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Following the adoption by the Justice and Home Affairs Council of the conclusions on information systems and interoperability and the general approach on the Commission's proposal for a European Travel and Information Authorisation System (ETIAS), Commissioner for Migration, Home Affairs and Citizenship Dimitris Avramopoulos and Commissioner for the Security Union Julian King made the following joint statement:

The recent tragic attacks in Europe have reminded us, once again, that all Member States need to work together to protect our citizens from the threat of terrorism. Effective information sharing is a key element of our efforts to prevent terrorism and the Commission has been working relentlessly over the past two years to improve information management for borders and security, make more effective use of EU-level systems and close information gaps.

We need to ensure that our border guards and police, our immigration officers, our customs and judicial authorities have the necessary information at their disposal to protect our external borders, lead the fight against terrorism and organised crime and better protect our citizens. Ensuring that persons can only be registered under one identity in our information systems for security, border and migration management is essential for this.

The conclusions adopted yesterday by the Council on the way forward to improve this information exchange and ensure interoperability of EU information systems prove that this is a shared priority at the highest political level. The Commission, together with the Council, the European Parliament, EU Agencies and the European Data Protection Supervisor will continue to drive this work forward with a view to increasing interoperability of the EU's information systems at every step of the way, in full respect of fundamental rights.

An important building block in this way forward is the European Travel and Information Authorisation System (ETIAS), and we welcome the Council's adoption today of a general approach. ETIAS will allow us to gather advance information on persons travelling visa-free to the EU and to ensure that those who may pose a security risk are identified before they reach our borders. We call on the Council and the Parliament to work constructively in order to swiftly adopt the legislation and to make ETIAS operational as soon as possible."

Next steps

The Commission will continue discussing the new approach to data management for security and borders with the European Parliament and the Council with the aim of reaching a common understanding on the way forward before the end of 2017. The discussion will feed into the proposal on interoperability which the Commission will present shortly. The preparation of the legislative proposal will include a public consultation and an impact assessment, including on fundamental rights.

As regards ETIAS, the Council and the European Parliament should start negotiations as quickly as possible to reach an agreement before the end of 2017 and ensure it is operational by 2020.

Background

President Juncker's State of the Union address in September 2016 and the European Council conclusions of December 2016highlighted the importance of overcoming the current shortcomings in data management and of improving the interoperability of existing information systems. In his State of the Union speech, President Juncker also announced that the Commission would propose in November 2016 a European Travel Information System (ETIAS) an automated system to determine who will be allowed to travel to the Schengen Area. The setting up of this system was further prioritised in the Bratislava Roadmap signed and agreed by the EU 27 leaders.

In April 2016 the Commission presented a Communication on stronger and smarter information systems for borders and security, initiating a discussion on how information systems in the European Union can better enhance border management and internal security. In June 2016, the Commission set up a High-Level Expert Group on Information Systems and Interoperability to take this work forward and to address the legal, technical and operational challenges to achieve interoperability. The High-Level Expert Group held its last meeting on 25 April 2017 and presented its final report on 11 May 2017.

The seventh report on progress made towards an effective and genuine Security Union welcomed the High-Level Expert Group's report and recommendations. Based on these, the progress report proposed the way forward to address structural shortcomings under the three main areas: maximising the utility of existing information systems; where necessary, developing complementary systems to close information gaps; and ensuring interoperability between our systems.

For More Information

Press Release on Commission sets out new approach on interoperability of information systems

Press Release on Commission proposes a European Travel Information and Authorisation System

Communication on 7th Progress Report on Security Union

Excerpt from:
Security Union: European Commission welcomes the Council's commitment to improve information exchange and ... - EU News

PHOTO: An Emirates A380 in flight. (photo via Flickr/Roderick Elme)

Battling against the alleged unfair competitive practices by foreign airlines, the European Union announced Thursday that it was proposing new regulations to ensure fair competition among all carriers serving Europe.

According to Reuters.com, the proposal would permit governments in the European Union to file complaints to the European Commission regarding alleged discriminatory practices or illegal subsidies.

Before it becomes a law, though, the proposal needs to be approved by the European Parliament and member states.

