COMMON POSITION (EC) No 15/2008

adopted by the Council on 6 June 2008

with a view to adopting Directive 2008/…/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of … amending Directive 2002/59/EC establishing a Community vessel traffic monitoring and information system

(Text with EEA relevance)

(2008/C 184 E/01)

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 80(2) thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,

Having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee (1),

Having regard to the opinion of the Committee of the Regions (2),

Acting in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 251 of the Treaty (3),

Whereas:

With the adoption of Directive 2002/59/EC (4) , the European Union reinforced its capacity for preventing situations posing a threat to the safety of human life at sea and to the protection of the marine environment.

Since this Directive concerns the amendment of Directive 2002/59/EC, most of the obligations it contains will not be applicable to Member States without sea shores and sea ports. Consequently, the only obligations which will be applicable to Austria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Luxembourg or Slovakia are those obligations concerning ships flying the flag of those Member States, without prejudice to Member States' duty of cooperation to ensure continuity between maritime and other modal traffic management services, in particular river information services.

Under this Directive Member States that are coastal States should be able to exchange information, which they gather in the course of maritime traffic monitoring missions, which they carry out in their areas of competence. The Community maritime information exchange system ‘SafeSeaNet’ (hereinafter referred to as ‘SafeSeaNet’), developed by the Commission in agreement with the Member States, comprises, on the one hand, a data exchange network and, on the other hand, a standardisation of the main information available on ships and their cargo (advance notice and reporting). It thus makes it possible to locate at source and communicate to any authority accurate and up-to-date information on ships in European waters, their movements and their dangerous or polluting cargoes, as well as marine incidents.

Accordingly, in order to guarantee operational use of the information gathered in this way, it is essential that the infrastructure necessary for the data collection and exchange referred to in this Directive and implemented by the national administrations be integrated into the SafeSeaNet.

Of the information notified and exchanged pursuant to Directive 2002/59/EC, that concerning the precise characteristics of dangerous or polluting goods carried by sea is particularly important. Accordingly, and in the light of recent maritime accidents, coastal authorities should be allowed easier access to the characteristics of the hydrocarbons being carried by sea, an essential factor in choosing the most suitable control techniques, and, in an emergency, provided with a direct link with those operators who have the best knowledge of the goods being carried.

The automatic ship identification systems (AIS — Automatic Identification System) referred to in the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea of 1 November 1974 make it possible not only to improve the possibilities of monitoring these ships but above all to make them safer in close navigation situations. AIS have accordingly been integrated into the enacting terms of Directive 2002/59/EC. Considering the large number of collisions involving fishing vessels that have clearly not been seen by merchant ships or which have not seen the merchant ships around them, extension of that measure to include fishing vessels with a length of more than 15 metres is very much to be desired. In the framework of the European Fisheries Fund, financial assistance may be provided for the fitting on board of fishing vessels of safety equipment such as AIS.

The obligation to fit AIS should be understood also to require that AIS be maintained in operation at all times except where international rules or standards provide for the protection of navigational information.

It would be useful to study what synergies might be possible between AIS and the positioning and communication systems used in the context of the common fisheries policy, such as the satellite-based vessel monitoring system. For this purpose, the Commission, in cooperation with the Member States, should study the feasibility and determine the detailed rules for integrating AIS with the positioning and communication systems used in the context of the common fisheries policy. Investigation of the possibilities of integrating these systems should take account of the needs and requirements of controlling fishing fleets, particularly as regards the security and confidentiality of the data transmitted.

Directive 2002/59/EC provides that Member States are to adopt special measures in respect of ships posing a potential hazard due to their behaviour or condition. It therefore seems desirable to add to the list of these ships those which do not have satisfactory insurance cover or financial guarantees or which have been reported by pilots or port authorities as having apparent anomalies which may prejudice their safe navigation or create a risk for the environment.

In accordance with Directive 2002/59/EC, it seems necessary, in relation to the risks posed by exceptionally bad weather, to take into account the potential danger to shipping from ice formation. Therefore, where a competent authority designated by a Member State considers, on the basis of an ice forecast provided by a qualified meteorological information service, that the sailing conditions are creating a serious threat to the safety of human life or a serious threat of pollution, it should so inform the masters of the ships present in its area of competence or intending to enter or leave the port or ports in the area concerned. The authority concerned should be able to take any appropriate steps to ensure the safety of human life at sea and to protect the environment.

