Brussels, 06/12/2013 (Agence Europe) - The prospect of agreement being reached on air passenger rights in first reading is looking increasingly remote. The Lithuanian Presidency was unable at the Transport Council in Brussels on Thursday 5 December to bring about closer understanding among delegations in a general guidance document, having to make do with a progress report. Various issues still need to be examined, such as the question of delayed arrival, problems of inter-airline services for missed connections and equal treatment of passengers whose flight is delayed or cancelled.
Delegations' demands. The Spanish delegation wants the threshold for the payment of compensation in the event of delay of more than three hours to apply to flights of less than 250 km so that the inhabitants of Spanish islands do not receive less favourable treatment. Like Austria, Spain wants an emergency plan to be included in the revised regulation to deal with problems of airlines going bust. Ireland says it would be better to take account of delayed departures for transfers, which would mean that the current system of inter-airline services could be kept. Sweden and Finland want the regulation to be clearer, simpler and more readable and to provide legal security to avoid a string of cases being taken to the European Court of Justice, as was seen in the past.
No agreement under current European Parliament. The Greek Presidency will have the job of taking the member states' expectations into account and coming up with a general approach in the first half of 2014, but the negotiating mandate that the EP will be voting upon on 17 December seems very far removed from the member states' aspirations, which makes it even less likely that agreement will be reached in first reading or that the changes can be agreed under the current European Parliament, explains a close European Commission source. EU Transport Commissioner Siim Kallas said after the Transport Council that striking a balanced approach between passenger interests and the interests of airlines would be challenging. (MD/transl.fl)