[EDITORIAL]
Dear Reader,
during its annual conference last week in Brussels ACEM presented the point of view of the Motorcycle Industry concerning the Regulation proposal "on the approval and market surveillance of two- or three-wheel vehicles and quadricycles". This document is a good basis for the legislative process, but ACEM believes that much remains to be done to enable a smooth transition to the new policy framework.
It must be stated beforehand that one of the most important and welcome outcomes of this Regulation is the creation of a level playing field, as the provisions related to market surveillance and many technical aspects will result in ensuring the conditions for a healthy and fair competition within the motorcycle sector, provided that action means are deployed at national level in a coordinated way. ACEM appreciates also that some of the industry proposals have been incorporated in the regulation; mandatory Automatic Headlamp On, adopted by ACEM Members since 2003, is one of them. It is perceived as recognition of the quality of our proposals and the responsible attitude of ACEM manufacturers regarding their societal obligations.
COM 2010/542, as the proposal is now known, is highly technical presenting a series of provisions in the fields of categorisation, simplification, environment, safety and market surveillance. All of them will have an impact on the production planning and cost of the products. Every effort must be made to ensure that the “framework” is comprehensive in its scope, coherent with current production and commitments, allowing sufficient lead-time for manufacturers, component suppliers, and administrations to adapt to the many changes proposed. Furthermore any careful evaluation must take into consideration the current economic context.
Mr Wim Van De Camp, MEP PPE, attended the ACEM Conferece as EP Rapporteur on this Regulation, updating the audience on status of this draft in the agenda of the European Parliament which is likely to be presented for the final vote during the summer of 2011. In parallel work is supposed to progress on the delegated acts and intended to be finalised by mid 2012, leaving to manufacturers a very limited time to adapt the design, planning, production and marketing of new products. These first legal obligations are foreseen already for 2013 together with new administrative requirements.
This lead time is clearly insufficient for manufacturers.
Before delving into details, ACEM wishes to remind policy-makers of the dire market situation the European motorcycle Industry is confronted by. The PTW market today is experiencing an unprecedented crisis with a loss of -25% in 2010 compared to 2008. On this sombre backdrop the envisaged legislation falls during a particular harsh time for a sector employing directly and indirectly 150.000 people in the EU.
In a spirit of constructive behaviour, ACEM wishes to make further proposals to improve the EC proposal and its application. A comprehensive Position Paper on the technical aspects of this Regulation and the delegated acts has been submitted to policymakers and is now available on our website.
ACEM looks forward to high quality legislation developed in good cooperation with the European Commission, the Member States, the European Parliament and the European Economic and Social Committee.
We hope that this newsletter will prove a useful tool to gain a deeper insight into this very technical Regulation and the motorcycle sector.
Enjoy your reading!
Jacques Compagne
Acem Secretary General
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