| Author (Person) | Carstens, Karen |
|---|---|
| Series Title | European Voice |
| Series Details | Vol.9, No.34, 16.10.03, p22 |
| Publication Date | 16/10/2003 |
| Content Type | News |
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By Karen Carstens Date: 16/10/03 THE European Commission and member states have clashed over whether companies or individuals found guilty of polluting the sea should face criminal penalties from Brussels. European transport ministers have struck down Commission proposals for a directive, drawn up in the wake of last year's Prestige oil tanker spill off Spain's north-western coast, to include tough penal sanctions including imprisonment and extradition. They argued at a meeting in Luxembourg on Thursday (9 October) that these should be treated under the EU's "third pillar",* which encompasses police and judicial cooperation in criminal matters. It excludes the Commission and European Parliament from decision-making, and requires unanimous agreement from member states. Loyola de Palacio, the energy and transport commissioner, lamented the ministers' "enormous reluctance" to put the penalties in the draft directive. She accused them of making an "about-turn" after EU leaders publicly committed themselves to fighting pollution from ships following the November 2002 Prestige disaster. The ministers argued the criminal sanctions must be kept for a later version of the draft directive, which would be adopted unanimously. But de Palacio spokesman Gilles Gantelet said: "People who support the idea of a unanimous vote run the risk that one country will block and there will never be these penal sanctions against the vandals of the sea." The ministers broadly backed the other parts of the directive, which aims to create harmonized standards to prevent pollution. *The "first pillar" includes all areas of Community competence, and other areas shared with member states, ranging from environment to competition; the "second pillar", which refers solely to common foreign and security policy, largely excludes the Commission and Parliament from decision-making. Report of a meeting of the Transport, Telecommunications and Energy Council in Luxembourg on 9 October 2003 at which there was heated discussion over a draft directive to fight pollution from ships following the November 2002 Prestige disaster off the coast of Spain. |
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| Subject Categories | Environment, Justice and Home Affairs, Mobility and Transport |
