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Se:.iol1e 1\' - ApPlmti e rassegne
ber States to apply them \dthin their national systems and possibilities
but controlled by State Aid Guidelines to amid distortion of competition
as well as to avoid a subsid:v race intra-Europe and on a global basis. It is
also a clear policy that the guidelines should act as an incentive for Member
States to take support measures rather than as a policing instrument.
A brief analvsis of the kev points and rationale to this policy on State
Aid as expressed by the Commission in the strategy paper and the State
Aid Guidelines themselves givcs clarit\' on the principles contained in the
Guidelines. In this summary \I.;e are often verbally quoting the Com mission
to stress the underlying policy.
1. Cellerai
In its Communication "To\vards a new maritime strategy" of March
1996 and in the introduction to the Communitv Guidelines on State Aid
to maritime transport published on 5 Iuly 1997 the Commission stressed
the necessity or support measures for EU shipping to remedy the disadvantages
of EU shipping such as:
- Striet manning conditions to be respected
- Member States fiscal and social arrangements for companies and
their employees making it expensive to operate EC registered ships \I.:ith I 39
EC seafarers on board
- Few eosts for third country operators entering the open trades.
- Direct competition with these third country operators - benefiting
of more competitive operational conditions - in both Intemational and
Community trades.
Il was al so stressed that the shipping industry is extremely mobile
and that an onerous regime can easily be avoided through registering vessels
in other countries (giving absolute freedom in manning) and, if necessaI)',
establishing a nominallevel of administration or management outside
the EU (to avoid Member States' fiscal systems). The Commission
also acknowledgcd that, in recent vears, there had been a large supply of
seafarers ava ila bI e from low-wage third countries, giving shipo\\'ner5 a
10\\'-c05t option \vhen selecting crews.
The above cireumstances led to a decrease of the percentage of EU
registered vessels from 32 c iC in 1970 to 14% in 1995. Thc share of the major
open registry countries increased aver the stime period l'rom 19% to
28%. Il is evident that there has al so been a correspondinglv steady decrease
in the number of Eu seafarers aver the same periodo
The Commission also recognised that the flagging out of vessels
is, however, not the end of the problem. Where flag States outside the
EU offer an attracti\'e international services infrastructure, flagging
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