Relato integral dos debates

Quinta-feira, 18 de Abril de 2019 - Estrasburgo

4. Ambiente de plataforma única europeia para o setor marítimo (debate)

  President. – The next item is the debate on the report by Deirdre Clune, on behalf of the Committee on Transport and Tourism, on the proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing a European Maritime Single Window environment and repealing Directive 2010/65/EU (COM(2018)0278 – C8-0193/2018 – 2018/0139(COD)) (A8-0006/2019).

  Deirdre Clune, Rapporteur. – Mr President, thank you to the Commissioner and my fellow shadow rapporteurs on the file. I think this has been a very positive file for all of us, there has been very good cooperation on this file, the Maritime Single Window, which aims to facilitate the shipping industry, to facilitate the movement of goods through European ports, to ensure that when a ship comes to a European port that there will be a harmonised set of data with which it will have to comply or provide.

Currently the situation is fractured and it is not easy. A ship coming to any individual European port, even in individual countries, may and does find today that they have a different set of requirements, additional requirements at some ports, so the idea is to facilitate trade, make it more efficient and harmonise the set of data that is required. It’s a simple path now, I would say. We’ve had cooperation from seaports, an opportunity to visit them – I certainly have myself – and to engage with them and to see what they have on the ground and some ports are at a very advanced stage and others are not so. But the idea is to bring every European port to the same level through a single Maritime Single Window.

As I said, we have had very good cooperation, in the trilogues as well, and I would just thank the Commissioner for her time at that and also the Romanian Presidency. It went very smoothly. One of the first meetings that I had in Parliament here, coincidentally, was with representatives from the shipping industry and, as I said, they outlined the burden and the challenges that they all face. So, for me it’s particularly pleasing to be able to deliver now something that is to their benefit and the wider trade facilitation.

We’ve just seen this week the start, hopefully, of trade negotiations with the US; with Canada has been signed in this term of this Parliament, and other trade deals as well – the Japanese trade deal – they all mean business for our ports and business for the shipping industry and ultimately for European business and European consumers. This has been real and positive for the shipping companies and for the ports, so it’s a win—win for everybody.

As I say, we are streamlining the systems and creating a Maritime Single Window with over two million port calls in the European Union every year. Some ports are still using paper and 1970s technology and this changes that. It will reduce the burden, first for the short—shipping, particularly, as well and improve its competitiveness which is very important. The harmonising reporting process will increase efficiency and it’s expected to reduce the administrative burden by up to 720 million by the year 2030 by cutting the reporting time in half, and that can only be a good thing.

There have been a number of particular issues that we have addressed and number one is to recognise that what’s existing at the ports already can be built upon. If, in some cases, there were additional data requirements and exceptional circumstances, that can be accommodated, but only for a limited period of time. Technology neutrality was part of our debate as well and we’re happy that that has been referred to on the base of the Window. And also a governance dimension, that was very important I think, and maybe my fellow shadow rapporteurs will speak on that as well, but the governance dimension was very important for us and for shipping companies as well, so that we knew if these changes were implemented who was responsible and how could it be tracked.

The agreement has, as I say, been very positive and I very much look forward to the next phase of this implementation and to seeing the results in terms of the reduction in bureaucracy, time spent by shipping companies, and ultimately facilitating the smooth movement of trade into and out of European ports.

  Violeta Bulc, Member of the Commission. – Mr President, the Commission is very happy that the legislators have reached a political agreement on this regulation establishing a European Maritime Single Window environment. We will finally now be able to respond to the long-standing request of the EU maritime industry for a fully-harmonised environment for ship reporting in all European ports.

I would particularly like to thank the rapporteur, Ms Clune, as well as the Committee on Transport and Tourism (TRAN) shadow rapporteurs – it’s great to see you all here today – for their work and determined efforts that allowed an agreement to be reached in a smooth and quick way.

Today, shipping operators spend around one to three hours per port calling for reporting. The new rules will cut the reporting time by 60%, saving about 2.5 million hours every year, and will hence reduce administrative costs by up to EUR 725 million for the shipping sector by 2030. This will be made possible by the adoption of a common set of data definitions and standards; the integration of the existing national maritime single windows in a common interoperable horizontal environment; and the third: the provision of a harmonised interface for such reporting.

The new environment will also facilitate sharing and reuse of data and implementation of the ‘reporting once’ principle. When fully implemented, the environment will ensure that a ship reports in the same way, no matter to which port in the EU she will be calling at. In addition, the entire logistics network will benefit from a more efficient flow of information.

