WRITTEN QUESTION E-0060/03

by Camilo Nogueira Román (Verts/ALE) to the Council

(22 January 2003)

Subject: Rejection by the Council of the European Parliament and Commission proposal concerning the establishment of a COPE fund from which to pay compensation for pollution caused by oil spills

The disaster caused by the sinking of the Prestige off the coast of Galicia further emphasises the political seriousness of the Council's rejection of the European Parliament and Commission proposal concerning the establishment of a COPE fund to pay compensation for pollution caused by oil spills. The Copenhagen European Council which was attended by the Spanish Prime Minister, Mr Aznar took the same view of the matter even as seamen and volunteers were trying to clear the crude oil with their bare hands and it opted once again (contrary to the interests of European society as a whole and, in particular, to Galicia's specific interests) to pass the decision on to the International Maritime Organisation. What reasons lie behind this decision, which is incomprehensible to the general public?

Reply

(21 July 2003)

It is not true to say that the Council has rejected the Commission proposal concerning the establishment of a COPE fund.

In the aftermath of the ERIKA incident, there was general agreement, as brought to expression in the December 2000 Council conclusions, for considering that the level of compensation for oil pollution damage offered by the existing liability and compensation regime was not sufficient. The Commission consequently issued, in the framework of the ERIKA II package, a proposal aiming at creating an EU complementary compensation fund.

The April 2001 Council (Transport/Telecom) considered a common approach in the IMO framework preferable as the best way to achieve the goal set up in the earlier mentioned December 2000 Council conclusions, i.e. ensure a proper and, as far as possible, global regime for liability and compensation in cases of pollution damage resulting from contamination by petroleum products and other noxious and hazardous substances transported by ships. The common approach underlined that an agreement within the IMO should be reached as soon as possible, preferably by 2003.

Good progress has been done on the subject in the IMO framework and a Diplomatic Conference is scheduled on the matter for May 2003.

On 6 December 2002, the Council (Transport/Telecommunications/Energy) adopted conclusions on ships' safety and pollution prevention. Among other measures, the Council committed itself to immediately examining the Commission's proposal for a regulation on the establishment of a Community fund for the compensation of oil pollution damage in European waters (COPE fund), with the aim of establishing it before the end of 2003, in the case that a supplementary compensation fund for oil pollution is not created by the International Maritime Organization (IMO).

Furthermore, responding more particularly to the recent sinking of the Prestige off the coast of Galicia, and with regard to compensation for the ecological and economic damage, particularly in Northern Spain, the Council (Agriculture and Fisheries) adopted on 20 December 2002 exceptional supporting measures to supplement the actions taken in the context of the interventions of the Structural Funds in Spain for compensating the sector affected by the oil spills from the Prestige accident.