Tourism and the European Union
Air passenger transport in EU25 up by 5% in 2003
Eurostat, 14th April 2005 - In 2003, compared with 2002, the number of air transport passengers in the EU25 grew by 4.9% to reach 590 million. The most significant increases were registered in some of the new Member States, Slovakia (+25.9%), the Czech Republic (+18.0%), Estonia (+17.8%) and Lithuania (+13.6%), while the largest falls were observed in Sweden (-7.3%) and Luxembourg (-3.7%). London/Heathrow (United Kingdom) remained the busiest airport in the EU25 in 2003, followed by Frankfurt/Main (Germany) and Paris/Charles-de-Gaulle (France). This information comes from a report released on 14 April by Eurostat, the Statistical Office of the European Communities, on air transport passengers in the EU25. [ Full text ]
User-friendly guide to the new EU SME definition
Enterprise Europe, Brussels, 11 April 2005 – A user guide explaining the new SME definition that entered into force this year is now available. The new definition replaces the previous one dating from 1996 and will apply to all the policies, programmes and measures that the Commission operates for SMEs. Member States are also invited to use it as widely as possible.
The guide presents the changes being made by the new definition and explains how to determine if an enterprise can qualify as an SME by following a step-by-step approach.
The electronic version (in English) can be found here.
EU reinforces air passengers’ rights
A new law offers air passengers better compensation for overbooking, cancelled flights and long delays.
The new Regulation, which entered into force on 17 February, significantly improves the protection of air passengers’ rights in the EU. It is designed to reduce the frequency of overbooking and allows passengers to claim compensation up to 600 euro if they are denied boarding.
The legislation guarantees compensation including the right to refund or rebooking for late cancellation and long delays for which the airline is deemed responsible. It applies to all flights, including charters, operated by European airlines from or to a European airport and to any flight departing from the EU. It embraces all airlines, including “low cost” carriers. The new Regulation requires each Member State to set up an independent body responsible for dealing with passengers’ complaints and any disputes they may have with airlines, which will help to avoid long and expensive court cases.
The European Commission also adopted a draft Regulation which guarantees equal access to air transport to disabled and elderly people. It is also proposing to guarantee passengers the right to be informed of the identity of the air carrier with which they will travel and to assure them that all information relating to the safety record of carriers is communicated rapidly between Member States.
Further information: http://europa.eu.int/comm/transport/air/rights/info_en.htm
Source: This information has been gathered from "Heath and Consumer Voice", the Newsletter on food safety, heath and consumer policy from the European Commission's Heath and Consumer Protection DG. Website: http://europa.eu.int/comm/dgs/health_consumer/dyna/consumervoice/
Preparation for EU Membership
Accession Negotiations and Tourism
Since its establishment in September 1999, the Malta Tourism Authority has been monitoring very closely the process by which the Maltese Islands were being prepared for full membership of the European Union. Initially, this monitoring process consisted mainly of following the issues of direct relevance to the tourism industry through the process of Malta’s adoption of the EU body of law. This was done through the screening of the ‘National Programme for the Adoption of the Acquis’ (NPAA), which was an annual report on the legislative progress made by Malta covering all sectors and administrative aspects of the Islands’ governance. Secondly, the negotiation process was also an area wherein the tourism sector contributed, namely through the consultative framework of the Malta-EU Steering and Action Committee (MEUSAC) by means of representation from trade unions, constituted bodies and special interest groups (Non-Governmental Organisations).
Further to this, several EU issues of relevance to tourism have been covered by seven reports commissioned by the Ministry for Tourism.
Structural Funds
During the following and most intensive phase of preparation, the Ministry for Tourism and Culture (MfTC), in close collaboration with the Malta Tourism Authority (MTA), has participated very actively in the preparation for the absorption of the EU Structural and Cohesion Funds, which will amount to Lm90 million for the period 2004-2006. This has been done through MfTC/MTA’s contribution in the National Development Plan (December 2001 - July 2002), followed by the drafting of the Single Programming Document (SPD) and the Programme Compliment (PC) (September 2002-March 2003). These documents contain the details of proposed projects in all sectors of the economy which will directly benefit from the Structural and Cohesion Funds. The general descriptions of the approved projects are found in the SPD, while details of the projects’ concrete objectives and indicators are developed in the Programme Compliment.
More detailed information on the process leading to the National Development Plan for the Maltese Islands (2003-2006) can be found at the NDP website.
Information on the Single Programming Document, including the whole text of the SPD and of the Programme Complement, can be found at the Projects and Priorities Co-ordination Directorate (Office of the Prime Minister) website.
Tourism Share of the Structural Funds
Tourism has submitted proposals of a value of around eight million euros in projects which have been identified and refined, through a wide-ranging consultation process, during the period leading to the negotiations on the SPD and the Programme Complement with the European Commission (3rd and 4th Quarters 2003).
There are four major areas of intervention concerning tourism, namely:
(a) projects of assistance to tourism enterprises;
(b) projects leading to the upgrading of Malta’s cultural heritage;
(c) projects for the upgrading of tourism infrastructure at key tourism areas;
(d) human resources development programmes aimed at tourism and support services enterprises, employers and employees.
