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GBTA Europe Advocacy Newsletter

Welcome to the April edition of the GBTA Europe Advocacy Newsletter designed to keep you up to date with what’s happening in relation to business travel in Brussels, and how GBTA is advocating on your behalf.

 

Click here for the EU jargon buster.

 

Newsletter Contents



Summary
GBTA Action in the EU

GBTA Releases Policy Document Outlining its Priorities for the next EU Legislative Mandate 2024-2029

On 2 April, GBTA released its advocacy priorities for business travel ahead of the June European Parliament election in its report “Shaping the Future of Europe via Business Travel”. The document provides an outline of the business travel sector, explains how it contributes to Europe’s economy and society, and showcases GBTA members’ efforts to implement the green transition in their daily practices. It also sets out GBTA’s requests from the EU for its next 2024-2029 mandate. They suggest measures to make business travel more efficient and sustainable, contributing to a more connected and united Europe.

Building upon the achievements of the current mandate, GBTA asked the European Union to:

  • Facilitate travel mobility by digitalising travel procedures and building a more robust framework for passenger rights.
  • Promote sustainable business travel by further supporting the decarbonisation of aviation, by empowering travellers to identify the most sustainable options, and by providing clarity and transparency on emissions accounting and reporting.
  • Modernise the travel distribution ecosystem by unlocking the potential of multimodal business travel.

GBTA has been at the forefront of discussions with European decision-makers to ensure that business travel and its benefits are well understood and accounted for in the EU’s policymaking process ahead of the European elections this June and will continue its advocacy efforts in the next five-year term.

Why it matters: GBTA has defined policy priorities at the EU for the next five years and has shared them with policymakers from the European Commission and with Members of the European Parliament running for re-election, so that they can be taken into account when the next legislative term starts.

➤ GBTA Honours Jan-Christoph Oetjen with Navigator Award for Championing Business Travel in Europe

GBTA announced MEP and Vice-President of the European Parliament Jan-Christoph Oetjen (Renew Europe, Germany) as the recipient of its prestigious “GBTA Navigator Award.” The GBTA Navigator Award is given to elected officials who have proven to be strong advocates of the business travel industry. Introduced by GBTA in 2016, this is the first time the award has been presented to a European official.

“GBTA is pleased to honour MEP Oetjen with its Navigator Award,” said Suzanne Neufang, CEO, GBTA. “Mr. Oetjen has demonstrated outstanding support for the business travel community in its recovery since the pandemic. His contributions to key debates have helped shape a regulatory framework which puts travellers and the planet first.”

Read the full press release here.

Why it matters: MEP Oetjen has been one of the most influential MEPs working on transport issues and is a strong supporter of facilitating the offer of multimodal travel options for travellers. He will run for re-election in his native Germany and GBTA will continue working with him and other key MEPs to make business travel in Europe more sustainable and efficient.

➤ GBTA European Advisory Board Meets in Brussels to Launch EU Policy Document, Discuss Strategy, and Meet with European Commission

On 25-26 March, GBTA’s European Advisory Board met in Brussels to discuss our strategy for the coming months. They held a strategic workshop where they went through GBTA’s mission and objectives, analysed the current context with the European elections coming up in June, assessed GBTA’s EU presence, its key themes and tools and agreed on a series of key performance indicators.

In addition, the members of the Board took the opportunity to launch GBTA’s EU Policy Document and recorded videos to promote it. Look for these on GBTA LinkedIn over the coming weeks.

They also had a discussion on passenger rights and multimodality with the European Commission’s DG MOVE Deputy Director General Mr Herald Ruijters, with a view of understanding the EU’s plans for the next mandate 2024-2029.

Why it matters: Following several meetings with key EU policymakers to understand the EU’s priorities for business travel, GBTA in liaison with European volunteer leadership has defined its strategy for the years to come.

➤ GBTA Welcomes European Parliament’s Push to Establish a Harmonised Measurement Framework for Transport Emissions

On 10 April 2024, the European Parliament adopted its report on the proposed CountEmissionsEU regulation that will establish a consistent and accurate measurement framework for transport emissions.

GBTA welcomed this initiative as it is critical for business travellers to make more sustainable choices by helping them compare the carbon footprint of their trips across providers, and modes of transport.

Both the Member States in Council and Parliament have now adopted their views on this proposed legislation. Negotiations between the two institutions to arrive to a final legislative text will only take place after the new Parliament is elected in June.

Full press release here.

Why it matters: The establishment of a harmonised framework for calculating and reporting greenhouse gas emissions from the transport sector would make it easier for travel providers to ensure that the right data on emissions is provided, and a common calculation methodology is in place, paving the way for effective decarbonisation of the business travel sector; currently hindered by the fragmented methodologies. GBTA will continue to advocate for a harmonised methodology and to ask Council and Parliament to reach an agreement on this regulation as soon as possible after the election.

