Brussels, 22/02/2013 (Agence Europe) - In response to press articles accusing the Commission of planning to privatise the distribution of water with its proposed directive on concessions currently on the table of the Parliament and Council (see EUROPE 10791), the European Commission denies what it described as allegations. On Friday 22 February, Janez Potocnik, the European Commissioner for the Environment, joined Commissioner Michel Barnier, who is responsible for this proposal, which was presented in December 2011, in loudly proclaiming that this is not the Commission's intention.
In a joint statement, the two Commissioners declared: “In reaction to recent media reports, the European Commission would like to state clearly that it does not have a policy of forcing member states to privatise water services. The Commission recognises that water is a public good which is vital to citizens and that the management of water resources is a matter for the member states. The Commission has a neutral position on the public or private ownership of water resources. For cases where a public authority decides to provide services through a private economic operator, the Commission has proposed rules that will contribute to transparency and effectiveness in the spending of public money by enabling public authorities to make better choices”.
They add: “Acknowledging the importance of water, the Commission made sure that its proposal for a Directive on the award of concession contracts fully recognises and supports the autonomy of local authorities regarding the provision and organisation of services of general economic interest, including water. Public authorities will, at all times, remain free to choose whether they provide the services directly or via a third party, notably a private economic operator”.
Presenting its proposal, which concerns concessions of a high value with manifest cross-border interest, the Commission had stressed that the proposed rules aimed both to establish a clear legal framework for the public authorities and to guarantee effective access to the concessions market for all European companies, including small and medium-sized enterprises. The aim of this is to stimulate the development of public-private partnerships.
With just 60% of the world's population having access to water, this increasingly rare resource is a common good of humanity, which should not be a source of profit and should be accessible to all, the European Parliament stated in a resolution adopted on 16 March 2012 (see EUROPE 10576). (AN/transl.fl)