On Tuesday, November 9, 2021, EDINNA organized an online Q&A for its members. With more than 35 participants from various countries, it was a well-filled online question round. From DGMOVE, Mrs. Christelle Rousseau was present and from CESNI, Mr. Jörg Rusche was present to clarify questions regarding the directive.
Below is a short summary of the questions asked by edinna members.What is the status of transposing into the national law in the respective member states by now?
Member states must inform the EU what the status of implementation is. Mrs Rousseau will send an link where the status of the implementation can be found. The information on that link shows only if the member states has implemented the directive not if there’s any delay
From discussions by regular education with the ministry responsible for the correct implementation of the directive in the Netherlands, it seems that the Netherlands will not be succeeded in including the directive in national legislation before 17 January 2022. The participants of the Q&A are very concerned about what that means for the validity of the diploma that they issue after 18 January 2022.Which schools has been approved by there authority?
At the moment it is not known which schools have now all been approved. EDINNA will make an inventory of its members statusHow will the new directive effect IWT in Sweden?
The Directive applies to all EU Member States. Sweden is also an EU member state and therefore the Directive also applies to Sweden’s inland waterways.
Article 7 of the Directive states that: A Member State may exempt persons who operate exclusively on national inland waterways that are not linked to the navigable network of another Member State, including those that have been classified as inland waterways with a maritime character.
Please note! Member States shall inform the Commission of the exemptions!!
How will the new directive effect the todays local pilotage regulations?
See annex 1; Minimum requirements for age, administrative compliance, competence and navigation time
Is it possible to get a link to the respective national schools/institutes/training programs?
Have training programs within the terms of the Directive already been approved?
It is not known to the EU whether training programs have already been approved
Is there a possibility to reduce the required sailing time for students in an approved educational program, like ours?
Annex 1 of the directive is clear about this. All trade associations and social partners have been involved in the drafting of the directive and have all agreed.
Mr. Mintjes offers his help to explain how it has succeeded in the Netherlands to achieve approved educational programs.
In the Netherlands and in Belgium there is the concern that shorter trajectories such as offered by Syntra Midden-Vlaanderen (4 months, 60 sailing days, to become boatsman) will disappear. For Belgium that will be more than 50% of the annual influx on the IWT labor market that will probably decrease. What is the vision of CESNI on this? Shouldn ‘t the appendix of the Directive be subject to CESNI QP as it is more a standard. In this way, probably by delegated act, it can be more dynamic towards new developments on the labor market and innovation such as automation? To update, upgrade or change a Directive, we have seen with the former exercise in 2016 that it takes the Commission almost 20 years to implement changes or upgrades. Do we have 20 years?
The EU Directive 2017/2397 was adopted on 12 December 2017. All Member States, industry associations and social partners have been involved in the drafting of the Directive. This directive has emerged from all these consultations and everyone has agreed to it.
A first evaluation is included for 5 years. Of course, Member States are free to ask questions and make suggestions regarding this directive.
The schools have a tremendous job to comply to the new Directive and also EDINNA and the sector are concerned that some Member States such as the Netherlands and Belgium will not be on time to be ready for the implementation of the Directive on 18/01/2022. Are the European Commission and CESNI QP aware of this concern? And what is the strategy to deal with this possible outcome? Should we expect a delay? It is crucial for the sector to remain a level playing field and that all Member States are on time.
The approval of regular school programs is a national matter. The directive is a directive adopted throughout Europe. Article 18 of the Directive requires each Member State to ensure that the examinations referred to in Article 17 are conducted by qualified examiners.
National authorities must ensure they are correctly applied.
Annex 1 of the Directive (minimum age requirements, compliance with administrative requirements, competences and sailing time) refers to 5 years of work experience. Does that mean that someone has had a working week of at least 40 hours for 5 years or is a job with a working time of 8 hours per week sufficient?
The starting point for making this directive has always been that it should be possible for sailors but also bakers, carpenters, plumbers etc. with work experience as a lateral entrant to inland shipping. The interpretation of the concept of work experience was not part of the drafting of the Directive
The IWT platform (https://www.inlandwaterwaytransport.eu) will include a list with an inventory of what will change with the introduction of the new directive to the minimum crew requirements. Think of the competencies, sailing time but also any changes to the medical health requirements.
The information below was not discussed during the Q&A. It is additional information intended for EDINNA members to be able to look up any questions about the implementation of the directive themselves.
This link refers to the publication of the EU Directive 2017/2397. You also have the possibility to download the directive in your own language.
https://op.europa.eu/en/publication-detail/-/publication/7aae2eb1-eac2-11e7-9749-01aa75ed71a1
The information below can be found on this EU website; https://ec.europa.eu/info/law/law-making-process/applying-eu-law_en
The Commission is responsible for making sure that all EU countries properly apply EU law. In this role, the Commission is referred to as the ‘guardian of the treaties’.
The Commission will take steps if an EU country:
- does not fully incorporate a directive into its national law by the set deadline
- might not have applied EU law correctly
If countries have introduced the directive, they must notify the EU. Via this link you can find out which countries have incorporated the directive into their national legislation.
National implementing measures – how to find them on EUR-Lex
11th November 2021
Jan-Henk Braam |
