The EU Council of Ministers and the European Parliament have reached agreement on the proposal for a regulation on maritime passenger rights. The compromise amendments on which they agreed are expected to be approved during the plenary session in Strasbourg next week. The agreement will allow the dossier to be concluded on second reading (co-decision procedure), thereby avoiding the conciliation procedure. This, however, seems unlikely to be the case for its ‘sister’ dossier on passengers travelling by bus or coach on which the two institutions cannot agree.

The two proposals for regulation aim to guarantee the rights of passengers who are victims of delays, cancellations or overbooking and to ensure that disabled passengers or passengers with reduced mobility are not subject to discrimination because of their disability and are guaranteed the assistance they require free of charge.

For maritime passengers, the agreement reached by the Council and Parliament will apply to boats that transport more than 12 passengers covering a wide range of vessels in line with the Parliament’s initial desiderata (the Council wanted 36 passengers). It also foresees that passengers are offered meals and snacks in the event of cancellation or delays of 90 minutes or more (the Parliament initially proposed this right after delays of one hour or more and the Council of two hours). Hotel accommodation is also provided for if circumstances require and under certain conditions. The text will enter into force 24 months after it has been published in the Official Journal.

CONCILIATION ON COACHES?

The proposal for journeys by bus or coach, presented at the same time as rights for maritime passengers, is expected to be subject to a lengthy process. The subject was discussed during the Committee of Permanent Representatives (Coreper) meeting, on 25 June, but delegations could do nothing more than acknowledge the wide divergence between their position and that of MEPs. The main stumbling block continues to be the scope of the regulation, with the Council opting for numerous exceptions, which succeeded in irritating MEPs. The exceptions concern both national and regional services, whereas MEPs feel that this type of service should be covered in general. According to one expert, the Spanish EU Presidency has lost all hope of budging the Parliament, meaning that the dossier will have to be resolved by the conciliation procedure. The question then will be whether the two proposals will remain as a package or whether they will continue their legislative course separately. The Parliament has always favoured the package option but now seems ready to conclude the maritime dossier first, rather than make it hostage to the road regulations.