The 4th Railway Package : Introduction to the Belgian case 12/06/2019
Structure 1. The technical pillar of the 4th Railway Package 2. The transposition 3. The state of play in Belgium 4. Looking forward
Important disclaimer Transposition of the Technical Pillar of the 4th Railway Package is still ongoing at the level of the Belgian administration. The options that will be taken in Belgian law must be decided first by the Minister of Transports, and ultimately, by the Belgian Parliament. It is therefore not possible at this stage for the Belgian Ministry of Transports to express any final view on the transposition of the 4th Railway Package in Belgian law.
1. The technical pillar of the 4th Railway Package Reminder Technical pillar = 3 texts : 1. New ERA Regulation 2016/796; 2. New Interoperability Directive 2016/797/EU; 3. New Safety Directive 2016/798/EU. All 3 texts entered into force in EU law on 15/06/2016. The 2 directives have to be transposed by MS by 16 June 2019. MS may also decide to postpone the transposition by one year if they notify this decision and the reasons thereof to the Commission by 16 December 2018.
2. The transposition MS had to choose between 16/06/2019 and 16/06/2020 by 16/12/2018. 8 MS announced that they would transpose in 2019, all the others going for 2020. Belgium also chose for 2020. Reasoning: 1) Take the time (30 days) to consult the Belgian rail sector on the choices made; 2) Clarify the sharing of competencies with the Regions; 3) Ensure the finalization of the cleaning up of national rules before the entry into force of the 4th RP.
3. The state of play in Belgium • The Ministry of Transport is drafting: - One draft law amending the Railway Code - 3 draft Royal Decrees amending or replacing existing Royal Decrees taken on the basis of the Railway Code. • Discussions are ongoing with SSICF/DVIS on some choices to be made • The Minister of Transport has confirmed his intention of bringing the draft law to the Parliament in 2019 despite the situation of « affaires courantes » • Pending the agreement of SSICF/DVIS and the Minister, the draft will be sent to the Belgian rail sector for consultation.
3. The state of play in Belgium (continued) • Choices to be made in the implementation: • Identifying the competent national authorities (eg. Notifying authority responsible for recognizing NoBo’s and DeBos’). • Make the choices set by the Directives (eg. « MS may exclude from the scope »…) • Ensure the global coherence of the rail legal system (Code, royal decrees, …) • … • Option proposed by the Belgian Ministry of Transports: stick to the Directives as much as possible: • Avoid interpretation problems (ECJ has the final say) • Avoid discrepancies between MS • Avoid infringement procedures from the European Commission
4. Looking forward Steps to be taken Timing Consultation of the Belgian sector 30 days Taking the input into account with the help of SSICF/DVIS and Between 2 weeks finalizing the drafts and 2 months Sending the draft law to the Inspector of Finances and to the 2 weeks Minister of Budget for opinion Sending the drafts to the Regions for opinion 60 days Taking the Regions’ comments into account Between 1 week and 2 months Sending the drafts to the Conseil d’État for opinion 30 days Taking the Conseil d’État’s opinion into account Between 1 week and 1 month Signature of the definitive drafts by the Minister(s) and the King Between 1 week and 1 month Vote in the Parliament of the draft law Unknown (after October 2019) Publication in the Belgian official journal Unknown (target: Q1 2020)
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