The decision was made after European airlines such as Air France and Lufthansa complained that Gulf carriers have been receiving illegal government subsidies. Similar complaints have been filed by the top airlines in the United States as well.

Gulf carriers including Emirates, Qatar Airways and Etihad have all denied the allegations.

The proposal states that if the European Commission deems a country or airline is causing injury or threat of injury to European airlines, the group will impose financial penalties or suspend ground and other services.

READ MORE: US Airline Employees Rally For Open Skies

We want to ensure that Europe remains a leader in international aviation, well connected to fast-growing markets, with efficient European skies, EU Transport Commissioner Violeta Bulc told Reuters.

The plan is for the new proposal to not interfere with existing, bilateral air services agreements, and ACI Europe added that it would ensure equality of opportunity.

This will hopefully allow us to move on from mere allegations and somewhat sterile debates to established facts and legal action, where needed, ACI Europe's Director General Olivier Jankovec said.

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European Union Takes Aim at Gulf Carriers - TravelPulse

The Indian Express

European Union grants 3.5 million Euros for Indo-French sustainable development project The Indian Express India, France and the European Union have joined hands as part of a global sustainable development project, which will seek to transform three major Indian cities by improving urban mobility and cutting down carbon footprint. India's Department of ... EU, France grant 3.5m euros to curb emissions in IndiaHindustan Times all 5 news articles »

Excerpt from:
European Union grants 3.5 million Euros for Indo-French sustainable development project - The Indian Express

BRUSSELS European Union member states push back against more centralized control of automotive type approvals by the trade blocs executive branch, the European Commission, in a recent vote here.

The EU Council of Ministers, which represents EU governments, instead approved a general approach of principles, which would beef up cooperation between national authorities but not give the EC more power over type approval, defined as confirmation that a vehicle meets specified performance standards.

The move likely will pit the Council against the EC and particularly lawmakers in the European Parliament who want tougher centralized controls in the wake of the Volkswagen Dieselgate scandal. Regulators at the national level have been accused of turning a blind eye to type-approval breaches by automakers.

It also promises a stormy road ahead for negotiations between the three EU institutions on the text of new type-approval regulations. Both the Council and Parliament must approve a final system or else the proposal will fail and the existing system will stay in force.

Rather than the EC overseeing national type approvals, the Council wants the establishment of a forum an inter-regulatory body tasked with exchanging information on enforcement. This would be composed of national type-approval and market-surveillance authorities.

A spokesperson for the ACEA, the European automakers group, backs the idea, telling WardsAuto a forum has the potential to bring uniform interpretations to the system and increase EU oversight on type approval.

The Council also wants to institute peer-review audits of national type-approval authorities at least once every five years. However, type-approval authorities that farm out all their technical services work to organizations with accreditation for following internationally recognized standards would be exempted from such reviews. National accreditation bodies would be involved in assessing technical services through joint teams.

Technical services also would be strengthened under the Council plan with new powers to control automakers, including spot checks. The ACEA spokesperson says, The strict criteria for technical services, based on international standards and applied by accredited bodies, could also further improve the quality of vehicle testing.

The Council system still would enable the EC to play a role in market surveillance, carrying out spot checks on cars to verify compliance, and it would be allowed to flag and react to irregularities. Member states also would be involved in such responses.

Before the Council of Ministers vote, Elzbieta Bienkowska, the EUs internal market, industry, entrepreneurship and SMEs Commissioner, pointed out three key areas where the EC and the European Parliament wanted more ambition, starting with checks on new car models. The Parliament wanted one in 20 models on the road checked, but the Council supports checks on at least one in every 50,000 new vehicles registered in each EU country.

The Council also opposes European Parliament-backed moves to impose automatic expiration of type approvals and what Parliament members regard as proposed better regulation of actual carbon-dioxide emissions, Bienkowska says.

Another bugbear is that the Council wants to restrict the ECs right to fine automakers 30,000 ($33,700) per car found in violation of type-approval laws, which is in the Parliaments proposal, if a member state already has punished an automaker. Bienkowska asks, How can we possibly deliver that single market if the same offense by a manufacturer will be punished 28 or 27 different ways?

