Resolution of the ECSC Consultative Committee on the Communication (COM(1999) 453 final of 5 October 1999) from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council and the ECSC Consultative Committee on the state of the competitiveness of the steel industry in the EU
Date: 2000-04-06
Institutions: Consultative Committee of the European Coal and Steel Community
Subjects: ECSC, European Commission, European industrial area, competitiveness, exchange of information, iron and steel industry

16.5.2000

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 136/7

RESOLUTION OF THE ECSC CONSULTATIVE COMMITTEE

on the Communication (COM(1999) 453 final of 5 October 1999) from the Commission to the
European Parliament, the Council and the ECSC Consultative Committee on the state of the
competitiveness of the steel industry in the EU

(2000/C 136/07)

(Adopted unanimously during the 349th session of 6 April 2000)

HAVING REGARD TO:

(cid:151) the provisions of Article 46 of the Treaty establishing the
European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC Treaty), which
stipulate that
the Commission should supply detailed
analyses of the state of and general outlook for the steel
the production, consumption,
sector and estimates of
trends and
exports and imports of steel, employment
training needs (1);

(cid:151) the Memorandum of the ECSC Consultative Committee, of
28 June 1995, on matters connected with the expiry of the
ECSC Treaty in 2002;

(cid:151) the opinion of the European Parliament, published in 1996,
on the Commission Communication (COM(94) 265)
entitled (cid:145)Fresh impetus for restructuring the steel industry
in the Community(cid:146), in which the Parliament describes the
measures it regards as necessary in the light of the expiry of
the ECSC Treaty;

(cid:151) the Commission’s

statements

the
Consultative Committee on 17 December 1998 on the
outline for a communication to be drawn up on the
global
steel
and sustainable
industry in the European Union;

competitiveness of

session of

the

the

at

(cid:151) the Commission Communication of 20 January 1999 to the
Council, the European Parliament, the Economic and Social
Committee and the Committee of
the Regions on (cid:145)The
competitiveness of European enterprises in the face of
globalisation (cid:151) How it can be encouraged(cid:146), in which the
Commission states as its aim the permanent, sustainable
i.e. ensuring the competi-
development of the economy,
tiveness
considering
employment aspects and the protection of the environment;

enterprises while

European

of

(cid:151) the final Communication to the European Parliament, the
Council and the ECSC Consultative Committee (COM(1999)

(1) 1. See (cid:145)General Objectives for Steel(cid:146), which appeared at regular
intervals until 1990 and dealt with the objectives regarding
modernisation,
long-term production planning, production
capacities, employment and training.

2. See the Communication from the Commission to the Council
and the European Parliament (SEC(92) 2160) of 23 November
industry.
1992 on improving the competitiveness of the steel
3. See the three 1994 Communications from the Commission to
the Council and the European Parliament on the restructuring of
the Community steel
industry (COM(94) 125, COM(94) 265,
COM(94) 466).

the competitiveness of

453) on (cid:145)The state of
the steel
industry in the EU(cid:146), which the Commission adopted on 5
October, and its subsequent announcement that it would, in
cooperation with the groups
active on the market,
implement a structured follow-up;

(cid:151) the ECSC Consultative Committee Resolution of 15 October
1999 on the need to make effective use of the available
trade instruments against unfair imports to the EU steel
market which do not comply with WTO rules;

(cid:151) the Decision of

the Council of

Industry Ministers of 9
communication on
November 1999 to forward the
the
industry,
via
competitiveness
EU steel
in the
Committee of Permanent Representatives,
to its various
working levels so that it can be analysed more thoroughly
and any necessary conclusions drafted;

(cid:151) the important implications of the document at the stage of
transition from the ECSC Treaty to the general Treaty as
regards drawing most possible benefit from the experience
of the ECSC, which could also be useful for other industrial
sectors in Europe.