Directive 2002/59/EC provides that Member States are to draw up plans to accommodate, if the situation so requires, ships in distress in their ports or in any other protected place in the best possible conditions, in order to limit the consequences of accidents at sea. However, taking into account the Guidelines on Places of Refuge for Ships in Need of Assistance annexed to Resolution A.949(23) of the International Maritime Organisation of 13 December 2003 (hereinafter referred to as ‘IMO Resolution A.949(23)’), which were adopted subsequently to Directive 2002/59/EC and refer to ships in need of assistance when safety of life is not involved, rather than to ships in distress, that Directive should be amended accordingly.

On the basis of IMO Resolution A.949(23) and following the work carried out jointly by the Commission, the European Maritime Safety Agency (hereinafter referred to as the ‘Agency’) and the Member States, it is necessary to lay down the basic provisions that plans for accommodating ships in need of assistance should contain in order to ensure a harmonised and effective implementation of this measure and clarify the scope of obligations incumbent on the Member States.

IMO Resolution A.949(23) is to form the basis of any plans prepared by Member States in order to respond effectively to threats posed by ships in need of assistance. However, when assessing the risks associated with such threats, Member States may, in view of their special circumstances, take into consideration other factors, such as the use of sea water for the production of potable water as well as the generation of electricity.

When a ship is in need of assistance, a decision may have to be taken as regards the accommodation of that ship in a place of refuge. To this end, the authority concerned should make a preliminary evaluation of the situation on the basis of the information contained in the relevant plan for accommodation of ships in a place of refuge.

Plans for accommodating ships in need of assistance should describe precisely the decision-making chain with regard to alerting and dealing with the situations in question. The authorities concerned and their remits should be clearly described, as should the means of communication between the parties involved. The applicable procedures should ensure that an appropriate decision can be taken quickly on the basis of expertise and adequate information available to the competent authority.

When drawing up the plans, Member States should gather information on potential places of refuge on the coast so as to allow the competent authority, in the event of an accident or incident at sea, to identify clearly and quickly the most suitable areas for accommodating ships in need of assistance. This relevant information should contain a description of certain characteristics of the sites under consideration and the equipment and installations available to make it easier to accommodate ships in need of assistance or deal with the consequences of an accident or pollution.

It is important for the list of competent authorities responsible for deciding whether to accommodate a ship in a place of refuge, and the list of authorities responsible for receiving and handling alerts, to be published appropriately. It may also prove useful for the parties involved in a maritime assistance operation, including assistance and towing companies, and the authorities of neighbouring Member States likely to be affected by an emergency at sea, to have access to relevant information.

The specific function of the vessel traffic monitoring and ship's routing measures is to allow Member States to obtain a true knowledge of the ships using the waters under their jurisdiction and thus enable them to take more effective action against potential risks if necessary. Sharing the information gathered helps to improve its quality and makes it easier to process.

In accordance with Directive 2002/59/EC, Member States and the Commission have made substantial progress towards harmonising electronic data exchange, in particular as regards the transport of dangerous or polluting goods. SafeSeaNet, in development since 2002, should now be established as the reference network at Community level.

The progress made in the new technologies and in particular in their space applications, such as beacon-based ship monitoring systems, imaging systems or Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), now makes it possible to extend traffic monitoring further offshore and thereby to ensure better coverage of European waters, including by Long Range Identification and Tracking (LRIT) systems. There will have to be full cooperation within the Community on this work if these tools are to become an integral part of the vessel traffic monitoring and information system established by Directive 2002/59/EC.

In order to guarantee the best possible use, harmonised at Community level, of information gathered under Directive 2002/59/EC concerning maritime safety, the Commission should be able, if necessary, to process and use these data and disseminate them to the authorities designated by Member States.

In this context, the development of the ‘Equasis’ system has shown how important it is to encourage a ‘safe seas’ culture, especially in maritime transport operators. The Commission should be able to contribute to the dissemination, particularly via this system, of any information in relation to maritime safety.

Regulation (EC) No 2099/2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 November 2002 establishing a Committee on Safe Seas and the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (COSS) (5) centralises the tasks of the committees set up under the relevant Community legislation on maritime safety, prevention of pollution from ships and protection of living and working conditions on board. The existing committee should therefore be replaced by the COSS.

