, as highlighted by the Committee on Industry, External Trade, Research and Energy, are essentially a response to the legal requirements which have been identified in the areas defined by their respective objectives will only be effective insofar as they are correctly implemented by the Member States and monitored by the Commission. I would therefore like to highlight the points which, I feel, cannot be ignored if, following the adoption of these regulations and this directive, the expected progress is to be achieved. First of all, the action of Member States must be translated into action integrated at European level. We must deploy adequate numbers of properly trained people, used to cooperation, whatever their country of origin, and to using similar equipment. I am convinced that this will mean, in the longer term, the establishment of a European coastguard. I expect a great deal from the second series of proposals and from the establishment of a European maritime safety agency. It is at this level that, in one way or another, this indispensable European cooperation must be found. In the meantime, we must, at all costs, eliminate ships whose characteristics give cause for the gravest concern, and this means we must demand transparent intervention on the part of the inspection authorities, who must take measures against ships in a poor condition, irrespective of their age and structure, in line with a significant minimum target factor. We must refuse to permit ships to transit the 200-mile exclusive economic zone if they are not equipped with an IMO-compliant voyage data recorder (VDR) intended to provide information for the purposes of inquiry in the event of an accident. Nor let us forget, as Mrs McKenna said, that a large percentage of marine pollution is due to practices coyly described as ‘operational’, that is, tank cleaning and other deliberate spills, against which the arsenal of deterrents must be intensified. I know how much attention Mr Gayssot pays to the action of Equasis and now to Galileo, which we must implement. Vigorous action must be taken on the question of flags of convenience, including that of the Kerguelen Islands in the case of France, and against ships which fly the flag of states with above average detentions and delays during the 36 months preceding the adoption of these directives, which are blacklisted in the annual report of the Paris Memorandum of Understanding. Attention must also be paid to the complicated financial set-ups based on ‘brass-plate’ companies. My thanks go to Mr Watts for the specific proposals he has made in this connection. I thank the rapporteurs and I urge my fellow Members in the European Parliament to take these proposals into consideration. They seem to me such as to make significant progress possible, which is crucial for the effectiveness of the legislative resolutions we are going to be voting on, which must not remain dead letter terms throughout the territories and waters for which Europe is responsible. I have in mind not only the Atlantic and other oceans, but also the Mediterranean Sea, where disasters such as we have been experiencing could be irreversible. IN THE CHAIR: MR DAVID MARTINVice-President

Political group: Verts-ALE