The shipping sector considers this regulation one of the most relevant initiatives in terms of the improvement of operational efficiency and reduction of administrative burdens, and it has already expressed great satisfaction with the compromise text. I believe that the compromise text not only satisfies all the requests of the three institutions and of the maritime sector but will also benefit the entire logistics network by promoting digitalisation and a more efficient flow of information, which, of course, has a direct impact on competitiveness and the possibility for the maritime sector to be fully integrated in multi-modal solutions.

  Wim van de Camp, namens de PPE-Fractie. – Voorzitter, dank u zeer. Een bijzonder goede morgen, iedereen. Ook mijn dank aan Deirdre als rapporteur voor dit best wel ingewikkelde dossier.

De digitalisering in de transportsector gaat onverminderd door. Hopelijk zal dit leiden tot een efficiënter en schoner transportsysteem. Bij het maritiem éénloketsysteem, zoals dat zo mooi heet, praten wij over heel veel verschillende aspecten die samenkomen bij het aanmelden van schepen in de haven. Het gaat immers niet alleen om de havenpapieren. Het gaat ook om de douanepapieren. Het gaat om de gevaarlijke stoffen. En zo zijn er tal van elementen die hierin worden verenigd.

De eerlijkheid gebiedt te zeggen dat de richtlijn uit 2010 een beetje mislukt is. Daarom heeft deze Commissie een nieuwe richtlijn uitgebracht, die hopelijk wel meer uniformiteit en duidelijkheid schept.

Persoonlijk blijf ik mij zorgen maken over de samenwerking tussen de verschillende systemen, en dan met name de zogenaamde havencommunicatiesystemen. Hoe zal dat gaan in de praktijk? Ik hoop dan ook dat de commissaris duidelijk zal toezien op de implementatie van deze richtlijn.

Voorzitter, dit was mijn laatste speech in dit Parlement. Ik wil u allen hartelijk danken voor de buitengewoon prettige samenwerking, met name met twee echte liberalen, zijnde de heer Telička en mevrouw Bulc.

  President. – Mr van de Camp, I think that if the House had been full now, which it unfortunately, is not, you would get significant applause as one of the key figures, not just in the Committee on Transport and Tourism (TRAN). And if I may just reciprocate, it was a real pleasure to work with you among the coordinators. I am sure this House will miss you, and thanks very much indeed.

  Knut Fleckenstein, im Namen der S&D-Fraktion. – Herr Präsident, liebe Kolleginnen und Kollegen! Ich möchte mich bei der Berichterstatterin, bei den Schattenberichterstattern, Kollegen und bei der Kommission für die gute Zusammenarbeit an diesem Dossier bedanken. Das Hauptziel dieser Verordnung war die Verringerung von Verwaltungsaufwand. Dieses Ziel haben wir mit Sicherheit erreicht. Die Verordnung bedeutet weniger Bürokratie für Reeder, für Schiffsbesatzungen, für Lotsen, für Hafenbehörden. Die vereinheitlichten Meldeformalitäten für Schiffe werden den Informationsaustausch zwischen Reedern und Hafenbehörden und zwischen den Hafenbehörden selbst deutlich vereinfachen. Außerdem haben wir gesichert, dass es für die Mitarbeiterinnen und Mitarbeiter des Hafens, die an diesem neuen System beteiligt werden, ein gutes Training gibt – und wir wissen, dass das A und O für einen gut funktionierenden Hafen auch gut ausgebildete Mitarbeiter sind.

Wir haben aber nicht nur mit dieser Verordnung im Umfeld der europäischen Seehäfen Verbesserungen geschafft. In den letzten fünf Jahren gab es einiges, was wir auf den Weg gebracht haben. Ich denke natürlich an das Hafenpaket, das nun seit einigen Wochen in den Mitgliedstaaten angewendet werden muss. Mit dieser Verordnung haben wir Zwangsliberalisierung verhindert, finanzielle Transparenz geschaffen, Arbeitnehmerrechte gestärkt. Ich glaube, erst kürzlich mit der Richtlinie zur Entladung von Abfällen haben wir wesentlich zu mehr Umweltschutz in den Häfen beigetragen.