The measures necessary for the implementation of this Directive should be adopted in accordance with Council Decision 1999/468/EC of 28 June 1999 laying down the procedures for the exercise of implementing powers conferred to the Commission (6) .

In particular, the Commission should be empowered to amend Directive 2002/59/EC in order to apply subsequent amendments to the international conventions, protocols, codes and resolutions related thereto. Since those measures are of general scope and are designed to amend non-essential elements of that Directive, inter alia by supplementing it with new non-essential elements, they must be adopted in accordance with the regulatory procedure with scrutiny provided for in Article 5a of Decision 1999/468/EC.

In accordance with Regulation (EC) No 1406/2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 June 2002 establishing a European Maritime Safety Agency (7) , the Agency provides the Commission and Member States with the necessary support in implementing Directive 2002/59/EC.

In accordance with point 34 of the Interinstitutional Agreement on better law-making (8) , Member States are encouraged to draw up, for themselves and in the interests of the Community, their own tables illustrating, as far as possible, the correlation between this Directive and the transposition measures, and to make them public.

HAVE ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE:

Article 1

Amendments

Directive 2002/59/EC is hereby amended as follows:

“ship in need of assistance” means a ship in a situation, apart from one requiring rescue of persons on board, that could give rise to loss of the ship or an environmental or navigational hazard.’;

“scheduled service” means a series of ship crossings operated so as to serve traffic between the same two or more ports, either according to a published timetable or with crossings so regular or frequent that they constitute a recognisable systematic series;

“SafeSeaNet” means the Community maritime information exchange system developed by the Commission in cooperation with the Member States to ensure the implementation of Community legislation;

Fishing vessels equipped with AIS shall maintain it in operation at all times. In exceptional circumstances, AIS may be switched off where the master considers this necessary in the interest of the safety or security of his vessel.’;

Any fishing vessel with an overall length of more than 15 metres and flying the flag of a Member State and registered in the Community, or operating in the internal waters or territorial sea of a Member State, or landing its catch in the port of a Member State shall, in accordance with the timetable set out in Annex II, part I(3), be fitted with an AIS (Class A) which meets the performance standards drawn up by the IMO.

It shall be the duty of the shipper to deliver to the master or operator such declaration and to ensure that the shipment offered for carriage is indeed the one declared in accordance with the first paragraph.’;

the emergency numbers of the shipper or any other person or body in possession of information on the physico-chemical characteristics of the products and on the action to be taken in an emergency.

for the substances referred to in Annex I to the MARPOL Convention, the safety data sheet detailing the physico-chemical characteristics of the products, including their viscosity expressed in cSt at 50 °C and their density at 15 °C;

No dangerous or polluting goods shall be offered for carriage or taken on board any ship, irrespective of its size, in a port of a Member State unless a declaration has been delivered to the master or operator containing the following information:

ships which have been reported by pilots or port authorities as having apparent anomalies which may prejudice their safe navigation or create a risk for the environment.’;

ships which have failed to notify, or do not have, insurance certificates or financial guarantees pursuant to any Community legislation and international rules;

2. The measures taken pursuant to paragraph 1 shall be based, as regards the data concerning the ice conditions, upon ice and weather forecasts provided by a qualified meteorological information service recognised by the Member State.’;

they may, without prejudice to the duty of assistance to ships in need of assistance and other obligations flowing from relevant international rules, request that a ship which is in the area concerned and intends to enter or leave a port or terminal or to leave an anchorage area, satisfy the strength and power requirements commensurate with the ice situation in the area concerned.

they shall supply the master of a ship which is in their area of competence, or intends to enter or leave one of their ports, with appropriate information on the ice conditions, the recommended routes and the icebreaking services in their area of competence;

1. Where the competent authorities consider, in view of ice conditions, that there is a serious threat to the safety of human life at sea or to the protection of their shipping areas or coastal zones, or of the shipping areas or coastal zones of other States:

‘To this end they shall communicate to the competent national authorities, on request, the information referred to in Article 12.’;

2. The authorities referred to in paragraph 1 shall meet regularly to exchange their expertise and improve the measures taken pursuant to this Article. They may meet at any time, on account of specific circumstances.’;

1. The acceptance or refusal of a ship in need of assistance in a place of refuge shall be the subject of a prior assessment of the situation carried out on the basis of the plan referred to in Article 20a and a decision taken by a competent authority.

