NEW EUROPEAN COMMISSION FACES CHALLENGES IN THE RAILWAY INDUSTRY.

The new European Commission and specially Mrs Loyola de Palacio, candidate Commissioner for Transport and Mr Erkki Liikanen, candidate Commissioner for Enterprise an Information Society are facing the challenge of supplying the political and financial framework for a further modernisation of the European railway industry.

Mrs de Palacio will become responsible the revitalisation of the railway deregulation which came at a standstill because the European transport ministers were, during their last meeting in June, unable to reach an agreement on reforming the European rail sector. It became clear that there are different opinions in the various EU Member States concerning the liberalisation and/or protection of their national railway systems. The idea is now to compare during a four-year co-existence period the performances of the competition model and the liberalisation model.

Mr Likkanen will be asked to support, on the European political level, the modernisation of the railway supply industry being an important industrial sector with a world market share of 60 % with an annual turnover of 16 Billion Euro and employing 130.000 people.

UNIFE will also contact the EC Commissioner for Research and Development, Mr Philippe Busquin, to ensure that budgets will be available for railway research like in the automotive and aeronautics industries.

UNIFE will establish good relationships with the European Parliament who will play a more prominent role in the decision making process in Brussels.

UNIFE will approach all three EC Commissioners when they are installed and urge them to establish an 'EU Communication on the railway supply industry' addressing the strategic issues in this sector.

Last but not least UNIFE will work closely together with the railway operators in jointly promoting the railways to develop them as an important transport mode and establish a sound and viable railway industry in the 21st Century.

Drewin Nieuwenhuis