REPORT on the proposal for a Council regulation amending Regulation (EC) No 1177/2002 concerning a temporary defensive mechanism to shipbuilding
(COM(2004) 26 – C5‑0061/2004 – 2004/0008(CNS))
16 February 2004 - *
Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs
Rapporteur: Christa Randzio-Plath
(Simplified procedure - Rule 158(1) of the Rules of Procedure)
PROCEDURAL PAGE
By letter of 3 February 2004 the Council consulted Parliament, pursuant to Article 89 of the EC Treaty, on the proposal for a Council regulation amending Regulation (EC) No 1177/2002 concerning a temporary defensive mechanism to shipbuilding (COM(2004) 26 – 2004/0008(CNS)).
At the sitting of 9 February 2004 the President of Parliament announced that he had referred the proposal to the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs as the committee responsible and the Committee on Industry, External Trade, Research and Energy for its opinion (C5‑0061/2004).
At its meeting on 9 February 2004 the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs decided, on a proposal from the chairwoman, to apply the simplified procedure under Rule 158(1) and the chairwoman was thus appointed rapporteur.
The following were present for the decision on the chairwoman's proposal: Philippe A.R. Herzog (acting chairman), John Purvis (vice-chairman), Generoso Andria, Pervenche Berès, Hans Blokland, Hans Udo Bullmann, Robert Goebbels, Othmar Karas, Giorgos Katiforis, Christoph Werner Konrad, Astrid Lulling, Ioannis Marinos, Hans-Peter Mayer, Alexander Radwan, Bernhard Rapkay, Karin Riis-Jørgensen, Olle Schmidt, Helena Torres Marques, Bruno Trentin, Theresa Villiers, Jean-Louis Bourlanges (for Brice Hortefeux), Bert Doorn (for Piia-Noora Kauppi), Harald Ettl (for Mary Honeyball), Elly Plooij-van Gorsel (for Carles-Alfred Gasòliba i Böhm), Christian Foldberg Rovsing (for Renato Brunetta), Manuel António dos Santos (for a member to be nominated), Charles Tannock (for Jonathan Evans) , Malcolm Harbour (for Mónica Ridruejo pursuant to Rule 153(2)), Den Dover (for Ingo Friedrich pursuant to Rule 153(2)), The Earl of Stockton (for José Manuel García-Margallo y Marfil pursuant to Rule 153(2)), Ian Twinn (for Lisbeth Grönfeldt Bergman pursuant to Rule 153(2)), Catherine Guy-Quint (for Christa Randzio-Plath pursuant to Rule 153(2)), Marie-Hélène Gillig (for Fernando Pérez Royo pursuant to Rule 153(2)), Bernard Poignant (for Peter William Skinner pursuant to Rule 153(2)) and Olivier Duhamel (for David W. Martin pursuant to Rule 153(2)).
The Committee on Industry, External Trade, Research and Energy decided on 11 February 2004 not to deliver and opinion.
The report was tabled on 16 February 2004.
DRAFT EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT LEGISLATIVE RESOLUTION
on the proposal for a Council regulation amending Regulation (EC) No 1177/2002 concerning a temporary defensive mechanism to shipbuilding
(COM(2004) 26 – C5‑0061/2004 – 2004/0008(CNS))
(Consultation procedure)
The European Parliament,
– having regard to the Commission proposal to the Council (COM(2004) 26)[1],
– having regard to Article 89 of the EC Treaty, pursuant to which the Council consulted Parliament (C5‑0061/2004),
– having regard to Rule 67 and 158(1) of its Rules of Procedure,
– having regard to the report of the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs (A5‑0056/2004),
1. Approves the Commission proposal;
2. Calls on the Council to notify Parliament if it intends to depart from the text approved by Parliament;
3. Calls for initiation of the conciliation procedure under the Joint Declaration of 4 March 1975 if the Council intends to depart from the text approved by Parliament;
4. Asks the Council to consult Parliament again if it intends to amend the Commission proposal substantially;
5. Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council and Commission.
- [1] Not yet published in OJ.
EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
The aim of the present proposal is simply to extend the existing, temporary defensive mechanism (TDM) for European shipbuilders affected by unfair competition from Korean companies beyond its 31 March 2004 expiry date.
The TDM, established by Council directive (EC) 1177/2002 of 27 June 2002, is part of the European Union's twin-track strategy in the ongoing dispute with the Republic of Korea over trade practices in the world-wide shipbuilding market, the other element of this strategy consisting of proceedings against the Republic of Korea before the World Trade Organisation (WTO). Both measures are closely interrelated and can obviously only work if fully synchronised.
It has to be remembered that the European Parliament, and this Committee in particular, played a key role in setting the TDM to run until 31 March 2004 initially. While the Commission's original draft merely allowed for a short-term measure until the end of 2002, an amendment introduced by the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs in cooperation with the Commitee on Industry, External Trade, Research and Energy (Report by Karin Riis-Jørgensen and Jaime Valdivielso de Cué, A5-373/2001), and the subsequent decision of the Council, turned the mechanism into a viable instrument complementing the action undertaken in the WTO - and meant to last as long as the latter would take.
At the time this legislation was passed, March 2004 seemed a reasonable deadline for the conclusion of proceedings before the WTO bodies. However, these proceedings have taken more time than anticipated: With the panel report now expected for August of this year, a final decision is not due before early 2005. Meanwhile, Korea has continued to offer prices below cost, and to grant state aid and tax breaks to national shipyards, as was noted as well by the Commitee on Industry, External Trade, Research and Energy in last year's report on the situation in world shipbuilding (A5-130/2003).
In view of these developments, or rather the lack of progress, it appears imperative to extend the TDM in order to maintain the pressure, until a satisfactory conclusion of WTO proceedings can be reached: Whatever the committee's views on the principle of long-term aid to Europe's shipbuilders, it would seem counterproductive to weaken our strategy in this specific case at this crucial moment. That said, it is clear that the present proposal concerns an exceptional and strictly temporary measure, which would be suspended the moment a satisfactory agreement with the Korean side were to be reached.
In view of the above, it is proposed to approve the Commission proposal without amendments, thus extending the TDM by one year, until 31 March 2005 at the latest.