The European Commission recently put forward a set of proposals (the so-called ‘border package’), introducing the European Border and Coast Guard Agency. Part of this package is a proposal (COM[2015] 667 final) to amend the EMSA founding regulation. The purpose is to foster closer cooperation between EMSA, the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (previously Frontex) and the European Fisheries Control Agency in order to provide more efficient and cost-effective multi-purpose services to support national authorities carrying out coast guard functions.
This will build on and strengthen the existing cooperation between the three agencies, and raise the profile of coast guard functions across Europe. For EMSA specifically, it is anticipated that there will be a large impact on the Agency’s activities in the following areas:
- improving maritime surveillance capabilities;
- providing flexible services based on remotely piloted aircraft systems (RPAS);
- securing satellite AIS data; and
- capacity building, for example through an increase in the provision of training programmes.
Under the current proposal, if approved by the EU institutions, EMSA would receive for these tasks an additional €87 million for the period 2017-2020. The text now needs to go through the codecision procedure of the European Council and Parliament for review, changes, and finally for adoption. The European Council agreed to fast track and work towards a Council position during the Dutch EU Presidency in the first half of 2016.
Source: EMSA