But the fact that Malta, which holds the EUs rotating Council presidency, was able to broker the deal at all between very different national positions is winning widespread praise. This paves the way for governments, the European Parliament and the European Commission to start their negotiations with a view to reaching a final agreement by the end of the year, the ACEA

spokesperson says.

Just days before the meeting of the Council, it had looked as if the EUs biggest member state, Germany, would reject the deal. But Maltas economy minister, Chris Cardona, urged his colleagues to support the compromise, saying any further changes would upset the just balance in negotiations.

Bienkowska also urged ministers to back the text, saying it could be fine-tuned later. Almost two years into the emissions scandal, we continue to hear of new allegations, revelations and investigations, she told the Council. It will never finish if we do not have in Europe a new, robust system.

An EU official tells WardsAuto, In spite of misgivings, the German delegation supported the compromise text. But Germanys economic-affairs minister, Matthias Maching, stresses he wants further amendments in the upcoming negotiations.

Critically, Germany is pushing for clear criteria for a waiver from the EUs ban on the emissions-defeat devices at the heart of Dieselgate. Germany also wants formation of an EU clearinghouse system able to rule on disputes regarding type approval between member states.

Environmental and consumer campaigners are blaming German influence for what they regard as the Councils less-than-satisfactory approach.

Monique Goyens, director general of the European Consumer Organization, says, Clearly under pressure from Germany, (member states) have agreed on a package of half-baked measures that risk turning the entire reform into a paper tiger. Goyens further is unhappy that ministers have turned a blind eye to conflicts of interest in car testing by allowing the continuation of direct payments between car makers and test laboratories.

Bas Eickhout, a Dutch Green Party member of Parliament, says the council watered down the proposal and adds, Its now up to the Commission and the Parliament to bring back the necessary checks and balances during the (negotiations) to avoid the Dieselgate scandal happening all over again.

The parliamentarian responsible for piloting the measure through European Parliament votes, British Conservative MEP Daniel Dalton, says, Clearly there are differences between the two positions, but this is normal in the legislative process.

The details can and will be worked out. What is most important, though, is that there is recognition on both sides that there must be improvements made throughout the type-approval process.

See the original post:
Post-Dieselgate Regulatory Reforms at Issue in EU - Ward's Auto

The proposal, which needs to be approved by the European Parliament and EU member states before becoming law, would allow governments and airlines to submit complaints about discriminatory practices to the European Commission. (Reuters)

The European Union proposed new rules on Thursday to tackle alleged unfair competitive practices from foreign airlines as it seeks to ensure European carriers can fend off fierce competition from abroad. The move comes after repeated complaints from some European airlines, notably Air France KLM and Lufthansa , about Gulf carriers receiving illegal government subsidies, charges Emirates, Qatar Airways and Etihad all deny. The proposal, which needs to be approved by the European Parliament and EU member states before becoming law, would allow governments and airlines to submit complaints about discriminatory practices to the European Commission.

Should the Commission find that the practices of a third country or airline are causing injury, or threat of injury, to European airlines it will be able to impose financial duties or suspend services and rights of the overseas airline.We want to ensure that Europe remains a leader in international aviation, well connected to fast-growing markets, with efficient European skies, EU Transport Commissioner Violeta Bulc said in a statement.

The proposal does not envisage the suspension of traffic rights, however, and will not interfere with bilateral air services agreements between countries. Several EU member states had been staunchly opposed to the new rules on the grounds they could harm bilateral deals and reduce connectivity in Europe. Many also saw it as a protectionist move to shield uncompetitive European carriers, something the Commission denies.

Watch this also:

In aviation there is never going to be a level playing field, an EU official said. Were not here to protect those airlines if they have not put in place a good business model.

The Commission also published guidelines clarifying the application of EU ownership and control rules that limit non-EU investors stakes in European airlines to 49 percent. Investments by foreign airlines in recent years, such as Etihads 29 percent stake in Air Berlin, have triggered suspicions that the control is actually being exercised by non-EU investors.

See original here:
European Union to tackle airline competition with new rules - Financial Express