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Council of the 
 European Union 

 
 
 
 
Brussels, 6 May 2019 
(OR. en)  
8334/19 
ADD 1 
LIMITE 
 
 
PV CONS 19    
 
DRAFT MINUTES 
COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION 
(General Affairs) 
9 April 2019 
 
 
 
8334/19 ADD 1 
 
 

 
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CONTENTS 
Page 
Non-legislative activities 
4. 
Conclusions on the Reflection Paper "Towards a sustainable Europe by 2030" ......................... 3 
5. 
Values of the Union - Hungary / Article 7(1) TEU Reasoned Proposal ...................................... 3 
6. 
Rule of Law in Poland / Article 7(1) TEU Reasoned Proposal .................................................... 3 
7. 
Any other business........................................................................................................................ 3 
ANNEX - Statements for the Council minutes ...................................................................................... 4 



 
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Non-legislative activities 
4. 
Conclusions on the Reflection Paper "Towards a sustainable 
  8071/19 
Europe by 2030" 
Adoption 
The Council adopted conclusions on the Reflection Paper "Towards a sustainable Europe by 
2030". 
5. 
Values of the Union - Hungary / Article 7(1) TEU Reasoned 
   
Proposal 
State of play 
The Council took note of the information provided by the Commission and by the Hungarian 
delegation. 
6. 
Rule of Law in Poland / Article 7(1) TEU Reasoned Proposal 
   
State of play 
The Council took note of the information provided by the Commission and by the Polish 
delegation. 
7. 
Any other business 
   
No items were raised under this heading. 
 
 
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ANNEX 
Statements to the non-legislative "A" items set out in 8192/19 
Ad "A" item 24: 
Recommendation on small passenger ship guide 
Adoption 
STATEMENT BY IRELAND 
"Ireland has consistently raised safety concerns regarding the current proposal for a 
Recommendation on safety goals and functional requirements for passenger ships below 24 meters 
in length. Ireland has actively engaged in the work on this Recommendation at the expert level and 
at the Shipping Working Party seeking to improve the proposed safety levels. We welcome that 
some of our comments have been included. However, some of our more substantive comments on 
safety have not been included. In particular, Ireland considers that the safety levels as currently 
outlined in the Recommendation and its Annex are very low and much lower than those which 
currently apply in Ireland and at the EU and international level. 
Small passenger ship safety is a key national safety issue for Ireland as vessels operating off our 
coast are operating in some of the most hostile marine environments in the world with severe 
weather and exposed coast lines. It is the view of Ireland that the proposed safety levels in the 
Recommendation are too low and would expose EU citizens to unacceptable transport safety risks. 
On this basis, Ireland considers that there should be a binding standard for passenger ship safety in 
the EU and that a Recommendation is not a suitable means to achieve passenger safety. 
Furthermore, Ireland has consistently recommended that the standard of the vessel should be 
separated from the operation of the vessel. This means that while there would be a binding EU 
standard for the vessels that the operational issues and plying limits would be regulated by the port 
state and host state at member state level. This is because the Member State is best placed to assess 
these using local knowledge of routes, weather and harbours. Additionally, Ireland has raised 
concerns regarding the verification and implementation measures. As passenger ships are required 
to be registered and subject to flag state, port state and host state control, it is essential to the safety 
of such vessels that such controls continue. 
Ireland welcomes that further studies in this area will be carried out and we will actively engage 
with these. However, Ireland considers that the safety levels to be achieved in these studies for 
passenger carriage in the EU should not be reduced or diluted in any manner and that the safety 
levels to be achieved should be in-line with the existing passenger ship safety standards at EU and 
international and national level." 
 
 
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