European Parliament resolution on the communication from the Commission to the Council, the European Parliament, the Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions - The European Airline Industry: from Single Market to World-wide Challenges (COM(1999) 182 - C5-0110/1999 - 1999/2113(COS))
Date: 2000-05-04
Institutions: Committee on Regional Development, European Parliament
Subjects: air space, air transport, common transport policy, consumer protection, liberalisation of the market, transport company, transport market

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13.
Calls on the Commission to assess the impact of TEN-T investment on the economy, employment
and the environment and to provide appropriate justifications for all funding from the Community budget;

Draws attention to the principle of efficient use of infrastructure and encourages the use of alter-
14.
natives to new investment in physical infrastructure, to be achieved through better use of existing infra-
structure and, where necessary, its modernisation and renovation; considers that the advantages of new
technologies and intelligent transport system applications, such as telematics for road users and new sig-
nalling for rail networks, will lead to better use being made of both existing facilities and new projects, and
will thus further the aim of reducing congestion, accidents, and pollution and make transport easier to
manage;

15.
Calls on the Member States and the Commission to endeavour to make legislation on public con-
tracts for infrastructure projects clear and flexible, since legal certainty is a fundamental precondition for
the private sector’s participation in the execution of the TEN-T;

16.
Expresses concern at the fact that, if the revision of the TEN-T guidelines were to concentrate on
existing bottlenecks, as announced by the Commission in its work programme for the year 2000, the
revision would essentially concern the central regions of the Union, which are those mainly affected by
congestion problems and would assign only secondary importance to the situation of the peripheral and
outermost regions;

Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the European

17.
Investment Bank, and the governments of the Member States.

8. European airline industry

A5-0075/2000

European Parliament resolution on the communication from the Commission to the Council, the
European Parliament, the Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions "
The European Airline Industry: from Single Market to World-wide Challenges (COM(1999) 182 "
C5-0110/1999 " 1999/2113(COS))

The European Parliament,

1 having regard to the Communication from the Commission (COM(1999) 182 1 C5-0110/1999),

1 having regard to the Commission communication ‘Air transport and the environment: towards meet-

ing the challenges of sustainable development’ (COM(1999) 640),

1 having regard to its resolution of 15 April 1999 on the Commission White Paper entitled ‘Fair remu-
neration for infrastructure use: a phased approach to the common infrastructure charging framework
in the EU’ (COM(1998) 466) (1), and 30 January 1997 on the Commission’s Green Paper: ‘Towards fair
and efficient pricing in transport 1 Policy options for internalising the external costs of transport in
the European Union’ (COM(1995) 691) (2),

1 having regard to its resolutions of 19 February 1998 on the impact of the third package of liberal-
isation measures in air transport (3), 17 July 1997 on a Community aviation safety improvement strat-
egy (4) and 17 January 1997 on air traffic management: freeing Europe’s airspace (5),

(1) OJ C 219, 30.7.1999, p. 460.
(2) OJ C 55, 24.2.1997, p. 41.
(3) OJ C 80, 16.3.1998, p. 240.
(4) OJ C 286, 22.9.1997, p. 251.
(5) OJ C 33, 3.2.1997, p. 124.

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1 having regard to Rule 47(1) of its Rules of Procedure,

1 having regard to the report of the Committee on Regional Policy, Transport and Tourism and the

opinion of the Committee on Industry, External Trade, Research and Energy (A5-0075/2000),

Thursday 4 May 2000

A. having regard to the significance of the airline industry for the European economy and also for the

mobility of persons and goods,

B. whereas a market oriented air transport system is vital to secure the full economic benefits of both

leisure and business travel,

C. whereas liberalisation leads to more open markets, more competition and more routes and has proved

to be the best way to bring consumers better air services and more innovation at lower cost,

D. whereas inadequate infrastructure, both in the air and on the ground, and in particular the anachro-
nistic fragmentation of air traffic control (ATC) and air traffic management (ATM) systems, seriously
compromises the objectives of the single market and gravely prejudices the sector’s development,

E. whereas the European Union is striving for a coherent and sustainable transport policy,

F. whereas the proposed ATM 2000 programme (1) is already inadequate to cope with the increasing

congestion in European airspace,

G. whereas a European Union policy for the sector must seek to establish a fair balance between the
various interests 1 airlines, workers, passengers, protection of the environment and safety 1 so as
to contribute to the development of a sustainable, strong and competitive civil aviation sector in
Europe,

