TRANS-EUROPEAN TRANSPORT AND ENERGY NETWORKS
(10089/06)
Letter from the Chairman to Rt Hon Margaret
Hodge MP, Minister of State for Industry and the Regions, Department
of Trade and Industry
Sub-Committee B considers this document, and
your Explanatory Memorandum, at its meeting on 17 July.
We note and share your support for the development
of trans-European Energy and Transport networks. We share your
concern that they are not developed "at the expense of sacrificing
budgetary discipline in the quest for speedy completion."
Could you explain tous the rationale behind the Commission's proposal
that priority inland waterway projects should have higher levels
of financial intervention than priority projects involving other
modes of transport?
We would welcome details from you of the Commission's
explanation of how the proposed loan guarantee arrangements would
operate, when you have received it, and we would be grateful for
any further updates on this proposal as it is taken forward.
We will maintain the scrutiny reserve on this
proposal at his stage.
19 July 2006
Letter from Malcolm Wicks MP, Duty Minister,
Department of Trade and Industry to the Chairman
Thank you for your letter of 19 July, requesting
further information on the above. I am replying on behalf of Margaret
Hodge in my capacity as Duty Minister.
Although the DTI is the lead department for
Trans-European Networks, your question on inland waterways relates
to Transport Networks and all the relevant officials in the Department
for Transport and at the Commission are currently on leave. On
their return we will be in a position to respond to you.
14 August 2006
Letter from Rt Hon Margaret Hodge MP to
the Chairman
This letter is in response to your letter of
19 July and your request for an explanation as to the rationale
behind the Commission's proposal that priority inland waterway
projects should have higher levels of financial intervention than
priority projects involving other modes of transport.
On 8-9 June the Council adopted Conclusions
on the NAIADES action programme to promote the use of inland waterways
for freight transport. The Conclusions invite the Commission to
give "appropriate weight" to inland waterway projects
within the framework of the Trans-European Network, transport
(TEN-T). They also indicate that the River Information Services
(RIS) should be part of the Multi-Annual Indicate Programme of
TEN-T. The Department for Transport wrote to the Committee on
5 July about this matter.[44]
I attach a copy of this letter to this document. (not printed)
The proposed TEN Finance Regulation is proposing
to pay special attention to inland waterways projects, increasing
the intervention rate to up to 30 per cent. We are opposing this,
and furthermore, we do not believe that the Conclusions justify
this increase. While we agree that the TEN-T should concentrate
funds on those projects of Community interest, we argue that the
selection criteria should focus on how the project optimises the
capacity usage of the TEN-T network, not on the mode of transport.
Regarding your request for information about
the Commission's explanation about how the proposed loan guarantee
mechanism would work, I will keep you informed when we hear from
the Commission.
6 September 2006
44 OJL 171, 9.7.2003, p 1. Directive as last amended
by Commission Directive 2005/67//EC (OJL 273, 19.10.2005, p 17). Back
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