MEMORANDUM FROM THE EUROPEAN COAL AND STEEL COMMUNITY (ECSC) CONSULTATIVE COMMITTEE

on the future of the ECSC Treaty

(93/C 14/04)

(Unanimously adopted at the 302nd session of 20 November 1992)

The ECSC Consultative Committee has taken note of the main documents published by the competent institutions regarding the future of the ECSC Treaty and in particular:

- the Commission communication of 15 March 1991,

- the reports of the European Parliament's Committee on Institutional Affairs (by Mr Rudolf Luster, dated 3 December 1991, and by Mr David Martin, dated 18 December 1991) as well as the resolutions adopted by the Parliament on 16 January 1992),

- the opinions of the European Parliament's Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs and Industrial Policy and Committee on Energy, Research and Technology,

- the new wording of Article 7 of the ECSC Treaty which was adopted in February 1992 by the ministers for foreign affairs in the context of the 'minor revision` of the ECSC and European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC) Treaties,

- the Resolution of the European Parliament of 9 July 1992 on the budgetary and financial consequences of the future of the ECSC Treaty.

The ECSC Consultative Committee has itself given its opinion on this subject on numerous occasions:

- in its memorandum of 12 November 1990 (1), which asked in particular:

- that the ECSC Treaty should remain in force until 2002 as an autonomous legal instrument,

- that the Commission should continue to involve the Consultative Committee closely in the Community's coal and steel policy, and in all discussions on the future of the ECSC Treaty,

- in its memorandum of 1 October 1991 (2), where it set out to define the general principles which in its opinion should guide the Commission in drawing up the ECSC budget,

- in its resolution of 2 June 1992 (3) concerning a fresh policy for the future of the Community steel industry,

- in its resolution of 19 November 1992 (4) on a coal policy in the internal market.

meeting of the Industry Council on 24 November 1992, the Consultative Committee wishes to confirm its earlier opinions and to expand on the following points therein:

- the Commission's responsibilities,

- public aid,

- principal activities,

- reserves and the levy.

I. The Commission's responsibilities

The Consultative Committee recalls that the ECSC Treaty gave the Community Institutions particular responsibilities in the field of coal and steel and, with these in mind, provided them with specific means of action.

It deplores that some drifting away has occurred in this field over a number of years and that the Commission, in particular, would seem to desire to forgo the use of some of the means of action available to it.

In its opinion, the Commission should continue to exercise the responsibilities given it under the ECSC Treaty, in particular:

on the internal market

- by conducting a continuous, detailed study of market and price trends, in liaison with Community undertakings, workers, consumers and dealers, and their associations (Article 46 of the ECSC Treaty),

- by drawing up forward programmes for the main categories of products at sufficiently frequent intervals (Article 46),

- by transparency of statistical information and investment projects (Articles 47 and 54),

- by encouraging concentrations of undertakings and other forms of cooperation (Articles 66 and 65) and by providing the means to deal with the social consequences of these,

and in the external domain

- by increasing human resources and strengthening legal means in order to ensure the efficient implementation of anti-dumping and countervailing procedures (Article 74),

- by immediately implementing the safeguard clauses provided for in association agreements as soon as the conditions for their implementation are met,

- by setting up a stable and lasting system to ensure that sales from third countries (whether associated or not) on the Community market do not threaten its balance and depress prices.

II. Public Aid

On the question of public aid, the Consultative Committee confirms that the general ban laid down in Article 4 (c) of the ECSC Treaty should be maintained for the iron and steel industry, with the sole exceptions specified by the set of rules for aid in force. If a derogation from these rules seems necessary, bearing in mind the imperatives of the market, it must be compensated for by a cut in production and not just a cut in production capacity.

Where the coal industry is concerned, it is essential that the authorization of specific aid should continue to be maintained in order to take account of requirements in terms of security of supply and of social and regional needs. The Committee considers, furthermore, that until such time as a Community energy policy can be put into place, the responsibility of national governments in matters affecting security of supply must be recognized.

III. Principal activities

The Consultative Committee considers it essential that the activities defined by Articles 55 and 56 of the ECSC Treaty be continued:

- in the social domain (contribution to compensation for loss of employment, readaptation aid and aid for the creation of new activities in the context of redevelopment provided for by Article 56), and

- in technical, economic and social research (Article 55), as well as in the protection of the environment.

It considers that it should be possible as from now for the coal and steel industries to benefit from EEC financing of their basic research programmes.

It stresses, furthermore, that by means of the dialogue between the social partners which it has allowed, social research has proved its effectiveness, particularly by the sharp reduction in occupational accidents and diseases as well as by the improvement in working conditions it has led to. These results provide a continued justification for the programme, as do also economic reasons.

IV. Reserves and the levy

The Consultative Committee recalls the basic principles which in its opinion should guide the Commission in drawing up the ECSC budget (see memorandum of 1 October 1991):

- a gradual reduction in the levy,

- a gradual drawing on the ECSC reserves,

- definition of a number of priorities for expenditure from the ECSC budget, particularly for financing the social measures still needed and for research and development,

- a more realistic estimate of real expenditure requirements,

- transfer of ECSC lending and borrowing activities to the European Investment Bank (EIB).

These principles still hold, and the Consultative Committee wishes to clarify them as follows:

- the current economic and financial situation of the coal and steel industries evidently increases the need for a gradual reduction in the levy rate,

- the Committee recalls its consistent position that priority should be given to using the reserves for the benefit of the undertakings and their workers who, since 1952, have provided the bulk of the funds from which they were set up.

There appears to be no need to maintain the guarantee fund at its current level, since ECSC borrowings are guaranteed de facto, if not de jure, by the Member States and it should now be possible to transfer to the EIB a very substantial part of the loans (and their management) to non-ECSC undertakings, namely:

- loans for investments 'which contribute to facilitating the marketing of ECSC products` (Article 54 of the Treaty, subparagraph 2),

- loans to 'programmes for the creation of new activities` (Article 56 (1) (b) and (2) (a) of the Treaty).

Priority should be given to using the funds thus released to support the process of restructuring and to mitigate the social cost thereof. This could be achieved either directly in the context of the ECSC budget, or via a foundation or foundations for coal and steel set up to that end, or by any other means (see Article 53 (b) of the ECSC Treaty). These foundations could also have the role of partly financing research and development programmes in the two sectors.

The Consultative Committee requests that the greatest possible account be taken of the above when the coal and steel industries are incorporated into the future single Treaty, whether this takes place before 2002, as now seems unlikely, or in that year.

It stresses that the considerable problem of restructuring which remains in coal- and steel-producing regions makes indispensable the maintenance of the social measures for coal and steel industry workers provided for under Article 56 of the ECSC Treaty.

To that end, the ECSC reserves could be used to provide capital for coal and steel foundations, whose roles have still to be defined, but which would be based on the provisions already in force and would take into account new requirements in harmony with the objectives of the ECSC.

It requests that the importance of energy supply, and coal's contribution to it, should be given positive recognition and that, to this end, the authorization of specific aid for the Community coal industry should be maintained.

It considers that the Consultative Committee, set up under Articles 7, 18 and 19 of the ECSC Treaty, and all the other specialized committees, particularly in the area of research, have proved themselves to be efficient and democratic advisory organs within the coal and steel policy-making process, and should be maintained in the single Treaty in a form which would also allow them to become bodies with responsibility in the area of energy policy.

(1) OJ No C 302, 1. 12. 1990, p. 3.

(2) OJ No C 291, 8. 11. 1991, p. 2.

(3) OJ No C 161, 27. 6. 1992, p. 3.

(4) See page 2 of this Official Journal.