4. Member States shall inform the Commission by … (9) of the measures taken in application of this Article.’;

If requested by Member States, those receiving information in accordance with the second and third subparagraphs shall be bound by an obligation of confidentiality.

In implementing the procedures provided for in the plans for accommodating ships in need of assistance, Member States shall ensure that relevant information is made available to the parties involved in the operations.

3. Member States shall publish the name of the competent authority referred to in Article 20(1) and of the authorities appointed for receiving and handling alerts.

the assessment procedures for acceptance or refusal of a ship in need of assistance in a place of refuge;

information on the coastline of the Member States, which will assist the assessment of a ship in need of assistance in a place of refuge, including the description of environmental, economic and social factors and natural conditions;

the identity of the competent authority for assessing the situation and taking a decision on acceptance or refusal of a ship in need of assistance in the place of refuge selected;

2. The plans referred to in paragraph 1 shall be prepared after consultation of the parties concerned, on the basis of IMO Resolutions A.949(23) and A.950(23), and shall contain at least the following:

1. Member States shall draw up plans for responding to threats presented by ships in need of assistance in the waters under their jurisdiction.

3. To guarantee an effective exchange of the information referred to in this Directive, Member States shall ensure that the national or local systems set up to gather, process and preserve that information can be interconnected with SafeSeaNet. The Commission shall ensure that SafeSeaNet is operational on a 24 hours-a-day basis.’;

2. The systems set up pursuant to paragraph 1 shall allow the information gathered to be used operationally and shall satisfy, in particular, the conditions laid down in Article 14.

ensuring the interconnection and interoperability of the national systems used for managing the information referred to in Annex I, and developing and updating SafeSeaNet.’;

extending the cover of the Community vessel traffic monitoring and information system, and/or updating it, with a view to enhanced identification and monitoring of ships, taking into account developments in information and communication technologies. To this end, Member States and the Commission shall work together to put in place, where necessary, mandatory reporting systems, mandatory maritime traffic services and appropriate ship's routing systems, with a view to submitting them to the IMO for approval. They shall also collaborate, within the regional or international bodies concerned, on developing long-range identification and tracking systems;’;

2. Where appropriate, the Commission shall contribute to the development and operation of systems for collecting and disseminating data relating to maritime safety, in particular through the “Equasis” system or any other equivalent public system.’;

1. The Commission shall ensure, where necessary, the processing, use and dissemination to the authorities designated by the Member States, of the information gathered under this Directive.

2. Where reference is made to this paragraph, Article 5a(1) to (4) and Article 7 of Decision 1999/468/EC shall apply, having regard to the provisions of Article 8 thereof.

1. The Commission shall be assisted by the Committee on Safe Seas and the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (COSS) established by Regulation (EC) No 2099/2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council (10) .

New built fishing vessels of overall length exceeding 15 metres are subject to the carrying requirement laid down in Article 6a as from … (9) .’.

fishing vessels of overall length 18 metres and upwards but less than 24 metres: not later than … (12) ;

fishing vessels of overall length 24 metres and upwards but less than 45 metres: not later than … (11) ;

Fishing vessels with a length of more than 15 metres overall are subject to the carrying requirement laid down in Article 6a according to the following timetable:

Article 2

Transposition

1. Member States shall bring into force the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with this Directive by … (9). They shall forthwith communicate to the Commission the text of those measures.

When Member States adopt those measures, they shall contain a reference to this Directive or be accompanied by such reference on the occasion of their official publication. Member States shall determine how such reference is to be made.

2. Member States shall communicate to the Commission the text of the main provisions of national law which they adopt in the field covered by this Directive.

Article 3

Entry into force

This Directive shall enter into force on the third day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

Article 4

Addressees

This Directive is addressed to the Member States.

(1) OJ C 318, 23.12.2006, p. 195.

(2) OJ C 229, 22.9.2006, p. 38.

(3) Opinion of the European Parliament of 25 April 2007 (not yet published in the Official Journal), Council Common Position of 6 June 2008 and Position of the European Parliament of … (not yet published in the Official Journal).

(4) OJ L 208, 5.8.2002, p. 10.

(5) OJ L 324, 29.11.2002, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Commission Regulation (EC) No 93/2007 (OJ L 22, 31.1.2007, p. 12).