The co-ordination of all the above projects has been delegated from the Ministry for Tourism and Culture to the MTA and is being led by the MTA's Strategic Planning and Research Division.
Click below if you want to see a PowerPoint Presentation on the process leading to the inclusion of the four tourism-related projects in the final version of the SPD.
- PowerPoint Presentation on Tourism and the Structural Funds (2004-2006)
Legislative Harmonisation affecting Tourism
All areas of Maltese legislation which are directly influenced by Malta’s accession to full EU membership are to be found in the three NPAA documents mentioned above. A basic summary of the most relevant areas for tourism is found in a study made for the Ministry for Tourism and Culture entitled ‘Report on Malta's Accession Negotiations with the European Union - What is the outcome for Malta's Tourism Industry?’ [Click here to download report]
The areas of major concern for the tourism industry fall under the following Acquis chapters:
- Free Movement of Services: the MTA is mentioned in the NPAA in its capacity to issue trading licenses for particular services in the tourism industry. Any administrative procedures that effectively limit the establishment and provision of services by non-Maltese nationals have to be removed. Relevant legislative amendments have already been effected.
- Free Movement of Persons: Malta has obtained a seven-year period barring EU workers from settling in Malta; in exceptional cases unilateral measures can be effected by Malta to safeguard the Maltese workforce in sensitive sectors even after this period expires. All of this applies also to employment in the tourism industry and all related areas.
- Free movement of goods: the impact in this area will be mostly through the removal of trade restrictions for products originating in the EU, including food and drink items.
- Transport Policy: this includes measures for implementation of EC Directives and Regulations in the areas of land transport (mainly legislation on vehicular licensing, safety and roadworthiness, as well as public transportation regulations); maritime transport (of relevance to tourism are the drafting of national ports policies which will integrate cruise-liner traffic, and the Malta-Gozo passenger and cargo service which will be liberalized following the expiration of existing contracts); and air transport (full harmonization with the Acquis will effect market access with regards to Malta-originating commercial non-scheduled flights, the adoption of the ‘Third Package’ which will require the restructuring of AirMalta p.l.c. due to access to previously unavailable intra-community air routes, as well as the liberalization of licenses for air transport services).
- Consumer and Health Protection: tourism is mainly effected by two areas of legislation, one covering consumer rights for compensation in cases of denied boarding [1], and the other consisting of the Package Travel and the Timeshare Directives, including the enforcement aspects which fall under the responsibility of MTA. [2]
- Social and Employment Policy: tourism will be effected through regulations governing the use of work equipment. Malta has obtained a transitional period until the beginning of 2006 to come in line with EU standards for equipment used on the workplace. This is of particular relevance to restaurants and diving schools, among other tourism operations.
- Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs): the tourism sector in the Maltese Islands consists mainly of SMEs. The NPAA (2002) considers the promotion of tourism activity as a major area within the general promotion of SMEs. Alignment with the relevant Community legislative framework has been effected by the Package Travel (LN157/00) and Timeshare Buyer Protection (LN269/00) regulations, which are already in force. Assistance to tourism enterprises, most of which are SMEs, also features prominently in the SPD (Structural Funds).
- Competition policy: the negotiations on competition policy have led to the gradual phasing out of the Tour Operator Support Scheme (TOSS) which provided assistance (considered as ‘State Aid’) to package tours sold by UK operators. Any assistance provided to the private sector which falls under the definition of State Aid has to conform to the relevant State Aid rules and regulations, which are among the legal instruments within the EU aimed at guaranteeing fair competition. [3]
Tourism Policy and the European Union
The Future of European Tourism
The European Commission presented its ideas on how best to exploit the European tourism sector's competitive potential on the 13th November 2001. Outlined in the Communication on Working together for the future of European tourism , the Commission highlights the need to enhance co-operation on and the consistency of tourism policies among the stakeholders involved in tourism. These include the European Commission, Member States, regional and local authorities, industry, associations, and tourist destinations.
The Commission aims in particular to foster tourism's competitiveness and sustainability. Underlining tourism's contribution to sustainable development, with a special focus on environmental and cultural resources, is high on the list of recommendations, in accordance with the "Agenda 21" guidelines. With a view to providing the tourism industry with a political platform and improving co-operation and co-ordination, an annual European Tourism Forum, a key interface with stakeholder groups, is proposed.
More information can be found on the website of DG Enterprise
- Working Together for the Future of European Tourism (PDF File: 227KB)
European Commission proposes joint efforts to increase sustainability
The European Commission called for an EU-wide drive to enhance the economic, social and environmental sustainability of European tourism in a Communication adopted on the 24th November 2003.
Basic orientations for the sustainability of European tourism emphasises the need to ensure the consistency of various Community policies and measures affecting the sustainability of tourism and the industry’s competitiveness. It also calls for pro-active co-operation among tourism enterprises, tourist destinations and national, regional and local authorities to address challenges such as growing demand and changing preferences whilst at the same time increasing revenues.
More Information can be obtained from the sustainable tourism section of DG Enterprise.
- Basic orientations for the sustainability of European tourism (PDF File 145KB)
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