WRITTEN QUESTION P-1424/03

by Bert Doorn (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(15 April 2003)

Subject: Reserve funds for European inland waterway transport

Reserve funds have been set up in recent years in the European inland waterway transport sector with the aim of providing a cushion in the event of crises affecting the sector. The funds are financed by contributions from the inland waterway transport sectors in the current EU Member States.

Following the forthcoming enlargement, the inland waterway transport sectors in the new Member States would also be able to benefit from the reserve funds, despite having to date made no contribution to the establishment of the funds.

Will the inland waterway transport sectors in the new Member States have access to these reserve funds following the forthcoming enlargement?

If so, does the Commission consider it fair that inland waterway transport in the new Member States will be able to benefit from these reserve funds without itself having contributed to them?

If it does not regard this as fair, how does the Commission intend to prevent or limit claims of this kind?

Answer given by Mrs de Palacio on behalf of the Commission

(15 May 2003)

The inland waterways funds are governed by Council Regulation (EC) No 718/1999 of 29 March 1999 on a Community fleet capacity policy to promote inland waterway transport(1).

Pursuant to Article 3 of that regulation, each Member State whose inland waterways are linked to those of another Member State is required to set up an inland waterways fund under its national legislation. The financing, management and use of the funds are governed by the regulation. The funds are financed by the surplus funding from the structural improvement schemes for the Community fleets in the 1990s, special contributions paid by the vessel owners under the old-for-new rule, and financial resources which could be made available in the event of serious disturbance of the inland waterway market. The funds' resources now stand at around EUR 38 million.

The use made of the funds is subject to the principles of mutual financial support and Community action. Mutual financial support means that all the funds set up on the basis of the regulation are mutually responsible for all the expenditure and resources, irrespective of the (national) fund to which the vessel belongs (Article 3(6)). The principle of Community action means that the funds may be used to meet financial obligations only if the measures in question are the subject of action at Community level (Article 3(5)), which by definition covers all the Member States concerned by the regulation.

Following enlargement, Regulation No 718/1999, like all the other Community legislation concerning inland waterways, will also apply to the new Member States under the same conditions as apply to the existing Member States. The incorporation of this legislation into national law was not called into question during the accession negotiations either by the Candidate States or by the Member States.

Consequently, the new States concerned will have the same rights and obligations deriving from the regulation when they join the EU.

The Commission therefore considers that de jure and taking into account the principle of equal treatment the new Member States' fleets cannot be excluded from action at Community level financed by the reserve funds for inland waterways provided they meet the conditions laid down.

(1) OJ L 90, 2.4.1999.