WRITTEN QUESTION E-0716/03

by Rosa Miguélez Ramos (PSE) to the Commission

(11 March 2003)

Subject: Prestige: stronger legal classification of environmental crime and maritime pollution

The Prestige disaster calls for a forthright response in order to prevent further such disasters. Various organisations are therefore calling for much stronger criminal classification of environmental crime and maritime pollution.

The Spanish press (La Voz de Galicia of 4 February 2003, p. 6) has reported a meeting of the Spanish, Italian and French Ministers of Justice in which they agreed to support the EU Council's initiatives and step up the criminal prosecution of those involved in polluting European coasts.

What steps is the Commission taking to this end?

Answer given by Mrs de Palacio on behalf of the Commission

(23 April 2003)

The Commission shares the concerns of the Honourable Member about sanctions against pollution of the European coastline. For this reason, it proposed on 5 March 2003 a Directive of the Parliament and of the Council on ship-source pollution and on the introduction of sanctions, including criminal sanctions, for pollution offences(1)

In line with the Commission's proposal for a Directive on the protection of the environment through criminal law(2), the proposed Directive establishes that marine pollution by ships is a criminal offence when committed intentionally or through gross negligence. Sanctions will be applicable to any person including the master, the owner, the operator and the charterer of a ship and to the classification society who has been found to have caused or contributed to illegal pollution intentionally or by means of gross negligence. The penalties may, in the most serious cases, include jail sentences.

The proposal is also an effort by the Commission to try to stop the thousands of deliberate discharges of waste and cargo residues from ships around Europe(3). The proposed Directive provides detailed rules for the discharge of polluting substances, including oil and chemicals, and makes any violation of those rules illegal in Union waters. In addition, it prohibits pollution on the high seas, irrespective of the flag of the ship.

To fight effectively against the phenomena of ship-source pollution, the proposed mechanism should be backed up by measures harmonising criminal penalties and improving judicial cooperation pursuant to Title VI of the Treaty on European Union.

The Commission is, therefore, to present very soon a proposal for a Framework Decision that aims to strengthen the criminal-law framework by approximating the provisions laid down by law or regulation in the Member States concerning ship-source pollution offences and to facilitate and encourage cooperation between judicial authorities to repress these offences. More specifically, these complementing provisions are relating to a harmonised minimum level of maximum penalties; jurisdiction of the courts; criminal investigations in the port state; joint investigation teams; the commencement of proceedings; cooperation between Member States; the notification of information; the designation of contact points.

The Commission believes that these proposals for a Directive and a Framework Decision will fill significant regulatory gaps in Union regulation and will go a long way in establishing a culture of responsible shipping in Union waters and beyond. The newly created European Maritime Safety Agency will assist the Commission and Member States in establishing the information system required to effectively implement this mechanism.

(1) COM(2003) 92 final.

(2) OJ C 180, 26.6.2001 as amended by OJ C 20 E, 28.1.2003.

(3) 390 oil slicks in the Baltic Sea and 596 in the North Sea in 2001, 1638 in the Mediterranean in 1999.