Changes from plenary report to adopted text

RemovedRecital 6: (6) Considering the special position of the Channel Fixed Link as a railway link involving a single, complex engineering structure situated partly in the territory of the French Republic and partly in a third country, it is appropriate to empower France to negotiate, sign and conclude an international agreement with the United Kingdom regarding the application of coherent rules on safety and interoperability in the Channel Fixed Link, as well as to ensure the cooperation between the French national safety authority, namely the Etablissement Public de Sécurité Ferroviaire (‘EPSF’) and the United Kingdom’s national safety authority, namely the Office of Rail and Road (‘ORR’).

RemovedRecital 11: (11) In order to account for possible future changes of Union law, in particular of Regulation (EU) 2016/796 and Directives (EU) 2016/797 and (EU) 2016/798, the agreement should also provide for rules for its amendment. The Commission should be empowered to authorise the French Republic to amend the agreement in accordance with the amending procedure laid down therein, provided that such amendments are limited to adaptations to reflect changes in Union law.

RemovedRecital 12: (12) In the interest of the Union, the French Republic should also be empowered to negotiate further amendments to the agreement concluded on the basis of this empowerment, reflecting the conditions foreseen in Decision (EU) 2020/1531. The empowerment granted by the Union in Decision (EU) 2020/1531, therefore should remain valid insofar as the agreement concluded on the basis of the present empowerment could be amended to reflect the conditions foreseen in that decision.

RemovedArticle 1 – paragraph 1: This Decision hereby sets out the conditions pursuant to which France The French Republic is empowered to negotiate, sign and conclude and in future amend an international agreement with the United Kingdom on the safety and interoperability requirements in the Channel Fixed Link, as well as cooperation between the EPSF and the ORR (‘the agreement’).

RemovedArticle 1 – paragraph 2: Such agreement shall comply with the conditions set out in Articles 2 and 3 of this Decision.

RemovedArticle 3 – paragraph 2: Upon completion of the negotiations, the French Republic shall submit the resulting draft agreement to the Commission. The Commission shall immediately inform the Council and the European Parliament thereof.

RemovedArticle 3 – paragraph 3: Within one month from the notification of the draft agreement, the Commission shall adopt a decision as to whether the requirements set out in Article 2 are fulfilled and shall inform the Council and the European Parliament thereof. Where the Commission decides that they are fulfilled, the French Republic may sign and conclude the corresponding agreement.

RemovedArticle 5 – paragraph 1: 1. French Republic is empowered to negotiate amendments to the agreement, in accordance with the procedure defined in paragraphs [2 and 3] of this Article, provided that such amendments are needed to adapt it to future changes in Union law, and in particular to amendments of Regulation (EU) 2016/796 and Directives (EU) 2016/797 and (EU) 2016/798, provided also that amendments of that agreement are necessary to ensure the full, correct and expeditious application of Union law in the part of the Channel Fixed Link under its jurisdiction.

RemovedArticle 5 – paragraph 1 a (new): 1a. The French Republic shall also be empowered to further negotiate amendments to the agreement, in accordance with the procedure defined in paragraphs [2 and 3] of this Article, so that the agreement complies with the conditions foreseen in Article 1 of Decision (EU) 2020/1531.

RemovedArticle 5 – paragraph 2: 2. The French Republic shall keep the Commission regularly informed of any negotiations with the United Kingdom concerning amendments to the agreement and, where appropriate, invite the Commission to participate as an observer. The French Republic shall submit the envisaged amendments to the Commission together with an explanatory note. The Commission shall immediately inform the Council and the European Parliament thereof. The French Republic shall provide any additional information on the envisaged amendments that is requested by the Commission.

RemovedArticle 5 – paragraph 3: 3. Within [three] months from the notification of the envisaged amendment and the accompanying explanatory note, the Commission shall adopt a decision as to whether the requirements set out in paragraph 1 and in Article 2 are fulfilled. Where the Commission decides that they are fulfilled, the Commission shall inform the Council and the European Parliament of that decision, and the French Republic may proceed with the amendment of the agreement. A copy of the amended agreement shall be provided to the Commission within one month of the entry into force of the amendment, or, where the amendment is to be applied provisionally, within one month of the beginning of its provisional application.

RemovedArticle 6 – paragraph 1: Decision (EU) 2020/1531 remains applicable to the extent referred to in Article 5(1a).

RemovedThe Channel Fixed Link is a complex cross-border engineering structure between the territory of the European Union and United Kingdom and, especially after Brexit, it needs coherent rail safety and interoperability rules covering its whole length and a close cooperation of the British and French authorities to enforce them. In order to provide for such an environment, in March 2023 France has requested a mandate to negotiate and conclude an international agreement with the UK on the safety and interoperability requirements within the Channel Fixed Link.

RemovedThe agreement should ensure the primacy of the EU law and the jurisdiction of the Court of Justice within the French part of the tunnel and a possibility of the necessary amendments in case of future changes to the Union law, in particular of Directives (EU) 2016/797 and (EU) 2016/798. As regards the part of the Channel belonging to the UK, the agreement should ensure coherence of the safety and interoperability requirements.

RemovedThe Commission presented the current proposal to the Transport and Tourism (TRAN) Committee in the European Parliament during its meeting of 19 July 2023. Based on this presentation and following TRAN coordinators’ decision of 27 June to task me, as the TRAN standing Rapporteur for the relations with the UK, to draft this report, I propose to approve the Commission proposal with the following amendments, in line with the simplified procedure (Rule 52(2)).