WRITTEN QUESTION E-2530/99 by Alexandros Alavanos (GUE/NGL) to the Commission. Safety at European Union ports.
Date: 2000-01-04
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: common ports policy, maritime safety

C 280 E/64

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

3.10.2000

The Commission performed verifications under Article 35 of the Euratom Treaty at Sellafield in December
1993, and at Cap de la Hague in July 1996. At the time of the decision to reactivate the verifications
(December 1989) it was envisaged that reprocessing plants would be visited once every three years. The
effort is thus less than was originally considered sufficient. The Commission has started to make available
the necessary resources in 1998. A communication to the Council and to the Parliament is being prepared
which will provide an overview of the verifications carried out in the period 1990-1999, together with an
estimate of the resources required to establish a systematic programme.

The Commission maintains a watching brief on the situation with regard to levels of radioactivity in the
environment on the basis of the information received under Article 36 of the Euratom Treaty, site specific
data provided by Member States authorities, which may include results of measurements carried out by the
operators, and other sources of information brought to the Commission(cid:146)s attention. In this context, the
Commission has had no specific representations about the work undertaken by the University of Wales.

The Commission is undertaking actions appropriate to the OSPAR strategy with regard to radioactive
substances. It is, however, a matter for the OSPAR commission to coordinate and ensure implementation
of the OSPAR strategy through the establishment of an action plan and the development of procedures for
review of progress achieved through the strategy. The Commission is committed, along with other
contracting parties, to continued involvement in the work of the OSPAR commission and is participating
in the relevant fora established by that commission to ensure proper support and direction.

(2000/C 280 E/065)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2530/99

by Alexandros Alavanos (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(4 January 2000)

Subject: Safety at European Union ports

The recent tragic accident involving the passenger vessel Superfast III in which 12 people were killed in a
fire which broke out 14 nautical miles from the port of Patras highlights the inadequacy of Community
directives and regulations which make provision for safety during sea passages, but fail to provide for the
safety and health of passengers and workers at ports and controls on the embarkation and disembarkation
of passengers and vehicles.

Will the Commission say:

1. Does safety at ports constitute part of the common policy on maritime safety?

2. Given the enormous annual movement of passengers through EU ports, has it taken any measures to

protect the safety and health of passengers and workers at ports, and, if so, what measures?

3. Does it intend to take measures to ensure adequate controls on freight vehicles so that they do not

constitute a threat to the safety of vessels while at sea?

4. As part of the follow-up to the Green paper on EU ports, does it intend to provide for mandatory
minimum standards at community ports regarding the safety and health of passengers, bearing in
mind that more than 1 million persons travel annually through EU ports?

Answer given by Mrs de Palacio on behalf of the Commission

(8 February 2000)

1.
Safety in ports has not been specifically addressed in the Commission communication on a common
policy on safe seas (1), which primarily focused on identifying, based upon the international maritime safety
conventions adopted within the International maritime organisation, possible Community measures to

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enhance safety at sea. The Parliament, with its resolution of 11 March 1994 on a common policy on safe
seas (2), approved the analysis contained in the Commission communication and called for a careful and
speedy execution of the action programme contained therein.

In its green paper on sea ports and maritime infrastructure (3), the Commission further highlighted the
importance of the role of Community ports in implementing and enforcing the Community(cid:146)s maritime
safety legislation and in ensuring a high level of port services that are intrinsically related to the safety of
ships.

2.
The Commission addressed the safety of ferry passengers at sea by proposing a series of Community
measures in the aftermath of the Estonia accident in September 1994, and following the requests from
Parliament and Council to provide for a coherent and stringent ferry safety regime in the Community.
These measures are Council Regulation (EC) No 3051/95 of 8 December 1995, on the safety management
of ro-ro ferries (4), Council Directive 98/18/EC of 17 March 1998 on safety rules for passenger ships (5),
Council Directive 98/41/EC of 18 June 1998 on the registration of persons sailing on board passenger
ships, operating to or from parts of the Member States of the Communities (6), and Council Directive
1999/35/EC of 29 April 1999 on a system of mandatory surveys for the safe operation of regular ro-ro
ferry and high-speed passenger craft services (7).

The safety of workers in ports is covered by a number of directives adopted in the social field in particular
covering issues related to safety and health at work. A listing of this legislation is forwarded direct to the
Honourable Member and to Parliament(cid:146)s Secretariat.

3.
The control of lorries to be loaded on board is governed by the international conventions on
maritime safety and marine pollution prevention, which include special requirements for the carriage of
dangerous goods in packaged form or in solid form in bulk. These international requirements have been
complemented by Community legislation which imposes reporting obligations on vessels bound for or
leaving Community ports and carrying dangerous or polluting goods (8).

4.
The Commission has no intention to table, in the framework of the follow-up to its green paper on
seaports and maritime infrastructure, proposals for mandatory minimum standards in the Community with
regard to the safety and hygiene of passengers. However, the Commission intends to issue a general
communication on safety at sea, and responsibilities of flag states, port states and industry related more
specifically to ship safety.

(1) COM(93) 66 final.
(2) OJ C 91, 28.3.1994.
(3) COM(97) 678 final.
(4) OJ L 320, 30.12.1995.
(5) OJ L 144, 15.5.1998.
(6) OJ L 188, 2.7.1998.
(7) OJ L 138, 1.6.1999.
(8) Council Directive 93/75/EEC, of 13 September 1993 concerning minimum requirements for vessels bound for or

leaving Community ports and carrying dangerous or polluting goods, OJ L 247, 5.10.1993.

(2000/C 280 E/066)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2534/99

by Neil MacCormick (Verts/ALE) to the Commission

(4 January 2000)

Subject: Free movement of doctors and patient safety

In its Explanatory Memorandum attached to the proposed (cid:145)SLIM Directive(cid:146) simplifying and updating the
EU sectoral Directives on the mutual recognition of professional qualifications (COM(97) 638 final) (1) the