With the European Commission having presented its proposed directive on ending clock change at the 'land transport' working group of the Council of the European Union on Thursday 13 September (see EUROPE 12094, 12095), it would appear that several member states want a little more time to examine the proposal.
According to our information, eight member states, mostly from the Baltics and Eastern Europe, which have previously raised the matter at recent meetings of the Council (such as Finland) and are inclined to end clock change, have come out in favour of the text, whilst a significant number of states would like to be able to scrutinise the ins and outs of the text. Although the proposal seems simple, upstream coordination and planning work across several sectors, particularly the transport sector, would appear necessary to allow the directive to be adequately implemented.
However, time is fairly tight, as Violeta Bulc, the European Commissioner for Transport, stressed at a press conference for the presentation of the text on Friday 14 September. She said that she had been in touch with the Austrian Presidency of the Council of the EU and Karima Delli (Greens/EFA, France), the chair of the committee on transport of the European Parliament, so that the work can get well underway.
As regards the content of the proposal, Bulc took pains to stress that determining the time zone in each member state would result from the “choice of the member states”. Whilst article 2 of the proposal technically leaves member states free to continue to change the clocks twice a year, as they would be able to change time zone subject to notifying the Commission six months before the new time enters into force, Bulc told EUROPE that she was “counting on the rationality of the member states” to make the “best decision”. (Original version in French by Lucas Tripoteau)