Am Ende dieser Legislaturperiode möchte ich mich für die gute Kooperation mit Ihnen allen bedanken. Und ein bisschen dürfen wir uns auch selbst loben: Wir haben dazu beigetragen, dass die Wettbewerbsfähigkeit der europäischen Häfen gestärkt wird, und das ist gut – nicht nur für meine Heimatstadt Hamburg.

  Gesine Meissner, im Namen der ALDE-Fraktion. – Herr Präsident, Frau Kommissarin, liebe Kolleginnen und Kollegen! Es ist tatsächlich so, dass sich für mich heute ein Kreis schließt, nicht nur weil das meine letzte Rede als Abgeordnete ist – ich trete nicht wieder an –, sondern als ich 2009 in den Ausschuss für Verkehr und Tourismus kam – ich kann mich noch genau erinnern –, da hat damals Dirk Sterckx, unser belgischer Kollege, gerade an dem Vorgängergesetz gearbeitet, nämlich an der freiwilligen digitalen Hafenfrachtpapierverordnung. Und da war es aber wirklich so, dass man sagte: Es soll ein national maritime single window geben, und es muss nicht überall angewandt werden.

Mittlerweile haben wir gemerkt, dass das nicht gut funktioniert hat, weder in Deutschland noch anderswo. Heute sind wir einen bedeutenden Schritt weitergekommen und haben jetzt wirklich die digitale Abfertigung von Hafenpapieren – auf dem Papier zumindest. Und sie wird dann umgesetzt werden, und ich denke, das ist ganz entscheidend, eine Verbesserung für schnelle Abfertigung in Häfen und für alle Beteiligten eine gute Sache.

Und Knut, jetzt hast du mir teilweise meine Rede weggenommen; ich wollte nämlich gerade darauf hinweisen, dass wir in dieser Legislaturperiode wirklich viele Sachen gerade für die Häfen erreicht haben: Angefangen mit deinem Bericht, mit dem Port Package, wo ich auch mitarbeiten durfte – das war eine schöne Kooperation –, dann kam gerade vor Kurzem meine Schiffsmüllbeseitigung, die wir beschlossen haben, und jetzt, Deirdre, dein Bericht von heute. Ich glaube, für die Häfen haben wir in dieser Wahlperiode wirklich eine ganze Menge erreicht.

Ich möchte mich auch, weil das jetzt meine letzte Rede ist, nochmal bei allen bedanken. Dazu nehme ich mir ein bisschen Zeit. Ich freue mich sehr, dass von den wenigen, die heute hier sind – wäre toll, wir wären mehr – vollkommen klar: wichtiges Thema, das sehen wir schon so – dass aber von denen, die hier sind, fast alle enge Vertraute von mir sind aus diesen letzten fünf Jahren, die ich hier war, viele sogar aus den ganzen zehn Jahren, die ich hier gewesen bin. Es hat mir sehr viel Spaß gemacht.

Ich finde, das Europäische Parlament ist das demokratischste, das es gibt. Ich war sehr gerne hier, ich höre jetzt aber auch gerne auf. Es kommen jetzt andere, und ich freue mich sehr, dass eben gerade Violeta Bulc als unsere Kommissarin heute da ist, und Pavel, ich freue mich auch sehr, dass du als mein ALDE-Transport-Kollege heute den Vorsitz hast. Also vielen Dank an alle, und wir sehen uns bestimmt wieder. Ich bleibe dem Maritimen treu!

  President. – Dear colleague, what I have said vis-à-vis Mr van de Camp applies the same, and even more so, to you. I think that, once again, you are someone who is leaving a significant footprint here in Parliament. Once again, I need to say that many of us will miss you.

  Jill Seymour, on behalf of the EFDD Group. – Mr President, I appreciate the importance of this report in ensuring that reporting issues are streamlined. I am certainly pleased to see that the burden of red tape is finally being cut in the EU. However, my concern is the storage of data and the monitoring of its continued use. The EU is only as strong as its weakest link. The uniform transmission of data is not something that I could see as being beneficial to the UK ports, where the majority of UK ports are actually privately owned.

On a personal note, this may well be my last speech here in the Chamber. I’d like to take this opportunity to thank the entire Parliament staff, including the ever-patient drivers, who have been polite and extremely helpful throughout my time here. Thank you so much.

I will always defend the right of those of you who wish to support the EU vision, if that is the desire of your country. I know many of you have struggled to understand why the UK wants to leave the European project. I will only say this: you should listen and find a way to communicate and be good neighbours, as the Brexit party is already leading in the polls.

