Brussels, 05/12/2013 (Agence Europe) - It appears that no agreement is in sight at the Council on the new responsibilities of the European Railway Agency and this is therefore preventing any conclusion being obtained on the technical pillar in the 4th railway package. The delegations are unable to agree on what tasks should be allocated to the agency when it comes to awarding vehicle safety and authorisation certificates.
On Thursday 5 December during the Transport Council, the Lithuanian Presidency had to make do with a report on the state of progress in this dossier. The Greek Presidency takes over at the beginning of 2014 and will have the task of getting the Council to reach an agreement on this issue. The Lithuanian Presidency explained that several delegations are afraid that certification solely by the agency would cost too much (Germany expressed this point of view during the debate). A majority of member states would like further guarantees on how prices on this matter are to be calculated by the agency. The compromise proposed by the Presidency is not yet judged to be satisfactory. Several delegations also want to clarify the agency's responsibility in the delivery certificates and authorisations. France wants more details on the way the appeals unit will work and considers that it should be possible for the agency to delegate tasks to national agencies. Italy and France have expressed their support for the independence of the agency. (MD/transl.fl)