E.E.C. Policy—More Delay
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BY A SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT
mo firm progress towards establishment
• of a common transport policy or igreed maximum weights and dimensions or vehicles was achieved when the E.E.C. 2ouncil met last week under the chairnanship of Sig. Mattarella, Italian Transiort Minister.
It had been expected that the Council vould adopt a resolution laying down he outlines of the common transport wolicy and the list of actual measures to ie taken in the first three-year period. jut differences of opinion between memier countries had prevented the Cornnittee of Permanent Representatives rom preparing a draft resolution in time or the Council to see. as had been equested in June.
In lieu of this, it had been hoped that he Council of Ministers would give ;uidance on the disputed points, so that draft could be prepared before the end if the year. But last week's meeting, ilthough it was a very full general lebate, did not get down to the specific ioints that require solution.
Instead, the Permanent Representatives ire to have' yet another look at rates ystems, the Community quota and its listribution, and the Council is to meet gain on October 29 and 30 to try and 'et an agreed draft for the policy action programme."
Similarly discussion of vehicle weights rid dimensions has been postponed to he next session of the Council. The F..E.C. Commission have submitted a draft lirective for common weights and dimenions for vehicles operating between aember states (not yet internal transport) vhich they want brought into force by anuary I. 1965; the Commission want he Council to take their decision on this ot later than December 31, 1963. The 7ornmission have asked that their draft esolution on ancillary technical and afety requirements, also for transport letween states, should be approved by the :ouncil by June 30, 1963, so that member ountries can incorporate its provisions rito their laws and construction and use regulations before January , 1, 1964.
On the rules governing competition, the E.E.C. Commission last week submitted a proposal that Article 85 of the Rome Treaty, which prohibits certain types of trading agreement, should be suspended until January 1, 1965, so far as road. rail and inland waterway transport are 'concerned; they want this implemented before October 31, i.e., before the deadline for the obligatory notification of such "ententes" The Council, unwilling to make a• firm decision even about this item, decided to obtain the opinion of the European Parliament and the Economic and Social Committee and so have asked these two bodies to give their views during October; the Council can then discuss the point when they meet on October 29.
The proposed suspension will also affect Article 86 (prohibiting improper advantage being taken of dominant commercial or technical positions, aimed principally at monopolies) but will not exempt agreements aimed at fixing transport prices and conditions or at limiting or controlling the availability of transport and the distribution of transport markets.
The Commission are to put forward. before January 1, 1964, suggested "special provisions" for the application of competition rules to transport. This is complicated by the refusal of some member states, notably France, to accept that the general rules of the Treaty of Rome cover transport at all; if this were true, a suspension of competition rules would be unnecessary. Several. compromises suggested at last week's meeting were not adopted because of possible legal complications.