  Sirpa Pietikäinen (PPE). – Arvoisa puhemies, satamat ovat aivan välttämättömiä EU:n toimivan talouden kannalta, ja niinpä kaikki, mitä voimme tehdä satamien paremman toiminnan eteen, on myös tärkeää koko taloutemme hyvinvoinnin kannalta. Siksi haluan kiittää sekä komissiota että esittelijöitä tästä erinomaisesta työstä. Tämä osoittaa yksinkertaisella selkeällä tavalla, mitä tarkoittaa, kun EU tekee enemmän yhdessä. Säästämme kustannuksia, tehostamme toimintaa ja tehostamme satamien käyttökapasiteettia. Samalla tämä on erinomainen esimerkki siitä, mitä digitalisaatio tarkoittaa. Käyttämällä digitalisaatiota raportoinnissa, valvonnassa jne. voimme myös välttää lisäkustannuksia ja parantaa toiminnan laatua.

Haluaisin kuitenkin näiden kehujen jälkeen nostaa esiin muutaman toiveen tietäen hyvin, että EU:n satamat ovat jo nyt kansainvälisessä vertailussa kovin ympäristöystävällisiä. Mielestäni meidän olisi tehtävä jatkossa kiertotalouden pohjalta satamille selkeä harmonisoitu odotuslista siitä, miten kaikki käyttökelpoinen materiaali uudelleen käytetään korkeimmalla mahdollisella tasolla. Tämä tarkoittaa esimerkiksi öljyn puhdistamista sen polttamisen sijasta. Ja miten esimerkiksi elektronisen valvonnan kautta voimme nykyistä paremmin seurata sitä, että laivasto todellisuudessa noudattaa ympäristönormia mereen laskemisten osalta, kalastusvaatimusten osalta tai esimerkiksi erilaisten jätteiden ja sivuvirtojen satamaan jättämisen ja kierrättämisen osalta.

  Isabella De Monte (S&D). – Signor Presidente, onorevoli colleghi, l'avvento delle nuove tecnologie sta mutando tutti gli scenari mondiali, compresa la mobilità. Bisogna coglierne la sfida e i benefici, perché l'Europa sia leader mondiale in questo campo. Le dichiarazioni e gli adempimenti che devono essere fatti ogni volta che una nave fa scalo in un porto sono molti ed è quindi necessario snellire tale formalità ed è essenziale introdurre una interfaccia unica di tali dichiarazioni.

Vi è in questo momento una totale mancanza di armonizzazione tra Stati membri e ciò provoca pesanti oneri amministrativi per gli operatori. Con questa interfaccia unica finalmente questi oneri si potranno ridurre, migliorando l'interoperabilità e l'interconnessione tra i diversi sistemi e incoraggiando la massima efficienza nell'uso dei dati.

Approfitto per ringraziare anch'io la Commissaria e il suo staff per l'ottimo lavoro, ringraziare i colleghi e dato che siamo l'Europa dei popoli, anche un saluto in sloveno Nasvidenje in hvala e un saluto anche in friulano che è un saluto anche in furlan, la me lenghe, e grazie a dut con un mandi.

  President. – Of course Friulano is not only your mother tongue but an excellent white wine from Friuli, which I enormously enjoy.

  Bogusław Liberadzki (S&D). – Panie Przewodniczący! Pani Komisarz! Byłem pytany w Szczecinie i Świnoujściu zarówno przez armatorów, jak i przez przedstawicieli portów: to cóż nowego nam zafundujecie? Myślę, że możemy odpowiedzieć, że zaproponowaliśmy Wam, drodzy portowcy, ludzie morza i rybacy, rzecz następującą: zunifikowany system nadzoru środowiskowego zarówno w wymiarze portowym, jak i w wymiarze żeglugowym.

Po drugie, proponujemy zintegrowanie tego w skali całej Unii Europejskiej. Chciałbym mieć przekonanie, że mówimy następująco: osiągniemy większy stopień czystości, wypełniając mniej biurokratycznych formalności, i że tym sposobem możemy osiągnąć poziom, który wszyscy uznają. Tak, chcemy chronić, ale za to będzie mniejszy wysiłek biurokratyczny.

Aby być w tym samym tonie co koledzy, chciałbym podziękować zarówno Wimowi van de Campowi, którego akurat w tej chwili nie ma, Gesine Meissner oraz Knutowi Fleckensteinowi i Tobie, Pavel, za naszą współpracę w Komisji Transportu i Turystyki. Pani Komisarz – dziękuję za pięć wspólnych lat! Pozdrawiam.

