Communication from the Commission - Third package of legislative measures on maritime safety in the European Union {SEC(2005) 1496}
Date: 2005-11-23
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU law, maritime safety, maritime transport, safety standard

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 

Brussels, 23.11.2005 
COM(2005) 585 final 

COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION 

Third package of legislative measures on maritime safety in the European Union 

{SEC(2005) 1496} 

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COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION 

Third package of legislative measures on maritime safety in the European Union 

(Text with EEA relevance) 

In  the  wake  of  the  Prestige  accident  in  November  2002  there  was  an  emotional  wave  of 
solidarity  throughout  Europe,  and  the  institutions  and  highest  authorities  of  the  European 
Union  expressed  their  firm  resolve  that  the  policy  of  strengthening  maritime  safety  pursued 
following the Erika accident in December 1999 should be continued and reinforced. 

At  its  meeting  in  Copenhagen  on  12  and  13  December  2002,  shortly  after  the  Prestige 
accident,  the  European  Council  acknowledged  the  determined  efforts  in  the  European 
Community  and  the  International  Maritime  Organisation  (IMO)  since  the  Erika  accident  to 
enhance maritime safety and pollution prevention and stated that the Union was determined to 
take all necessary measures to avoid a repetition of similar disasters. 

This  determination  is  also  shared  by  the  European  Parliament  which,  in  its  Resolution  on 
safety  at  sea  adopted  on  27  April  2004  based  on  the  work  of  the  Temporary  Committee  on 
Improving Safety at Sea (MARE)1, confirmed the need to continue the efforts. 

That  Resolution  stresses  in  particular  a  number  of  concrete  measures  called  for  by  the 
European Parliament with a view to improving maritime safety at international and European 
level, in particular by: 

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creating  a  “European  maritime  safety  area”,  including  the  banning  of  substandard 
vessels  and  the  introduction  of  a  system  of  liability  covering  the  entire  maritime 
transport chain and the public authorities responsible for safety at sea; 

establishing  an  operational  framework  making  it  possible  to  intervene  more 
effectively  in  the  event  of  accidents  and  limit  their  potential  consequences,  in 
particular in view of a better use of places of refuge; 

improving  the  cover  for  accidental  damage,  through  strengthened  requirements 
concerning compulsory insurance and compensation; 

stepping  up  cooperation  and  affirming  the  principle  of  independent  maritime 
accident investigations; 

reinforcing  ship  inspections  through  rigorous  application  of  port  State  control  and 
greater monitoring of the activities of classification societies. 

The Erika and Prestige accidents have resulted in a significant strengthening of safety rules at 
European level and, in some cases, a drastic reduction in specific risks, such as those arising 
from the transport of heavy fuel oil in single-hull tankers. 

1 

http://www.europarl.eu.int/comparl/tempcom/mare/default_en.htm. 

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These efforts need to be continued and intensified. The response to these requirements must 
take into account the importance of the shipping industry to Europe's competitiveness. 

In this context, the Commission is proposing a third package of legislative measures designed 
to improve safety at sea, following on from the Erika-I and Erika-II packages2, while at the 
same time strengthening the competitiveness of our flag. This package is fully in line with the 
Commission's strategic objectives for the period 2005-20093, since, in setting out its vision of 
"Europe 2010, a  partnership for European renewal - Prosperity, solidarity and security", the 
Commission stressed that an essential aspect of quality of life is a policy which manages and 
reduces the risks with which people are confronted, such as the risks of accidents at sea. The 
measures that the Commission is proposing today are in line with this objective. 

Lastly,  more  generally,  the  third  package  will  help  to  strengthen  the  safety  aspects  of  the 
integrated European maritime policy being developed, the prospects for which will be stressed 
in  the  announced  “Green  Paper  on  the  future  Maritime  Policy  of  the  Union:  a  vision  for 
Oceans  and  Seas”  due  to  be  published  in  the  first  half  of  2006.  This  integrated  policy  will 
strive  to  achieve  a  fair  balance  between  the  economic,  social,  environmental,  security  and 
safety  aspects  of  shipping  activities,  ensuring  both  the  conservation  of  resources  and  the 
improvement of competitiveness, long-term growth and employment in the maritime sector. 