H. whereas competition laws and policies must be applied to the air transport market to prevent exces-

sive restrictions and distortions of competition,

I. whereas the fragmentation of the European aviation market is preventing European airlines from

improving their competitiveness at a global level,

J. whereas airline competition is evolving towards competition between alliances,

K. whereas for liberalised markets to work effectively passengers need access to adequate and unbiased

information,

L.

noting with satisfaction that liberalisation has led to more choice and competitive fares for air passen-
gers on some sectors but observing that the impact is primarily limited to economy class passengers
and promotional fares, both with restricted ticket arrangements,

M. noting that increased competition has also led to pressures to reduce costs, which has a negative

impact on social conditions and hence on safety,

N. having regard to the importance of external relations for the economic well-being of the European

aviation industry,

O. whereas the Commission’s actions against the ’open skies’ agreements which several Member States
have concluded must be maintained until the Commission obtains from the Council the mandate it
needs to negotiate with the United States,

P. whereas the Commission’s communication does not consider the specific situation of air freight;
whereas it is expected that air freight will increase by an average of 6 to 7 % per annum over the
next 20 years; whereas, in view of its special features and problems, air freight requires a separate
approach,

(1) Eurocontrol, November 1998.

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General remarks

1.
Considers that the development of a single market in the European airline industry has led to positive
competition with the result that consumers now have a greater choice of flights, often at more favourable
prices. However, the features of liberalisation which are welcome for passengers should not be diminished
by other factors such as delays and congestion;

Insists that safety concerns must remain an underlying principle in all measures and policies in air
2.
transport; reiterates its support for the initiative to set up a European Aviation Safety Authority which
should extend beyond the EU and include as many European States as possible;

Considers that the Commission should seek to devise plans for greater cooperation between Member
3.
States in the management and use of their national airspace which radically improve its usage without
infringing their sovereign rights;

Supports the plan to set up a single air transport safety regulatory authority; calls therefore on the
4.
Commission to continue its efforts to this end, in view of the vital need for common safety rules to be laid
down by an independent European body;

Recognises that working conditions have deteriorated in some areas of the aviation industry and calls
5.
on the Commission to present a proposal on ATC personnel and on common training and licensing stan-
dards for all flight and cabin crew members;

Is of the opinion that the policy orientation outlined by the Commission in this communication
6.
should take the form of a concrete action plan subject to regular review together with the industry and
relevant organisations in the sector, including the social partners; asks the Commission to include relevant
activities and developments concerning ATC and environmental questions;

7. Welcomes the project from the Commission to set up a database of the European airline industry
and supports the view that the information should be made available to the general public; expects only
really essential data to be recorded in order to keep administration to a minimum; stresses that the pub-
lished information should be regularly updated and consist mainly of facts on the safety of airlines and
statements on consumer protection;

Infrastructure

8.
Reiterates its requests for completion of the internal market by creating a single European airspace
for the benefit of all its users, including the need for more use to be made of military airspace for civil
aviation purposes;

9.
Calls therefore on the Member States to transfer to the European Union regulative competencies for
ATC and calls on the EU to establish a uniform system of European air safety; calls for the operational
bodies responsible for ATC to be liberalised; takes the view, furthermore, that the ATC bodies should be
granted the opportunity of exercising their activities throughout the EU’s air space, since this will create
competition between them;

Believes that the scientific and technological research effort to develop new traffic management
10.
systems must continue to be given active support by the aeronautical industry to alleviate the current
problems regarding air traffic management and congestion; supports the Galileo project as a state of the
art navigation system;

11.
Urges the Commission to revise the present system of slot allocation which encourages a static and
inflexible situation and, as a matter of urgency, to present a proposal for revision of the slot allocation
regulation, giving due consideration to slot allocation according to environmental criteria, and in particular
the noise and emissions from aircraft; calls furthermore on the Commission to look into ways of improv-
ing available airport capacity with a view to finding a solution to the congestion of Europe’s main airports;

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12.
Notes that costs beyond direct airline management control, in particular airport, ATC charges and
ground handling, are high in Europe and hopes that a genuinely competitive market can be introduced in
these areas; in this respect calls on the Council to deliver its common position as soon as possible on the
proposed directive on airport charges;

13.
Considers that the development of Europe’s air transport needs to be seen in the context of an
intermodal approach which will improve the integration of airports with the trans-European transport
networks; in this context, rail transport should alleviate some of the capacity problems at congested air-
ports;

14.
Points to the importance of a level playing field for the different modes of transport in order to
achieve fair competition between all modes of transport; in this context, asks the Commission to investi-
gate whether and to what extent the exemption of air travel from value-added tax (VAT) and the exemp-
tion of international aviation from excise duty creates imbalances;