  President. – Once again, best wishes to our esteemed colleague, Mr Liberadzki, not just from the Committee on Transport and Tourism (TRAN), but also from the Bureau. Best wishes to you.

  Nicola Caputo (S&D). – Signor Presidente, onorevoli colleghi, attualmente gli operatori dei trasporti marittimi devono soddisfare troppi requisiti e fare diverse dichiarazioni ogni volta che una nave fa scalo in un porto. Il problema principale è rappresentato dalla mancanza di armonizzazione dei requisiti di dichiarazione nei vari settori e nei vari Stati e purtroppo ciò comporta notevoli costi aggiuntivi per l'industria.

Secondo le stime della Commissione, attualmente il personale del settore dei trasporti marittimi dedica ogni anno in totale circa 4,6 milioni di ore alle attività di dichiarazione, è troppo. Un'interfaccia di dichiarazione unica per le navi permetterà di ridurre sensibilmente questi oneri amministrativi, contribuendo ad agevolare ulteriormente il commercio, la digitalizzazione e a modernizzare la mobilità marittima.

Con questo regolamento si creano le condizioni per l'applicazione del principio una tantum affinché le navi possano fare in un unico porto una sola dichiarazione e riutilizzare quelle informazioni per i successivi scali nei porti dell'Unione europea.

Catch-the-eye procedure

  José Inácio Faria (PPE). – Senhor Presidente, Senhora Comissária, Colega Deirdre, as novas tecnologias estão a alterar rapidamente o panorama da mobilidade e, neste contexto, a União e as indústrias devem responder ao desafio de se tornarem líderes mundiais da mobilidade.

Fui relator do MRV sobre as emissões de CO2 dos transportes marítimos e, por isso, entendo que este regulamento era o passo seguinte para estabelecer as regras harmonizadas para a prestação de informações exigidas para as escalas portuárias, assegurando a transmissão de informações entre declarantes, autoridades competentes e prestadores de serviços portuários através da plataforma nacional única.

Estas plataformas nacionais para o setor marítimo devem ser mantidas e servir de base para o ambiente europeu de plataforma única para este setor que seja tecnologicamente neutro, interoperável e que permita a atualização tecnológica e dos requisitos formais de acesso portuário. Recairá agora na Comissão o desenvolvimento da interface, bem como das respetivas atualizações. Mas, para atingir este objetivo de manter e obter os requisitos de comunicação plenamente harmonizados, teremos que ter uma maior cooperação entre autoridades aduaneiras e marítimas, tanto a nível nacional como a nível da União.

Termino, Senhor Presidente, agradecendo a colaboração sempre excelente da Senhora Comissária Violeta Bulc, bem como de todos os colegas aqui do Parlamento, especialmente na Comissão de Transportes.

  Jiří Pospíšil (PPE). – Pane předsedající, já jsem byl v poslední době dotazován různými provozovateli, zda se tato myšlenka, která je podle mě správná, nemůže zvrhnout do pozice, že se administrativa ještě ztíží. To je důvod, proč tady vystupuji, chci pochválit tuto myšlenku. Jednotný námořní portál má určitě smysl, je to oblast, kde má smysl harmonizovat, protože zde budou jasné jednotné požadavky na lodní přepravce.

Na druhou stranu Vás chci požádat, paní komisařko, říká se v Čechách, že cesta do pekel je dlážděna dobrými úmysly. Moc prosím, aby potom následné provedení tohoto námořního portálu nevedlo k tomu, že přepravci budou zavaleni další a další byrokracií. Pokud to uhlídáme a povede to ke sjednocení požadavků na přepravce a pokud ty požadavky nebudou přemrštěné, což je ten úmysl a je to tak napsáno v daném nařízení, pak si myslím, že to je správná cesta, že harmonizace na evropské úrovni zde má svůj smysl a povede k lepším podmínkám pro přepravce.

  Bill Etheridge (EFDD). – Mr President, five years after I came here, there is a perfect symmetry. We started listening to arguments about more homogenisation and bringing things together, and in almost my last speech here, we are hearing more of the same. Whilst I understand this – as I’ve stated many a time before – I do think there is something special about uniquely-different places having different rules. I also think the idea of new regulation to get rid of less paperwork is a uniquely EU idea, but maybe it will work.

