Dear Members,
I hope you had a great holiday and charged your batteries for a start full of challenges
As you know, the new term of the European Parliament has already commenced after the European elections that took place last May. Under its fresh 5-year mandate, the institution held its first two plenary sessions in Strasbourg in July. During the initial plenary session on 2 July CECRA had arranged and realized bilateral meetings with several MEPs engaged in portfolios of interest for its members.
It is of great importance to identify the key players that will decisively influence the legislative landscape in the policy field of transport and to approach them from the very beginning, so as to foment a close and honest relationship with them. To this end, CECRA’s secretariat organized these first meetings and presented the main issues and challenges our members are facing, as expressed in our manifesto for an innovative and future proof mobility under the four axes, namely:
- Ensuring that SMEs in the Sector have equal access to in-vehicle data to enable them to service and repair latest technology vehicles to ensure competitive market for consumers across the European Union.
- Supporting fair rules at EU level to ensure that Contracts between Vehicle Manufacturers and Dealer SMEs cannot contain unfair, oppressive and unreasonable requirements.
- Protecting Consumers but avoiding Unreasonable Burden for SMEs.
- Protecting European Consumers from fraudsters and criminals by fighting odometer manipulation by unscrupulous traders who can take advantage of the current lack of verifiable vehicle data.
Furthermore, given that the European Parliament’s relevant Committees have been formed (TRAN, IMCO, ITRE among others) and it became even more evident which MEPs will be decisive in the formulation of the agenda, CECRA’s secretariat has been in touch with the Chairs, Vice-Chairs and members of these Committees and has scheduled various meetings with them to be held in September. During this second wave of meetings, we will have the chance to promote the association’s interests and discuss in a more detailed fashion with the MEPs, implementing in practice the Lobbying Action Plan (updated version on
here) devised by CECRA.
The European Parliament has elected Ursula VON DER LEYEN as the next President of the European Commission (the first woman to hold the EU’s highest executive job). Mrs. VON DER LEYEN (born in Germany) had previously been the German defense minister. It is important to note that she will be the first German to hold the position of President of the EU Commission in more than 50 years, since Walter HALLSTEIN presidency from 1958 to 1968.
Mrs. VON DER LEYEN may have a tense relationship with the Parliament given that she won 383 votes, slightly above the absolute majority of 374 required to be elected. As highlighted in our last newsletter, this proves the Parliament is more fragmented and ideologically diverse than during any previous legislature in European history. Environmental issues and more precisely climate change seem to be the top priority for the next European commission president.
With the exception of Italy, all Member states have proposed their candidates to be appointed as Commissioners. The EC president will meet each one of them in order to confirm the choice made by national governments.
Find here the current composition of the College of Commissioners (to be confirmed by MEPs through a plenary vote).
The next step in this institutional renewal is a key moment for stakeholders: each European Commission candidate is assessed by the parliamentary committees under the purview of his/her portfolio. MEPs can question the candidates orally or in writing. The next Commissioners for Industry and Transport will be both the most important regarding CECRA’s priorities.
CECRA'S ANNUAL MEETING IS COMING (more information below).
Sincerely yours,
Jean-Charles Herrenschmidt
