Brussels, 30/01/2014 (Agence Europe) - MEPs have voted in favour of “voluntary” liberalisation of air traffic control support services. It is in this perspective that, on Thursday 30 January, the EP's transport committee (TRAN) adopted the Single European Sky 2 + package (26 votes to 1, with 4 abstentions) on the basis of the draft report by Marian-Jean Marinescu (EPP, Romania) and against a background of strikes by air traffic controllers in Europe (see EUROPE 11005).
Liberalisation sought by Commission. In an effort to improve the sluggish development of the European Single Sky, which is supposed to save time and money and cut CO2 emissions from the aviation sector, the European Commission reshaped the second package with its presentation of the Single Sky 2+. One of its flagship proposals was to open up competition in air traffic control support services, such as weather forecasting and communication services. This liberalisation approach was rejected by the unions, which demonstrated their opposition in Europe on the day of the vote, in an effort to put pressure on MEPs.
Parliament's recommendation. Members of the TRAN committee therefore rejected the separation sought by the Commission between air navigation services and support services but did, however, keep to the philosophy underpinning it. The Commission proposal on separating services, they say, has been replaced by a proposal which allows service provides to select, by means of a call for proposals, the best provider, whether internal or external. They recommend that member states ensure that air service providers take into account the tenders from different support service providers when they draw up their business plans, so that the tender offering the most economic benefits is chosen. The general idea is to make the process of allocating contracts more transparent and to remove barriers to competition. This is why the Commission is relatively satisfied with the way in which the text has evolved, explained one source close to the dossier. The Commission will present an assessment of the measures taken in 2016 to determine whether unfettered liberalisation is still the most appropriate option.
Independence and supervision. Marinescu's draft explains that the independence of the aviation authorities from service providers has been enhanced (accounting separation). The Commission's vision of the nine functional airspace blocks has, however, been barely amended. The Commission will also be able to set up an independent supervisory body of national aviation authorities to assess how well the Single European Sky performance framework targets are being respected. Finally, certain amendments ensure that the human factor is better taken into account, without being more explicit.
Member states sceptical. The EP will vote on Marinescu's draft report, which was adopted by the committee by a comfortable majority, during the March plenary session. The issue is causing a lot of problems at the Council because so few member states see the usefulness of adopting new rules so soon. (MD/transl.fl)