2 CIVIL PROTECTION AGAINST
DISASTERS AND EMERGENCIES
(a)
(26510)
8323/05
COM(05) 108
+ ADD 1
(b)
(26520)
8430/05
COM(05) 137
(c)
(26521)
8436/05
COM(05) 113
+ ADD 1
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Draft Regulation establishing the European Union Solidarity Fund
Commission staff working paper: impact assessment
Commission Communication: Improving the Community Civil Protection
Mechanism
Draft Council Regulation establishing a rapid response and preparedness
instrument for major emergencies
|
| Legal base | (a) Articles 159 and 181a EC; co-decision; QMV
(b) —
(c) Article 308 EC and Article 203 Euratom; consultation; unanimity
|
| Department | Cabinet Office
|
| Basis of consideration |
Minister's letter of 14 December 2005 |
| Previous Committee Report |
HC 34-v (2005-06), para 9 (12 October 2005) |
| To be discussed in Council
| No date set |
| Committee's assessment | (a) and (b) Politically important
(c) Legally and politically important
|
| Committee's decision | Not cleared; further information requested
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Background
2.1 These documents set out the Commission's proposals to modify
three of the EU's existing instruments on preparing for and responding
to major disasters.
2.2 The three current instruments are:
- The EU Solidarity Fund, which is concerned only
with natural disasters. Grants from the Fund cover up to half
the cost of rescue operations, cleaning up, restoring public services
and providing temporary accommodation. Only Member States and
countries negotiating for accession to the EU are eligible for
grants.
- The Community Civil Protection Mechanism, which
is concerned with man-made as well as natural disasters. Its main
purpose is to mobilise immediate practical help (such as experts
and equipment to clean-up oil pollution or fight forest fires)
from Member States for countries inside and outside the EU which
have suffered a major disaster. The Mechanism also helps Member
States prepare for emergencies (for example, through joint training
exercises). The Commission runs the Mechanism.
- The Community Civil Protection Action Programme,
which is concerned with natural and man-made disasters. It funds
the operation of the Mechanism and provides grants to Member States,
EFTA countries, Bulgaria and Romania to encourage cross-border
cooperation and mutual assistance in the preparations for and
response to major disasters (through seminars, projects, training
and similar activities).
2.3 The EU was involved in the response to the tsunami of December
2004, the earthquakes in Algeria and Iran in 2003, the huge forest
fires in France and Portugal and other disasters. In the light
of that experience, the Commission proposes that the present civil
protection arrangements should be modified.
2.4 Document (a) is the draft of a Regulation to set up a new
Solidarity Fund from 2007. The new Fund would provide grants towards
the costs of dealing with public health emergencies, industrial
accidents and acts of terrorism as well as natural disasters.
2.5 The Commission Communication (document (b)) makes detailed
proposals about ways to improve the EU's preparations for major
disasters, the speed and quality of the EU's response and the
coordination of EU effort in the disaster area. The Communication
includes a proposal that each Member State should identify rapidly
deployable and self-sufficient "modules" which it could
make available to deal with a disaster.
2.6 Document (c) is the draft of a Regulation to replace the current
Community Civil Protection Action Programme by a new Rapid Response
and Preparedness Instrument for 2007-13. The Instrument would
finance the Civil Protection Mechanism. It would also provide
grants to a wider range of activities than the present Action
Programme.
2.7 Article 3(1)(u) of the EC Treaty provides that the Community
is to adopt measures for civil protection.
2.8 Article 181a of the EC Treaty authorises the Council to adopt
measures for economic, financial and technical cooperation with
third-countries within the general objective of developing and
consolidating democracy and the rule of law and the objective
of respecting human rights and fundamental freedoms.
2.9 Article 308 of the EC Treaty provides the legal base for
measures which are necessary to attain, in the operation of the
common market, one of the objectives of the Community but for
which the necessary power is not provided elsewhere in the Treaty.
Similarly, Article 203 of the Euratom Treaty provides the legal
base for measures necessary to achieve an objective of that Treaty
but for which the necessary power is not provided elsewhere; Article
203 contains no reference to the operation of the common market.
Previous scrutiny
2.10 When we considered the documents in October 2005, the Government
told us that it broadly welcomed all three documents but wanted
to examine the details, had reservations about some of the proposals
and wanted clarification of others.
