§ Mr. Steenasked the Secretary of State for Transport whether he is yet in a position to say what action the Government propose to take in response to the recent European Court of Justice ruling on European air fares.
§ Mr. MooreAs my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister has already said, the Government welcome the judgment, which confirms our view, that air transport within the Community is subject to the competition rules of the treaty of Rome.
570WI recognise that there is widespread interest in the judgment because it paves the way for ending restrictive practices in European aviation. The court's ruling makes it clear that the Council of Ministers must now put a major effort into adoption, under article 87 of the treaty, of a comprehensive regulation robustly applying the competition rules to air transport in the Community. The Government believe that this is by far the best way forward and we will give high priority during our forthcoming Presidency to achieving this as part of a liberalising package.
The Government are, however, very conscious of the fact that the court has confirmed that, in the absence of such a regulation, it is up to member states to make sure that the competition rules are obeyed in the aviation sector. The Government are reviewing the machinery and procedures necessary to enable us to apply the competition rules between the United Kingdom and other member states, so as to ensure that Community rules are effectively applied in accordance with article 88, particularly if it proves impossible to achieve satisfactory agreement in the Council. In that event, I shall make a further statement about the details of these arrangements.