October Battles Ahead – Bring on the Votes!

The European Parliament is now back in full-swing, following the summer recess and we prepare for, what will surely be a tumultuous month ahead for EU Transport Policy within the committee. Importantly, October will see many important votes taking place over a marathon voting session on 9 October which will be require-viewing for anyone monitoring the status of legislative dossiers currently making their way through the committee. Below we look at a few of the battles which lie ahead in October, as well as presenting the other reports which will be debated in Committee this month.

Battle One: Space Programme…

No chance of a Parliamentary space jam

Truth be told, there isn’t a great battle to be raged between the Parliament and Commission on this report; however, it is one of the more fun legislative dossiers being discussed this month – so it was worth highlighting.

The proposal of the European Commission merges in a single Programme the existing Galileo, EGNOS and Copernicus and adds two new initiatives, which are SSA and GOVSATCOM. It is believed that a fully integrated Space Programme will exploit synergies between the components, increasing effectiveness and cost efficiency. A single and coherent framework will encourage future investments, increase visibility and offer more flexibility.

The opinion of the TRAN Committee seeks to highlight the importance of cyber security and safety. The time-limited nature of the legislative dossier means this is a brief opinion which doesn’t seek to alter vast swaths of the Commission proposal. However, one of the prevalent themes throughout the rapporteur’s Opinion is access to space, cyber security, space economy and space diplomacy.

The Parliament will seek to expand upon the initial Commission proposal to ensure that the European Space Programme plays a greater strategic role in making land, maritime, air and space transport smarter, more efficient,sustainable and integrated. It remains to be seen just how ambitious the TRAN Committee will seek to be with this dossier, especially given the time restrictions, this month’s debate, and vote, will certainly give us a clearer picture.

Battle Two: Beyond the Horizon… Funding

Just how much money is there for Pillar II?

The TRAN Committee is writing the Opinion to this report, with the ITRE Committee responsible for the main report. Broadly, The TRAN Committees opinion is seeking, among other things in this report, to increase the overall budget of Horizon Europe to EUR 131,749,000,000.

Aside from the raw figures, exactly how this money is distributed among the various funding ‘pillars’ is also a topic of conversation within the committee this month. Of particular interest within the TRAN Committee is Pillar II, ‘Global Challenges and Industrial Competitiveness’. One of the most drastic amendments the TRAN Committee is seeking to make to the initial Committee report is to ensure that the budget share of the Pillar II should be increased to 60% of the total budget. It is argued that such an increase will enable the EU and its industries to become a world leader in innovation, digitisation and decarbonisation.

Another important aspect of this draft report is the partnerships and increased collaboration with other EU programmes. The Parliament have seen such collaborations as a great success in recent years and believe that Horizon Europe will streamline the number of partnerships that the EU co-programmes or co-funds with partners.

Battle Three: He aint heavy, he’s my trailer – continued…

Parliament Vs Parliament HGV Regulation

Emission reduction targets: 40% or 25% reduction? 2025 targets or 2030?

We have already previewed this important report in the previous newsletter. Since then, the TRAN Committee have published their initial amendments to the report, these amendments will be debated and voted on during the October committee sessions. As already noted, this report is of utmost importance in the European Institutions by introducing the first ever emission standards for HGVs (like those already in place for LGVs). October will see the critical vote on the committee’s amendments which will finalise the committee’s position on the HGV report. The two headline decisions to be made in October are therefore:

• The level of emission-reduction standards
• Whether the 2025 targets will be binding

With the committee amendments now in, it is clear that lobbyists have been hard at work to have the initial committee draft report standards watered down. Bas Eickhout’s draft report wants a reduction of at least a 55% in economy-wide greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 compared to 1990. This is in contrast to the initial Commission proposal of a 40% reduction. Other members within the committee have sought to water down the rapporteurs standards to be more in line with the Commission’s initial proposal.

It seems unlikely that the European Parliament will be willing to except a 40% target for 2030 as adequately fulfilling the Paris Agreement. They will therefore likely call for the Commission to increase their target to, at least, 45/50%. Furthermore, the Parliament seem strong willed in their attempts to ensure there is a target for emissions reductions set at both 2025 and 2030. The Commission proposal envisages a single target for 2030, again, it seems unlikely the Parliament will back down on this issue – especially given how the HGV manufacturers are viewed within the Parliament at this current time. Expect a fiery debate in the TRAN and ENVI Committees this month as the Parliament finalise their position on these topics.

October Committee Agendas

TRAN Committee October Agenda

October will be a busy month ahead for the committee. With Agendas now finalised, some of the highlights to look forward to include:

• Establishing the Connecting Europe Facility (Rule 55)
• Establishing a European Labour Authority (VOTE)
• Military Mobility (VOTE)
• CO2 emission performance standards for new heavy-duty vehicles (VOTE)
• Establishing the space programme of the Union and the European Union Agency for the Space Programme (VOTE)
• Port reception facilities for the delivery of waste from ships (VOTE)
• Rail passengers’ rights and obligations (recast) (VOTE)
• Streamlining measures for advancing the realisation of the trans-European transport network (VOTE)
• European Regional Development Fund and on the Cohesion Fund (VOTE)

The Chelgate team will be on the ground attending the TRAN and ENVI Committee hearings. If you require in depth analysis and engagement advice on any of the legislative files being scrutinised in September, please click below.

Please contact Chris Morris for more information on EU Transport Policy or any of these matters.

Rapporteur Announcements

The S&D Group have picked up two new reports over Summer. Expect the other groups to be saving their points for some important reports to be announced over the coming weeks.

• Undecided – Proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Regulation (EC) No 391/2009/1316/201 with regard to the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the Union

October Meetings

TRAN meetings

• Monday 8 October, 15h00-18h30
• Tuesday 9 October, 09.00-12.30
• Monday 15 October, 15h00-18h30

ENVI meetings

• Wednesday 10 October, 09.00-12.30
• Thursday 11 October, 09.00-12.30
• Thursday 18 October, 09.00-12.30

EU Commission Public Consultations/ Call for Tenders

The European Commission regularly open public consultations in order to receive feedback on policy p[corporals or to gauge the need for legislative action in a given area. These consultations are easy to respond to and enable companies to ensure their thoughts are brought to the attention of the EU Commission at an early state.

• Traffic distribution rules for Schiphol airport and Lelystad AirportPublic
• Consultation on drones (unmanned aircraft) – technical standards for drones as a product and conditions for drone operations
• Public consultation on summertime arrangements
• Public Consultation on Charges for the Use of Airport Infrastructure
• Strategy for long-term EU greenhouse gas emissions reductions
• Public Consultation on the evaluation of the Ozone Regulation

Please contact Chris Morris for more information on EU Transport Policy or any of these matters.