I. 

EUROPEAN  UNION  ACTION  TO  PROMOTE  COMPETITIVE,  SAFE  AND  HIGH-QUALITY 
MARITIME TRANSPORT  

By  virtue  of  the  European  Union’s  geography,  its  history  and  the  growing  globalisation  of 
trade, the economic development of the European Union is still very dependent on maritime 
transport. For example: 

•  almost 90% of its external trade in goods and more than 40% of its internal trade goes by 

sea;  

•  some 1 billion tonnes of oil enter European Union ports or cross the waters surrounding its 

territory each year; 

•  shipping companies owned by European Union nationals control nearly 40% of the world 
fleet,  and  the  bulk  of  the  external  trade  of  the  European  Union,  the  world's  leading 
commercial  power,  involves  ships  controlled  by  economic  operators  originating  in  the 
European Union; 

•  the  maritime  sector  in  the  broadest  sense,  i.e.  including  shipbuilding,  ports,  fishing  and 
related industries and services (insurance, banking, etc.), employs around 3 million people 
in the European Union. 

It  is  therefore  vital  for  the  European  Union  to  have  a  competitive  fleet  and  maritime  sector 
which  can  ensure  its  economic  future  and  strengthen  its  capacity  for  action  at  international 

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COM(2000) 142 and COM(2000) 802. The Erika-I and Erika-II packages are intended to strengthen the 
existing legislation, on port State control in particular, but also contain new measures concerning, for 
example,  the  accelerated  phasing-out  of  single-hull  vessels,  traffic  monitoring,  pollution-damage 
compensation, and the setting-up of a European Maritime Safety Agency to assist the Commission and 
the Member States with the implementation of Community legislation. 
COM(2005) 12, 26.1.2005. 

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level. The European Union has, for many years, been pursuing an active policy in support of 
the competitiveness of its fleet, by means of: 

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regulation,  e.g.  the  framework  for  State  aid  for  the  maritime  sector,  with  the 
Community guidelines revised in 2004 which are intended to promote, in particular, 
European re-flagging to guarantee greater quality and safety, 

agreements, such as bilateral and international maritime agreements to promote free 
and  non-discriminatory  access  for  European  Union  operators  to  the  international 
maritime transport services market, 

aid, in particular in the context of the trans-European transport network, through the 
establishment  of  port  infrastructure  and  port  access,  the  promotion  of  innovative 
services through the Marco Polo programme, and the development of research in the 
shipping sector. 

The quality of the maritime services offered by operators themselves is also one of the major 
aspects  of  competitiveness  in  the  sector.  The  measures  proposed  by  the  Commission  in  the 
light of the tragic oil tanker accidents in recent years should therefore be seen as part of the 
process of strengthening a high-quality maritime sector and seized upon as an opportunity by 
the best operators to assert their competitiveness on the international market. 

Through the third maritime safety package, the Commission contributes to the operation of a 
transparent  shipping  sector,  leading  at  Community  and  international  level  to  the  gradual 
creation  of  a  fair  market  (level  playing  field)  for  maritime  transport  for  the  benefit  of 
European  operators.  It  will  monitor  the  strict  implementation  of  existing  rules  and  will 
continue  to  promote  the  cross-fertilisation  process  initiated  between  the  international 
regulatory  framework  and  the  Community  legislation  which  also  contributes  to  the 
establishment of fair competition at world level, a fundamental pre-requisite for maintaining 
the current quality of European flags, through the following measures. 

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Rigorous  monitoring  of  the  transposition  and  application  of  Community  legislation 
on  safety  at  sea.  To  get  the  Member  States  to  comply  with  the  obligations,  the 
Commission  uses  the  means  available  to  it  under  the  Treaty  and  has  initiated 
infringement  procedures  against  Member  States  which  fail  in  their  requirements. 
These  procedures  have  already  resulted  in  rulings  being  given  against  the  Member 
States concerned by the Court of Justice. 

