EC moves on Cyprus passenger ship safety

(Brussels, EC) The Commission has sent reasoned opinions, the last step before possible referral to the Court of Justice, to Austria, Finland, Portugal, Slovakia, Cyprus and Estonia for failure to transpose a number of Directives on passenger ship safety. The Commission is not prepared to tolerate delays by Member States in applying rules which actually concern the safety of individuals travelling by ship.

The Commission has decided to send a double reasoned opinion to Slovakia on account of its failure to transpose into national law a number of Directives on maritime safety, including that of passenger ships, and the prevention of pollution from ships. Under the conditions for its accession to the European Union, Slovakia was due to have transposed these Directives by 1 May 2004 at the latest. Although not a maritime State, Slovakia does have an ever-expanding shipping register with some twenty vessels entered in 2005. It therefore has to transpose these Directives which impose safety regulations on the flag State as well as a system for the inspection or certification of ships.

The Commission has also sent reasoned opinions to Austria, Finland, Portugal and Slovakia because of failure to communicate national measures transposing a Directive which is intended to take account of changes to international instruments on the safety of passenger ships, particularly the new International Code for Safety of High-Speed Craft adopted by the IMO.

Finally, reasoned opinions have been sent to Austria, Cyprus, Estonia, Portugal and Slovakia in respect of a Directive the main aim of which is to make binding under Community law the so-called Stockholm Agreement of 28 February 1996 which applies strict stability requirements to damaged ro-ro passenger ships.

The deadline laid down for the transposition of these two Directives was 17 November 2004.