2.11 In our report on the documents,[2]
we noted that the proposal for rapidly deployable and self-sufficient
"modules" was among the matters on which the Government
would be seeking clarification. It was not clear to us whether
"modules" was just another word for expert teams or
if it means something different. So we asked the Minister to tell
us about the clarification he received.
2.12 We also noted that the Commission had cited Article 308 of
the EC Treaty as the legal base for the draft Regulation to establish
the Rapid Response and Preparedness Instrument (document (c)).
There are three tests for the use of Article 308: it is available
only if action by the Community is necessary, in the operation
of the common market, to attain an objective of the Treaty and
the Treaty has not provided the necessary power elsewhere. We
asked the Minister's views on the attainment of the objective
of civil protection is necessary "in the course of the operation
of the common market".
2.13 We also asked him to keep us informed of the progress of
negotiations on the three documents. We decided that, pending
the replies to our requests for further information, we should
keep the documents under scrutiny.
The Minister's letter of 14 December 2005
2.14 The letter from the Parliamentary Secretary at the Cabinet
Office (Mr Jim Murphy) is dated 14 December but it did not reach
us until 30 January.
2.15 The Minister tells us that a working group has already had
some discussions about the proposal for "modules" and
that there is a general understanding among Member States that
a "module" could range from a team of experts (such
as a search and rescue team) to equipment (such as high capacity
pumps to deal with flooding). One possibility might be for a group
of Member States to club together with, say, one offering to provide
the staff element of a module, another providing the equipment
and a third arranging the transport. There appears to be no support
among Member States for civil protection assets to be kept on
permanent stand-by for EU use in emergencies.
2.16 The Minister also tells us about a working group's discussion
of the draft Regulation on a rapid response and preparedness instrument.
He says that agreement is emerging on some key areas, such as
the central role of the United Nations in coordinating assistance
whenever the UN is present.
2.17 As to the citation of Article 308 of the EC Treaty as the
legal base for document (c), the Minister says that:
"The objectives of civil protection are to prepare for
and to respond to major emergencies affecting people, the environment
or property in countries participating in the civil protection
mechanism. The key benefits of civil protection are the support
it offers for business continuity and for ensuring that an emergency
does not have the effect of bringing services to a standstill.
A rapid civil protection response can help ensure that people
are not prevented from doing their jobs or going about their daily
life; that disruption is minimised; and that normal services are
resumed thus mitigating potential economic damage by early intervention.
The vast majority of civil protection requests for assistance
are from Member States or accession countries. A few involve interventions
in third countries where the Commission's role is limited to selecting
member states' experts for intervention and coordinating the response
at EU level. Civil protection is not involved in preparation for
emergencies in third countries and the deployable assets used
in response are owned by Member States. We believe, therefore,
that the Commission proposals are consistent with the operation
of the common market and the use of Article 308 is justified."
Conclusion
2.18 We are grateful to the Minister for his replies to our
questions. In our view, if the term "modules" is to
be used in the proposed legislation, it should be defined precisely
so that there can be no ambiguity about its meaning and what a
Member State's obligations would be if it agreed to provide or
contribute to a module.
2.19 We can see that there is an arguable case for the view
that the proposed rapid response and preparedness instrument would
affect the operation of the common market where the intervention
was in a Member State. We are not persuaded, however, that EC
intervention in a third country would be likely to affect the
operation of the common market. It appears to us, therefore, that
it is doubtful that Article 308 of the EC Treaty would provide
an appropriate legal base for the inclusion in the proposed Regulation
of provision for intervention outside the EC. We wonder, however,
if Article 181a of the EC Treaty might provide an appropriate
base for it.
2.20 Article 5 EC requires the Community to act within the
powers conferred on it by the EC Treaty. Accordingly, we ask the
Minister draw the Council's attentions to our comments on the
use of Article 308 — and the possibility of using Article
181a instead — in connection with interventions outside
the EC; and to tell us the response of the Commission and other
Member States.
2.21 We look forward to receiving further reports from the
Minister on the progress of the negotiations. Meanwhile, we shall
keep the documents under scrutiny.
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See headnote. Back
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