Reinforcing the presence and active participation of the Community in international 
forums. 

The Commission intends to continue and step up the uniform and rigorous application of the 
international rules adopted under the auspices of the IMO. A similar approach will be pursued 
concerning  the  rules  of  the  International  Labour  Organisation  (ILO),  in  the  context  of  the 
current  recasting  of  the  conventions  adopted  under the  auspices  of  that organisation.  In  this 
process, excellent cooperation with the social partners has made it possible to achieve major 
progress on the new convention which the Commission intends to transpose into Community 
law.  

In addition, in drawing up the third legislative package on maritime safety, the Commission 
wanted to contribute to the achievement of the objectives of the Lisbon Strategy through the 
improvement and simplification of the existing legislative texts, such as the Directive on port 

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State control and the Directive on classification societies, which have been amended several 
times.  The  objective  is,  in  particular,  to  improve  the  legibility  and  effectiveness  of  the 
Community  regulatory  environment,  primarily  for  the  benefit  of  European  citizens  and 
maritime transport operators. 

Implementation of the measures contained in this package will, where appropriate, involve the 
European Maritime Safety Agency set up by Regulation (EC) No 1406/2002 of the European 
Parliament  and  of  the  Council4.  Some  of  the  measures  are  already  provided  for  in  that 
Regulation. The others will be the subject of a proposal to amend the Regulation setting up 
the Agency which the Commission intends to submit in the coming months. 

To  conclude,  consolidation  of  legislation,  improvement  of  the  efficiency  of  maritime 
administrations,  targeting  of  inspections  on  ships  with  a  high  risk  profile  and  reduction  of 
controls  for  ships  with  a  good  risk  profile  will  contribute  significantly  to  improving  the 
competitiveness of our industry. Safety cannot be dissociated from competitiveness. 

II. 

EFFORTS ARE NEEDED TO ENFORCE EXISTING RULES 

The Member States are responsible for implementing Community Directives and Regulations. 

In its Resolution of 27 April 2004, the European Parliament stressed that “in response to the 
Erika and Prestige disasters, important legislative measures have been taken to make shipping 
safer in European waters and that priority must therefore be given to the rapid and complete 
introduction and strict enforcement of the European rules by the Member States.” 

The Commission is determined to assign priority to the proper implementation by the Member 
States of the Community legislation on maritime safety. With the assistance of the European 
Maritime Security Agency, it has launched a specific programme to monitor the conformity 
and  application  of  the  maritime  security  legislation  (2005-2007).  Implementation  of  this 
programme  has  already  resulted  in  an  increase  in  the  number  of  infringement  procedures 
brought  against  Member  States.  On  30 September 2005,  68  maritime  safety  procedures, 
including cases of non-communication and complaints were in progress. 

The  situation  regarding  the  communication  of  national  measures  transposing  the  Directives 
adopted  in  the  framework  of  the  “Erika”  packages  has  considerably  improved  (only  three 
cases before the Court of Justice at present). On the other hand, the situation with the more 
recent  texts  is  not  yet  satisfactory  (31  procedures  initiated).  In  addition,  the  Commission 
remains concerned about the quality of certain national texts, in particular those transposing 
the Directives on port State control and waste reception facilities for which 12 procedures are 
in  progress.  Where  those  Directives  are  concerned,  19  cases  concerning  poor  application  of 
the national texts in several Member States are at present at various stages. 

III. 

NEED TO STRENGTHEN MARITIME SAFETY AND PREVENT POLLUTION BY SHIPS. 

Following  the  Erika  and  Prestige  accidents,  the  European  Union  acted  urgently  in  order  to 
establish a defensive mechanism designed to protect Europe against the risk of accidents and 
pollution. The European Union has at times been reproached for having a calmer attitude than 

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OJ L 208, 5.8.2002, p. 1. 