15.
Stresses its concern to maintain and/or develop air transport infrastructure and industries through-
out the territory of Europe, in particular in the peripheral and island regions of the Union, both to guar-
antee their accessibility and to promote the economic development of all the regions of Europe; recognises
in this connection the importance of passenger air transport as a public service;

Competition

16. Welcomes the Commission statement that the transitional period for the granting of state aids in
the context of restructuring for adaptation to the single market is now over; believes that state-owned
airlines should be required to operate on a fully commercial basis;

Considers that competition authorities should rigorously enforce rules against unfair practices or
17.
other practices having similar effects, since effective application of competition rules is essential to the
good functioning of a liberalised market;

Notes the trend towards the formation of global strategic alliances in the air transport sector and
18.
believes these should be seen in a positive light, as long as they do not force smaller airlines or new
entrants out of the market; calls for closer coordination between the decisions of the Commission’s com-
petition authority and the objectives of the common air transport policy and in particular the need to
promote the global competitiveness of the European airline industry;

19.
Regrets that, when considering the emergence and development of alliances in the way airlines meet
the challenges of increased global competition and the need for cost-saving restructuring, the Commission
tends to over-emphasise the competition aspects and underestimates the advantages these alliances bring to
the customer and the industry as a whole, such as reduced costs, greater schedule flexibility, and the
development of additional point-to-point services;

External dimension

20.
Supports the concept of a Transatlantic Common Aviation Area with the objectives of ensuring full
market access and convergence of other commercial and regulatory issues such as safety, environmental
protection, competition laws, dispute settlement, landing rights and rules on ownership; calls therefore on
the Council to accord a comprehensive negotiating mandate to the Commission for pursuing these issues
with the United States;

21.
Considers that a Transatlantic Common Aviation Area could form the basis of a future world-wide
regulatory framework for air transport services, replacing the existing system of bilateral agreements; sup-
ports therefore the view that the current fragmented regulatory regime should be replaced by a unified
system that on the one hand gives airlines full commercial opportunities and on the other ensures that
their activities will be governed by a common body of aviation rules;

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Passenger rights

22.
Finds it unacceptable that the Council is holding up a vital revision of the regulation on denied
boarding compensation because of a bilateral dispute between Spain and the United Kingdom over the
status of Gibraltar and therefore calls on the Council to settle this issue immediately;

Considers that the overbooking, ticketing and seat allocation arrangements of airlines does not

23.
always work to the benefit of travellers and is in need of review;

24.
Believes that passengers should be fully informed in advance about details of the services, in par-
ticular the name of the operating carrier, given the proliferation of alliances and code-sharing agreements;
considers that data on delays, cancellations and denied boarding rates should also be made available to
passengers, who should be informed about their rights in such cases;

Environment

Calls on the Commission to propose measures to restrict as far as possible the adverse effects of the
25.
growth in aviation; calls on the Commission to support all measures which may be taken by the airlines
and the aviation industry to achieve a further reduction in emissions (a further reduction in kerosene
consumption and development and use of hushkits); calls on the Commission, together with the Member
States, to introduce or reintroduce economic incentives to push through the use of the latest technology
which causes least pollution of the environment;

*

*

*

Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission and the govern-

26.
ments of the Member States.

9. Counterfeiting and Piracy in the Single Market

A5-0096/2000

European Parliament resolution on the Commission Green Paper ‘Combating Counterfeiting and
Piracy in the Single Market’ (COM(1998) 569 " C5-0245/1999 " 1999/2179(COS))

The European Parliament,

1 having regard to the Commission Green Paper COM(1998) 569 1 C5-0245/1999,

1 having regard to the Commission communication of 24 November 1999 on the strategy for the single

European market COM(1999) 624,

1 having regard to the action plan to combat organised crime adopted by the Council on 28 April

1997 (1),

1 having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 3295/94 of 22 December 1994 laying down measures
to prohibit the release for free circulation, export, re-export or entry for a suspensive procedure of
counterfeit and pirated foods (2),

1 having regard to the conclusions drawn at the meeting of the Foreign Ministers of the G8 on 9 May

1998 concerning offences associated with intellectual property,

1 having regard to Articles 41 et seq. of the TRIPS Agreement (3),

(1) OJ C 251, 15.8.1997, p. 1.
(2) OJ L 341, 30.12.1994, p. 8.
(3) OJ L 336, 23.12.1994, p. 214.