Security measures in civil aviation01/06/07 / cata_european-union-news
Parliament adopted a second-reading report heavily amending the Council's common position on a new regulation laying down common rules on checks, searches, surveillance, prohibited items, security patrols and other aspects of airport and aircraft security.
A key difference with the Council is who should pay for any extra security measures not required by the regulation. Parliament also voted for the costs of security measures to be met by airline users and Member States, although if a Member State wants to impose even more stringent measures, it will have to cover the whole cost. As Parliament differs with the Council over this key point, and given the numerous other amendments adopted, a conciliation procedure with Council will be needed. Once adopted, the regulation would apply two years after its entry into force, except for the detailed implementing measures for common basic standards (methods of screening, access control and other security controls, methods of performing aircraft security checks and aircraft security searches or prohibited articles), which would apply immediately from the date of entry into force. Thus, subject to agreement in conciliation, these detailed measures could take effect from late 2007, with the whole regulation applying as of 2009.