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the  United  States  which,  through  OPA  90  (Oil  Pollution  Act),  reacted  unilaterally  to  the 
Exxon Valdez accident5. This disregards the fact that Europe is not in a comparable situation 
to that of the United States. Europe's basic problem is transit traffic, outside the jurisdiction of 
the  Member  States,  involving  high-risk  vessels  flying  the  flag  of  third  countries:  some 
200 million tonnes of crude oil and petroleum products6 are moved each year off our coasts 
without control being possible in a European Union port.  

However, the lack of safety at sea is deep-rooted, and is bound up with the inherent features 
of  maritime  transport  and  how  it  operates.  Only  a  more  proactive  policy  will  really  make  it 
possible  to  change  the  situation  and  restore,  on  a  lasting  basis,  healthy  competition  for 
operators who comply with international rules. 

Strengthening  maritime  safety  rules  at  international  and  regional  level  remains  of  a 
fundamental importance for several reasons. 

•  All the existing data indicate that substandard ships and flags of convenience continue to 
prosper. According to recent OECD data, 10 to 15% of the world fleet, i.e. between 5 000 
and 7 500 ships, fail to comply with international safety standards. 

•  In  addition,  Paris  Memorandum  statistics7  indicate  an  increase  in  the  number  of 
shortcomings found during ship inspections8 concerning, in particular, human aspects and 
ship  management9.  These  figures  underline  the  fact  that  the  legitimate  concerns  about 
environmental risks should not allow us to forget the heavy price paid by seafarers for lack 
of safety at sea. 

•  Objective  reasons  to  do  with  the  significance  and  development  of  maritime  traffic  in 
European Union waters: extra-European Union trade in goods by sea has increased in the 
last five years both in terms of volume and in terms of the value of goods traded. Europe 
continues to have the biggest volume of maritime traffic, even if the proportion of transit 
vessels  has  fallen  with  enlargement.  New  traffic  routes  have  been  created:  Russia,  for 
example,  has  built  large  oil  terminals  which  are  resulting  in  a  spectacular  and  rapid 
increase  in  maritime  traffic  in  the  Gulf  of  Finland.  In  2000,  some  40 million  tonnes  of 
crude  oil  and  petroleum  products  were  carried  in  the  Gulf  of  Finland.  According  to 
estimates, this figure could reach 100 to 120 million tonnes by 2010. 

•  Similarly, the protection of the Mediterranean against the risks of pollution by ships from 
the Black Sea remains a source of concern. In 2002, 122 million tonnes of oil crossed the 
Bosporus,  on  board  7 400  oil  tankers.  The  risk  of  pollution  is  likely  to  increase  with  the 
growth  in  oil  production  in  the  Caspian  Sea  region:  assuming  that  all  the  oil  pipeline 
expansion or construction projects are completed, the average oil export capacity from the 
Caspian to the Black Sea terminals would be 2.4 million barrels/day in 2015. These trends, 
which  concern  the  countries  of  northern  Europe  and  the  Mediterranean,  demonstrate  the 

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The  grounding  of  the  American  oil  tanker  Exxon  Valdez  on  24  March  1989  caused  an  oil  spill  of 
40 000 tonnes of crude oil off Alaska. 
Or the equivalent of one-quarter of European imports by sea. The latter amount to 800 million tonnes 
and on their own represent 90% of imports. 
http://www.parismou.org. 
Nearly 72 000 in 2003 compared with less than 58 000 in 1998. 
Between 2001 and 2003 there was a 152% increase in the number of shortcomings concerning seafarer 
training and certification and 186% for security management systems (ISM). 

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need to develop and intensify the maritime safety component of the dialogue between the 
Community  and  its  neighbours,  particularly  in  the  context  of  the  establishment  of  the 
common economic area between the European Union and Russia and through the dialogue 
established  by  the  European  neighbourhood  policy10  which  establishes  a  framework  for 
relations between the enlarged Europe and its neighbours. Under this strategy, action plans 
have  been  concluded  with  the  partner  countries  of  the  Black  Sea  and  the  Mediterranean 
and entail several measures intended to strengthen cooperation concerning maritime safety 
policies  and  improve  the  efficiency  of  the  implementation  of  standards  for  port  and  flag 
States. 