Key Developments


➤ Belgian Presidency Presents “Brussels Declaration” Asking for More and Better Rail

What is new: On 4 April, at the end of a two-day informal meeting of transport ministers, the Belgian Presidency of the EU Council presented a “Brussels declaration” calling on the EU to make rail the “backbone of European mobility” by:

  • Setting binding targets for the modal share of rail along trans-European transport corridors, making the modal shift towards rail transport a central objective of European mobility policy.
  • Proposing an EU-wide master plan to increase the supply of rail services for freight and passengers.
  • Ensuring, through a new legislative proposal, that a passenger can easily compare, book, and pay for their door-to-door train journey in a trans-European perspective, while being assured of the continuity of their journey, regardless of whether one or several rail companies are involved.
  • Developing a dedicated strategy for night train passenger services, including reduced fares, to offer a viable alternative to short- and medium-haul flights in Europe.
  • Preparing regulatory changes to improve the competitiveness of rail transport and ensure a level playing field with other modes of transport, particularly with regard to energy and fuel taxation and rules on state aid.
  • Applying the 'polluter-pays' principle to mobility to ensure fair competition: the price of each mode of transport must reflect the external costs incurred, such as pollution, CO2 emissions or congestion.
  • Increasing the amount of European funding on offer for rail transport, using all available financing instruments.

The call comes as the Energy Taxation Directive is being discussed, which could end the tax exemption for jet fuels. They did not, however, call for a ban on short flights. During the meeting, “some colleagues did speak out against flights of too short a distance,” said Belgian Transport Minister Georges Gilkinet, recalling his own proposal to ban short-haul flights in Belgium. “It doesn’t make sense to allow or promote short distance flights,” he added, acknowledging a “small difference between the [Council] presidency and the Commission.”

Why it matters: Several key countries in the EU are pushing for more rail options in Europe, with some of them including France and Spain suggesting banning short-haul flights where a train connection is available. The next EU Commission might develop proposals or devote more funding for rail, though an EU-wide ban on short haul flights is unlikely. This could be beneficial for business travellers, but it may lead to a modal shift from flights to rail.

➤ Transport Industry Calls for Increased EU Funding

What is new: Over 40 mobility organisations across Europe's transport sector have joined forces to advocate for a substantial boost in the transport budget allocation within the upcoming review of the European Union's Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF). This collective effort, spearheaded by the Waterborne Technology Platform, underscores the industry's pressing need for robust financial support to bolster its adaptability, foster innovation, and safeguard supply chain autonomy amidst potential disruptions. The transport groups have highlighted the oversubscription of the current Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) transport budget, emphasising the critical importance of reversing the underfunding trend. They assert that a well-funded and robust CEF instrument is vital to levelling the playing field and enabling the sector's transition towards a zero-emission, digitalised, automated, safe, and competitive future.

Why it matters: Stakeholders aim for their call to be taken up by the next Commission and Parliament, which could take action to improve travel infrastructure in Europe, potentially facilitating business travel.

➤ European Travel and Tourism Industry Issues Joint Declaration Committing to Tackle Climate Change

What is new: Association representatives (A4E, ACI Europe, CLIA, ECTAA, EEIA, ERA, HOTREC, IAAPA, IRU, Ruraltour) from the European travel and tourism sector (business and leisure) met in Rhodes, Greece, to sign a landmark declaration promising decisive action towards more sustainable travel and tourism. The joint declaration will serve as a roadmap to foster collaboration and help tourism reach its sustainability goals.

Read more here.

Why it matters: The statement shows a clear commitment from travel stakeholders across the supply chain to decarbonise and shows their openness to work together and with public authorities to achieve climate targets.

➤ Latest on the European Elections

Adina Valean, European Commissioner for Transport, to Run for the European Parliament

European Union mobility chief, Adina Vălean, is running for a seat in the bloc’s Parliament this June. Vălean’s PNL party — part of the centre-right European People’s Party — unveiled its joint candidates list with the Social Democratic party on 21 March with the commissioner occupying a safe sixth spot. This likely means the commissioner, as widely expected, is not planning to remain in her post after the election and will serve again as an MEP for Romania again, as she did previously for 12 years. This also means she will leave her commissioner post early, in July 2024, to take up her seat in Parliament. Her portfolio will likely be provisionally assigned to a different commissioner until a full new Commission takes office in November.

Context: The European Parliament election scheduled for 6-9 June 2024, will shape the EU's political course for the next five years. Ahead of this significant vote, here's a breakdown of the essentials shaping what could be a defining moment for the bloc.

What's happening? Citizens in the EU's 27 member states will participate in the European Parliament election. The Parliament hosts 720 members and distributes seats based on the principle of "degressive proportionality," granting smaller states a larger representation. For instance, Germany holds the highest seats at 96, while Malta possesses merely six. Elections to the European Parliament are based on national lists, whereby citizens vote for national parties. Winning candidates from these parties form parliamentary groups with similar political ideologies across EU states. For instance, the European Parliament's Socialist and Democrats (S&D) group consists of members from various parties like Germany’s Social Democratic Party, France’s Socialist Party, and Italy’s Democratic Party.

Why do the EU elections matter? As one of the EU's legislative bodies alongside the Council of the European Union (representing Member States governments), the European Parliament plays a pivotal role in shaping EU law. It shares equal power with the Council in the co-decision procedure, impacting about 84 policy areas, including the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), environmental policy, and internal security policies. Additionally, the Parliament's approval is critical for EU treaty reforms, determining the EU's financial priorities through budget approval, and electing the European Commission President and confirming the College of Commissioners.

 
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