(6) OJ L 184, 17.7.1999, p. 23. Decision as amended by Decision 2006/512/EC (OJ L 200, 22.7.2006, p. 11).

(7) OJ L 208, 5.8.2002, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 1891/2006 (OJ L 394, 30.12.2006, p. 1).

(8) OJ C 321, 31.12.2003, p. 1.

(9) 18 months from the entry into force of this Directive.

(10) OJ L 324, 29.11.2002, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Commission Regulation (EC) No 93/2007 (OJ L 22, 31.1.2007, p. 12).’;

(11) 3 years from the entry into force of this Directive.

(12) 4 years from the entry into force of this Directive.

(13) 5 years from the entry into force of this Directive.

STATEMENT OF THE COUNCIL'S REASONS

I. INTRODUCTION

In November 2005, the Commission adopted its proposal (1) for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Directive 2002/59/EC establishing a Community vessel traffic monitoring and information system. This proposal was transmitted to the Council on 13 January 2006.

The European Parliament adopted its first-reading opinion on 25 April 2007.

The European Economic and Social Committee adopted its opinion on 13 September 2006 (2).

The Committee of the Regions adopted its opinion on 15 June 2006 (3).

In the framework of the codecision procedure (Article 251 TEC), the Council reached on 7 June 2007, a political agreement on the draft directive. Following legal/linguistic revision, the Council adopted its Common Position on 6 June 2008.

II. OBJECTIVE

The main objective of the proposed Directive is to amend Directive 2002/59/EC in order to incorporate additional measures to enhance ship safety and environmental protection as well as to harmonise the implementation of the ‘places of refuge’.

The proposal includes in particular the development of the Community maritime safety information exchange system SafeSeaNet, the designation by Member States of an independent authority for the accommodation of ships in distress, measures to be taken in the presence of ice as well as the treatment of uninsured ships. Furthermore, the proposal suggests the use of automatic identification systems (AIS) to be made compulsory for fishing vessels longer that 15 metres and tightening of the shipper's information obligations.

III. ANALYSIS OF THE COMMON POSITION

General

The Common Position on the above proposal, as agreed by the Council, updates the directive in force in order to contribute to enhanced maritime safety. Although the Council agrees with the Commission as regards the objective of the proposal, the Council's approach involved some adaptations aiming at increasing safety in fishing vessels with an overall length of more than 15 metres fitting them with automatic identification systems (AIS), establishing the rules for the acceptance or refusal of ships in need of assistance in places of refuge and enhancing ship monitoring through the SafeSeaNet information exchange system.

It should be noted that the Common Position also includes a number of changes other than those envisaged in the European Parliament's first-reading opinion as provisions from the Commission's proposal have been supplemented with new elements or entirely redrafted.

In addition, a number of drafting changes merely seek to clarify the text or to ensure the overall coherence of the directive.

Two major issues, the fitting of automatic identification systems (AIS) to fishing vessels and the accommodation of ships in places of refuge, were considered of major significance during the discussions within the concerned Council bodies.

Specific issues

A. Use of automatic identification systems (AIS)

The use of automatic identification systems (AIS, class A) by fishing vessels with an overall length of more than 15 metres, which is one of the main feature of the amended directive, was accepted by the Council. Nonetheless, the Council considers that it is necessary to clearly identify to which vessels this obligation applies. To this end, Council's Common Position modifies the Commission proposal and determines precisely the conditions for this mandatory provision.

Furthermore, the Council accepted the European Parliament's amendment 17, and consequently, reference is made in the directive to the IMO Resolution A.917(22) (Guidelines for onboard use of AIS).

Moreover, the Council reviewed the implementation timetable (annex II(I)) proposed by the Commission in order to make sure that the time constraints are practically feasible for the concerned parties. In the Council's opinion, it is necessary to indicate that the shipping vessels equipped with AIS shall maintain it operational at all times except in some particular cases.