The Consultative Committee WELCOMES:

(cid:151) the fact that the European Commission is endeavouring to
fulfil the obligation it entered into in 1995 to submit a
document on the competitiveness of the steel sector as a
supplement to the policy paper on the financial aspects
connected with the expiry of the ECSC Treaty (COM(97)
506 final);

(cid:151) the fact that the Commission is considering supplementing
its cross-branch Communication on the competitiveness of
European enterprises with analyses of individual European
industrial sectors. For this reason the members of
the
Consultative Committee have already sought dialogue
with the Commission at this preliminary stage and have
put forward their views on how to ensure competitiveness
in the EU steel industry;

(cid:151) the fact that the Commission is dealing item by item with
the far-reaching

what
it regards as the main causes of
structural change in the European steel industry;

(cid:151) the fact that the Commission is dealing with the question of
how the present structure of the steel sector will develop in
the face of the increasing globalisation of markets;

(cid:151) the fact that the Commission recognises the benefit of a
structured dialogue between it and the main players

C 136/8

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

16.5.2000

(producers, workers and consumers/dealers)
market and approves of
body between these levels for the post-2002 period,
after
Consultative Committee;

in the steel
the creation of a consultative
i.e.
to replace the

the ECSC Treaty,

the expiry of

intends

(cid:151) the fact that the Commission sets out initial ideas as to how
it
to help the Central and Eastern European
countries to restructure their steel industries in preparation
for their integration into the EU internal market;

(cid:151) the fact that the Commission undertakes to continue to
in cooperation with the players in the steel
this

monitor,
market,
branch and to report to the Council on it regularly.

the competitiveness of

the development of

AT THE SAME TIME, HOWEVER, the Consultative Committee
REGRETS:

the ECSC Treaty in the integration of
industry and in the development of

(cid:151) that the Commission, despite acknowledging the positive
the
role of
European steel
the
steel market and despite the resolutions adopted by the
ECSC Consultative Committee, does not deal more
explicitly with those elements of the Treaty which should
be retained after 2002 (phasing-in);
these include in
particular the continuation of strict regulations governing
State aid, the continuation of an effective range of statistical
tools, the forward programme for steel and adequate social
measures to accompany restructuring;

(cid:151) that the Commission,

in that part of its Communication
dealing with the internationalisation of the steel market,
does not sufficiently underline the need for a stable legis-
lative framework integrating the economic,
social and
environmental aspects of
sustainable development, and
applicable in all countries. The Consultative Committee
the Communication neglects to tackle
also regrets that
the consequences for the competitiveness of steel groups
of the measures envisaged in the field of energy taxation,
and stresses in this respect that such taxation does not
appear to be an adequate means of reaching the environ-
mental objectives;

(cid:151) that, in cases where the European steel industry is demon-
strably being harmed by unfair imports which do not
comply with WTO rules, the Commission itself does not
trade
make sufficiently robust use of
instruments available to it;

the international

(cid:151) that, in its description and analysis of the steel market, the
Commission does not deal adequately with increasing
imports and thus bases its view on an excessively positive
assessment;

(cid:151) that the Commission does not indicate how to face the
social consequences of future mergers, rationalisation and

introduction of new technologies and how to develop
human resources to meet the future needs of the industry;

(cid:151) that important conditions for the forthcoming EU accession

of Eastern European countries are not stated, i.e.:

(cid:151) that following EU accession there must on no account
be any exemptions from the strict EU regulations on
State aid, and the restructuring in these countries must
be completed by the time of accession;

(cid:151) that the Commission has to make sure that the restruc-
turing programmes of
industries in these
countries take into account the measures to alleviate
dramatic social consequences and the involvement of
social partners in the process, possibly by drawing
upon the ECSC experience as a source of reference;

the steel

(cid:151) that despite the Commission’s general support to sectoral
dialogue, the document acknowledges the disappearance of
the ECSC Consultative Committee while giving only vague
indications about a new body to continue this positive
the
experience
proposals on this important
forward by the
ECSC Consultative Committee.

taking no account of

after 2002,

issue put

CONCLUSIONS

(cid:151) Against

of

the

tougher

background

international
competition, the members of the Consultative Committee
for
agree with the statement
a
achieving the necessary regulatory framework for
competitive European steel
industry must be determined
in close cooperation with the European Commission. The
Commission
actions
clearly
mentioned in the Communication will be implemented.

the main actions

how the

should

state

that

(cid:151) In this connection it is necessary, inter alia, to ensure that
useful elements of the ECSC Treaty are phased in to the EC
Treaty in order to cope with the continuing expansion of
the steel market and its increasing internationalisation and
to face the consequent foreseeable future social problems,
especially in the acceding countries.

(cid:151) The Consultative Committee hopes that in the Council the
Member States will draw the necessary political conclusions
from the Communication on the competitiveness of the
steel industry in order to create a basis for the sustainable
development of this industry.

(cid:151) In order to facilitate this follow-up, the ECSC Consultative
Committee will put forward in the near future a document
containing its political proposals on the main factors
influencing the Competitiveness of
the European Steel
Industry.