Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2007-07-10-Speech-2-421"
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"en.20070710.58.2-421"2
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"This future regulation should replace three regulations currently in force, which make up the third set of guidelines for the domestic air transport market. The aforesaid regulations set out the procedures for issue and cancellation of air transport firm licences and the principles for free use of Community air routes by Community air transport companies, and liberalising prices of airfares.
Passenger safety. In the Commission's proposal there is no provision for any clear mechanism, which would ensure that passengers would not suffer from the effects of bankruptcy of airlines; for example, not getting compensation for cancelled flights or being abandoned to their fate at overseas destinations. Therefore, we believe that guidelines for passenger safety should be included in the regulations (Amendments 15–16).
Commitment to provide public services and regional airports. I believe that any formulation of the term 'regional airport', which obliges to provide services to the public, will inevitably include airports in economically more affluent regions, whereas airports in regions that need economic or social support may not be included in the definition. Since the commitment to provide public services on this principle is applicable only to airports serving regions having economic and social problems, I would suggest that the difficult-to-define concept of regional airport be dropped from this document.
As well as the points mentioned earlier, one should explain several definitions and conditions in order to avoid misunderstandings and erroneous application of the regulations.
Community's domestic air services. While we suggested some amendments for the subjects mentioned earlier, we support the proposed extension of the Commission's powers in relation to deciding on questions concerning the provision of domestic Community air services. Since the Commission can more effectively negotiate concerning certain rights than can individual Member States, it should have the opportunity to do so. This has been demonstrated by the agreement with Russia on transit flights over Siberia.
Therefore, it is recommended that the Commission's proposed wording for Article 15 be accepted. That is a brief characterisation of service provision.
Once the third set of guidelines began to be applied, an unprecedented expansion of the European air travel sector took place: the old monopolies disappeared, a system of local air transport was instituted, and consumer-friendly competition increased in all markets, especially in the area of pricing. What had been a regulated European aviation market based on bilateral agreements became a particularly competitive market.
It is natural that after a few years of applying the third set of guidelines, some guidelines became obsolete, others were applied poorly, and now they need revision, reconsideration or straight-out abolition.
The proposal under consideration urges correction of the three sets of guidelines that have been mentioned to make them easier to apply, to simplify the legal grounds, to remove the obsolete parts and to set new, firmer requirements.
In my opinion the Commission's proposal is logical, and I agree that it would not only be meaningful but also purposeful and essential to review the regulations now in force. In any case, in the opinion of the Committee on Transport and Tourism, which I of course support, some important parts of the regulations need to be made more precise.
I would like to mention a few of these parts:
Rentals. There is variation among the Member States in regard to rental agreement practices. This can distort the market and cause social and aviation safety problems. Therefore, without a doubt, new general requirements need to be set. The rules proposed in Article 13 are too strict and do not take into consideration certain characteristics of the air transport industry, especially its seasonality. Therefore, it would be good to find a logical compromise between social concerns and safety, and simultaneously improve the performance of airlines. In my opinion the compromise reached by the Transport Committee may help to resolve this problem.
Transparency of prices. We support the Commission's aim of banning advertising of and publicity about airfares which do not include any costs, surcharges, payments and levies. I believe that the airlines' commitment to publish only final prices has to be clearly formulated. Here too we have found a compromise which also reflects consumer needs.
Particular social considerations. Suggestions concerning particular social considerations put forward by colleagues from other groups are, in my opinion, premature unless the possible consequences are analysed assuming adoption at this time. Therefore, we request that the Commission prepare a study, on the basis of which it would be possible to regulate these matters without creating obstacles for the improvement of aviation industry competitiveness."@en1
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