B. Accommodation of ships in places of refuge

The Council is of the opinion that, as regards the accommodation of ships in places of refuge, Member States should apply the IMO guidelines on places of refuge for ships in need of assistance (IMO Resolution A.949(23)) that stipulate that the Member State has the right to admit or to refuse the access of a vessel to a place of refuge. The Council's modification of the Commission's proposal makes clear that the acceptance or refusal of a ship in need of assistance in a place of refuge shall be the subject to a prior assessment of the situation carried out on the basis of the plan for the accommodation and a decision taken by the competent authority. For the Council, it is necessary to ensure that the plans for the accommodation will be prepared on the basis of the IMO Resolutions A.949(23) (IMO Guidelines on places of refuge for ships in need of assistance) and A.950(23) (Maritime Assistance Services).

Furthermore, the Council, contrary to the Commission, is of the opinion that the plans for accommodation of ships in need of assistance should contain information on the coastline of the Member States, which should assist the assessment of a ship in need of assistance in a place of refuge. Related to the communication of these plans to neighbouring Member States, the Council introduced the possibility for Member States to impose confidentiality.

Another issue raised in the discussions within the Council bodies, in relation to the accommodation in places of refuge, was the role of ‘the competent authority’. The Council added an additional definition of ‘competent authority’ aiming at a better understanding of this term and describing the role of the competent authority. The objective of the Council is to leave sufficient flexibility to Member States in order to organise their competent authority, taking also due account of their internal administrative and organisational structures.

Other issues

In addition to the above mentioned two main issues, the Council further modified the Commission's proposal, in particular regarding measures in the case of ice conditions. On this matter, it was spelled out that the competent authorities should proceed without prejudice to the duty of assistance and to relevant international rules.

With regard to the proposed provision on financial guarantees establishing the possibility for Member States to request an insurance certificate or a financial guarantee to the ship's operator, the Council considers it inappropriate to refer to another Commission's proposal being examined in the framework of the codecision procedure (proposal on the civil liability and financial guarantees of shipowners).

In relation to the entry into force of the amended directive, the period granted to Member States in order to bring into force the national implementation measures for this draft directive was extended from 12 months to 18 months.

Concerning SafeSeaNet, the Council's Common Position includes a provision, on the basis of the European Parliament's amendment 65, according to which the Commission shall ensure that SafeSeaNet is operational on a 24 hours-a-day basis.

IV. EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT'S AMENDMENTS

The Common Position incorporates some of the European Parliament's first-reading amendments, improving or clarifying the text of the proposed directive.

The Council accepted in full the amendments 17 and 65 of the European Parliament (as set out in doc. 8724/07) and agreed to redraft the amendments 22 and 23 so that Article 6a, 2nd paragraph, should read: ‘Fishing vessels, equipped with AIS, shall maintain it in operation at all times. In exceptional circumstances, AIS may be switched off where the master considers this necessary in the interest of the safety or security of his vessel’.

However, not all other European Parliament's amendments are reflected in the Common Position. For different reasons they were not acceptable to the Council. In this way, for example, the amendments 10, 11, 15, 18, 35 and 45 could not be accepted by the Council as they aim at the extension of the directive's scope. The amendments 5, 31, 32, 33 and 34, which are related to the competent authority, cannot be accepted by the Council as they are too specific and detailed. They would lead to organisational inflexibility and do not allow the possibility to take into consideration the specificities of the Member States. With regard to the use of AIS by fishing vessels, the Council supports the length proposed by the Commission, taking also account of the additional modifications thereto included in the Common Position. Therefore, the amendments 24, 50 and 51 could not be supported by the Council. The amendments 8, 9, 38, 39, 40 and 41 were considered by the Council as inappropriate as they refer to another proposal of the third maritime safety package which is still in the process of examination in the framework of the codecision procedure. Concerning the exchange of confidential information (amendments 7, 37, 44, 47 and 64), the Council is of the opinion that these amendments might raise some problems related to the confidentiality of the concerned information. Finally, on the amendments 50, 52, 53 and 54 specifying when the different fishing vessels shall be subject to the provisions of the directive, the Council considers that the implementation timetable included in the Common Position might be more appropriate for the concerned parties.

The Council also considers that some amendments could be more appropriate as recitals, such as the amendments 42 and 43.

V. CONCLUSION

The Council is of the opinion that the Common Position enables Member States to take appropriate and preventive actions as well as to respond correctly to dangerous situations.

The Council looks forward to constructive discussions with the European Parliament with a view to the early adoption of the directive.

(1) Doc. 5171/06 — COM(2005) 589 final.

(2) OJ C 318, 23.12.2006.

(3) OJ C 229, 22.9.2006.