Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2003-09-02-Speech-2-080"
| Predicate | Value (sorted: default) |
|---|---|
| rdf:type | |
| dcterms:Date | |
| dcterms:Is Part Of | |
| dcterms:Language | |
| lpv:document identification number |
"en.20030902.4.2-080"2
|
| lpv:hasSubsequent | |
| lpv:speaker | |
| lpv:spokenAs | |
| lpv:translated text |
"Mr President, the text that we are examining today is in fact directly linked to the fundamental issue of maritime safety, and we should approach it mindful of the recent disasters which have cast a shadow over our coasts and which are clearly linked to issues regarding the inadequate training of crews. Not only the increasing number, in recent years, of shipwrecks caused by human error, but also the increasing numbers of fatal collisions and of failures to report accidents, reveal both serious shortcomings in crew training and the absence of the basic culture of the very highest level of solidarity between seafarers.
At the present time, our fishermen carry out their work in constant fear of a collision with a merchant vessel. Such collisions have unfortunately become common along our coasts. We are also finding, and I am thinking in particular of the case of the ‘
’, a French fishing vessel ripped apart exactly one year ago by the Norwegian cargo vessel the ‘
’, that the families of victims of accidents at sea are experiencing difficulties in obtaining compensation for the losses that they have suffered. In the case that I am thinking of, the failure to report the accident, which resulted in the deaths of several sailors, appears to have been punished by only a short term of imprisonment.
In effect, the recruiting of crews from third countries, which really means recruiting through Manning Agencies, which in some cases are more concerned with charging high levels of commission on the wages of the sailors that they supply to shipping companies than with checking their qualifications, should be regarded as a last resort. Any real efforts to prevent disasters in which the human factor plays a crucial role must therefore be organised around two main aspects rather than just one.
The first of these is the proactive aspect of the training of crews made up of nationals of Member States of the European Union, before we encourage and facilitate the recruitment of sailors who are nationals of third countries, which is what the present directive tends to do. We must ask ourselves some serious questions about the real causes of the current shortage of qualified sailors in the Union, and we must draw up a proactive policy in order to correct this negative development. This is why I believe that Amendments Nos 1 and 2, tabled by the Parliamentary committee concerned, are extremely relevant.
The second aspect of these preventive efforts concerns the absolute necessity of surrounding ourselves with as many guarantees as possible regarding the quality of training, and the effectiveness of that training, when foreign sailors are recruited by vessels flying the flag of a Member State of the European Union. Controls applying right up to the level of training institutes would be desirable, even if this is difficult, as Amendments Nos 12 and 15 suggest. A system of ongoing control in order to prevent the provisions of the directive from becoming fixed for a long period of time, as proposed by Amendment No 23, also seems to me to be relevant. Yet why, in a field which is chiefly concerned with safety, do we want, at any price, to remove responsibility from the Member States? The European Maritime Safety Agency will certainly be able to contribute useful expertise in assessing training, but why should such assessment of third countries be restricted exclusively to the Commission and the Agency? Finally, Mr President, why should we want to deprive Member States of the right to withdraw recognitions when they believe this to be essential for their own safety?"@en1
|
| lpv:unclassifiedMetadata |
"Bow"1
"Cistude"1
"Eagle"1
|
Named graphs describing this resource:
The resource appears as object in 2 triples