Whilst things here for five years haven’t really changed and there’s been a consistency outside of these walls, a wind of change is blowing all across Europe. I think it’s important to be mindful that while it doesn’t change in here, this wind is blowing in these coming elections. Whilst I may not be back, it may well bring some very different people here and different arguments.

(End of catch-the-eye procedure)

  Violeta Bulc, Member of the Commission. – Mr President, first of all, I would like to thank honourable Members for their comments. They are fully in line with our cooperation that led us to this point. Let me just restress how important I believe the adoption of this regulation is for a truly European maritime single window and maritime single area. The environment will profit, our organisation will profit, we will increase efficiency, and of course shipping will become even more competitive.

Just one additional clarification regarding the port community systems that Mr van de Camp raised: the Commission will not rule out other possible reporting channels, provided that the interfaces for the Single Maritime Window are available and operators are offered the choice. This will be a choice for the Member States. On the other hand, port community systems will be able to use data services and provide additional value added services in ports for maritime operators, of course if they comply with the technical specifications set out in the application of this regulation.

Finally, let me thank Ms Clune one more time for the excellent coordination, all the shadow rapporteurs and all colleagues for really constructive and focused work, which of course delivered this very important piece of legislation.

Mr President, I wish you well, as well, in the forthcoming elections. Honourable Members, this is also my last appearance in front of this Parliament and I would like to take this opportunity to really say how grateful I am for the not always easy, but very constructive, dialogues. What I really appreciate is that we never walked away from the negotiating table no matter how hard it was. I think this is a very strong message to all Europeans, as this is the spirit of democracy. No matter how hard it sometimes was to reach a final conclusion, we honoured the final conclusions as the result of democracy.

I would like to continue in this spirit. I would like to invite you to continue in this spirit, no matter where we engage, and make sure that we create a resilient, sustainable and very cooperative Europe based on democratic values. So thank you very much. It has been an extreme privilege to work with you and I wish you all well, no matter where the path leads you.

(Applause)

  President. – Commissioner, I think the applause says it all. I think for all of us in the Committee on Transport and Tourism (TRAN) it was a very pleasant period of five years. I still remember the very first days after you were nominated, to be the first nominee of Ms Bratušek, and I think that you and we have travelled a very long and, I believe, a very good path. I wish you in the coming months the very best. I am sure I speak on behalf of the House.

  Deirdre Clune, Rapporteur. – Mr President, I’m sure you’ll have heard from the contributions across the floor today how welcome this piece of legislation, the regulation, is. As I said, it’s a win—win for all, reducing the amount of time that shipping companies have to report – I think the Commissioner said to 60%, I have 50%. Well, that’s great. It’s a win-win for everybody so I think it’s really positive.

Again, I’d like to thank everybody for their contributions and for their support in getting us to this point. I think it’s a really positive example of what Europe can do when we pull together and when we work together on making things more competitive for our shipping industry and for those businesses that depend on the shipping industry to get their goods to market. So I think it’s a really positive story. It’s a great story to end up on, for me.

This is my last speech in this term. I hope I’ll be back to make more of them, but that’s up to the electorate in Ireland’s south, where I come from. But I’d like to thank the Commissioner sincerely for her support to me. Commissioner, your time in the Committee on Transport and Tourism (TRAN) in the work that I have been doing, certainly in the area of ports and the mobility package, has been very positive. I would say, personally, that I have followed the work you have done in terms of road safety and support it enthusiastically when and wherever I can, even though it’s not part of today’s debate.

I’d like to thank Wim van de Camp as my coordinator – we would call him the leader, but he doesn’t use that term – in our PPE for his support, guidance and leadership over the last five years. Gesine Meißner, thank you too for the work and your commitment to the maritime area, certainly something that touches my heart. I am very happy to have been involved with you and I wish you well.

We have a lot of goodbyes today. I think this is a very positive moment for many of us to finish up on, a file that will actually do good and underlines exactly what Europe is about. It’s about bringing together and making things more efficient. By working together, we can produce such very positive work as that.

Mr President, I wish you well too in your next venture.

  President. – Thank you, and the same thing applies to you. What an atmosphere here today. Why couldn’t we have at least 200 last days during the mandate? It would have been quite an atmosphere.

Once again, thank you very much, Ms Clune, for your excellent work and also cooperation with you in the Committee on Transport and Tourism (TRAN).

The debate is closed.

The vote will take place on Thursday, 18 April 2019.