Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2000-01-18-Speech-2-125"
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"en.20000118.5.2-125"2
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"Firstly, I would like to thank the environment colleagues in my group who approached this particular problem jointly with their transport team. This disaster is both a transport and environmental one and is not confined to one area.
Here we are here again in this Parliament discussing yet another maritime disaster. I could reel off the list of disasters that have afflicted this industry in my 10 years in this Parliament but I only have three minutes.
Surely it is now about time that not only the Member States but that toothless tiger that is known as the International Maritime Organisation, and last but not least, the oil companies and tanker owners take on their responsibilities by acting to stop these ecological and human tragedies repeating themselves year after year. How many more Erikas do we have to endure before the powers that be deliver to us a proper port state control that is effective throughout the whole of the European Union, not just certain areas of it?
How much more pollution do we have to endure before the industry delivers us tankers with segregated tanks and double holds? How many more seabirds are to die before shipping companies end the practice of cleaning their tanks at sea which, as our resolution points out, causes far more pollution than any Erika-type disaster?
While I recognise that some progress has been made in areas like port state control and minimal crewing standards, we are still faced with what our late colleague Ken Stewart used to call 'ships of shame sailing in and out of our European Union waters: rust buckets badly crewed'. We need the Member States to act quickly and decisively. We need our governments to put up the financial resources needed to give us effective control and we need them also to stop dragging their feet when it comes to maritime safety.
The Erika cost no human lives but it may have ruined many human livelihoods. Just as the Sea Empress, just as the Braer did. It is absolutely certain that all three left us with an ecological disaster.
My group's sympathy goes out to the people of Brittany who have seen their area despoiled by this disaster, just as my group's sympathy went out to the people of West Wales and to the Shetland Islands on previous occasions. Is it not about time that we stopped expressing sympathy and started issuing enforcement notices to get rid of these ships of shame in favour of safe seas or we will be back again, later on this year, discussing a new motion for a resolution when yet another flag-of-convenience tanker sadly goes down spewing its crude oil all over the sea.
The time for resolutions has passed. What is now needed is action. Sadly, I fear, the Council will yet again fail to act and we will be back in the future discussing yet another maritime and ecological disaster.
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