Brussels, 02/12/2010 (Agence Europe) - With no great difficulty, EU transport ministers reached consensus on Thursday 2 December on a political agreement on the draft directive making it easier to impose sanctions for road traffic offences committed by non-resident drivers. As expected, the legal basis for the proposal was moved from transport cooperation to police cooperation, based on a data system derived from the Prüm Agreements. Despite their opt-outs on JHA issues, the United Kingdom and Ireland expressed their desire to join the system. Their involvement will only be confirmed, however, after the three-month period provided for in the Treaty to inform the Council of a decision to opt-in. Denmark, which also has an opt-out clause in justice issues, will not be covered by the directive.
“European drivers have the bad habit of changing how they drive when they are abroad” because “they know they will not be punished”, said Belgian Mobility Minister Etienne Schouppe, who chaired the Council, before the meeting. The European Commission will ensure that the new rules are correctly applied, Transport Commissioner Siim Kallas stated. The directive will cover eight infringements, including the most dangerous (driving under the influence of drink or drugs, not wearing a seat belt or a safety helmet, exceeding the speed limit or ignoring a red light, driving in a lane prohibited to all traffic, and using a mobile phone while driving). In practice, the new regulation will put in place a network for the electronic exchange of information on a vehicle involved in a road traffic offence and its owner, information which will be transferred at the request of the state where the offence took place. Once the name and address of the owner of the vehicle have been established, notification of the offence will be sent to him/her. To ensure the right of reply, notification will be in the language of the state of residence. It will be the responsibility of the country where the offence was committed to decide what follow up to take and to define the nature of the infringement, in line with the rules in force in that state. Any fine will go to the state where the offence was committed.
The French and Italian delegations expressed disappointment that the initial scope of the text had been scaled back, so that it now concentrates mainly on identification of the vehicle. Greece wanted “tougher measures”, Portugal hailed the “dissuasive effect” of the proposal, while Luxembourg said the text was on the edge of what was feasible. In a statement attached to the agreement, Austria (with France, Italy, Spain and Portugal) stated that, while those guilty were being identified, national jurisdiction should continue to apply. (A.By./transl.rt)