•  Audits  carried  out  by  the  Commission  of  the  European  Union  recognised  classification 
societies have shown that the approach must be strengthened to ensure that ship safety is at 
all times controlled to the highest standards. 

•  Lastly,  international  conventions  provide  to  ships’  operators  the  benefit  of  a  limited 
liability. Such privilege, which is rare in other industrial sectors, may lead to an erosion of 
the  sense  of  responsibility  in  the  transport  chain.  Efforts  made  to  raise  the  ceilings  of 
compensation levels for victims are not sufficient even though the raising, on the initiative 
the  IOPC  Fund11  from  approximately 
of 
EUR 240 million to 900 million constitutes a significant improvement. 

the  Commission,  of 

the  ceiling  of 

IV. 

GOOD  COOPERATION  BETWEEN  THE  COMMUNITY  AND  THE  INTERNATIONAL 
ORGANISATIONS 

The  Commission  fully  recognises  the  added  value  of  international  action  in  respect  of 
maritime safety, which is generally preferable to regional action when it makes it possible to 
achieve  sufficiently  high  levels  of  protection.  Unfortunately,  despite  enlargement,  the 
European  Union’s  influence  at  international  level  is  not  commensurate  with  the  size  of  its 
fleet and its maritime interests. This situation is due to the fact that the European Union does 
not  have  legal  status  within  the  IMO.  Consequently,  the  Commission  fully  agrees  with  the 
wish expressed by the European Parliament in its MARE Resolution that the Council should 
request the Community’s accession to the IMO, as it already proposed in 2002. 

Conclusions 

The  Third  Maritime  Safety  Package  rests  on  a  coherent  series  of  measures  with  many 
interdependent  aspects.  It  puts  into  practice  the  requests  made  by  the  European  Parliament, 
the  European  Council  and  the  ministers  meeting  within  the  Transport  Council  and  the 
Vancouver Interministerial Conference of November 2004 on port State control of ships. 

These requests go beyond simply reacting to a particular accident. They seek to bring about a 
thorough  reform  of  current  maritime  transport  practices  and,  in  the  words  of  the  European 
Parliament in  its Resolution of 27 April 2004, they highlight the  need for  “a comprehensive 
and cohesive European maritime policy, which would have as its objective the creation of a 
European  maritime  safety  area”.  In  addition,  this  new  legislative  package,  like  the  earlier 

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COM(2004) 373, 12.5.2004. 
1992  International  Convention  establishing  an  International  Oil  Pollution  Compensation  Fund 
(http://en.iopcfund.org/). 

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packages,  will  contribute  towards  achieving  the  objectives  of  the  Thematic  Strategy  for  the 
protection of the marine environment required by the Sixth Environment Action Programme. 

The  measures  contained  in  the  third  package  will  contribute  to  this  objective,  as  part  of  a 
comprehensive  policy  aimed  at  ensuring  efficient,  high-quality  maritime  transport  which 
respects  the  environment  and  human  beings.  The  efforts  made  by  the  European  Union,  the 
national public authorities and the industry to promote a sustainable and economically-viable 
maritime  transport  sector  will  benefit  operators  which  comply  with  safety  standards.  The 
Third  Maritime  Safety  Package  sets  the  level  playing  field  which  will  fully  benefit  our 
maritime industry which contributes to growth and prosperity in Europe. 

At a time when the European Union is developing an ambitious policy for the development of 
motorways of the sea12, a clear and foreseeable legal framework is needed which enables the 
investments that are necessary to its development. 

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The Commission White Paper “European transport policy to 2010: time to decide” - COM(2001) 370 - 
proposes to develop motorways of the sea linking European ports as a genuine competitive alternative 
to inland transport. 

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