Press releases

CLECAT, the European Association for forwarding, transport, logistic and Customs services, is disappointed by some of the small print concerning the full implementation of mutual recognition for the USA’s and European Union’s trade security programmes.  Details on the implementation recently published by DG TAXUD of the European Commission - “US-EU Mutual Recognition Decision, Frequently Asked Questions” - confirm that freight forwarders and customs brokers which are AEO-accredited will not benefit from the reduced risk scores under the Mutual Recognition Agreement (MRA).

In anticipation of the EU Summit later this week in Brussels, CLECAT, the European organisation of freight forwarders and logistics service providers, is calling on European Heads of State and Government to guarantee the 31.7 billion Euro foreseen for Europe's transport infrastructure investments under the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF). European leaders will be making another attempt, following failure to reach agreement in November last year, to make a deal on the Multi-Annual Financial Framework (MFF), the overall European budget for the years 2014-2020 and the budgets to be allocated to the different policies.

CLECAT has welcomed the publication of the long awaited 4th Railway Package but is, however,  disappointed with the fact that the Commission has backtracked from its initial intention to impose separation of the infrastructure management and railway operations.  The new proposal allows incumbent operators to keep their holding structures, making separation ‘optional’. 

A need to strike a careful balance between effectively fighting crime and terrorism while facilitating trade, was among the conclusions drawn from the panel discussions at the first Freight Forwarders Forum organised by CLECAT in Brussels yesterday.

In anticipation of the 4th Railway package, which is expected to be adopted by the Commission before the end of year, CLECAT calls on the Commission to be forceful in bringing about the genuine separation of infrastructure from operations.

CLECAT, will be leading a panel debate at Intermodal Europe 2012 in Amsterdam on the 27th of November. Nicolette van der Jagt, Director General of CLECAT will be moderating the panel in a conference session titled 'Logistics Partnering in Practice: Challenges facing the dynamic freight forwarding industry'. The panel will bring together a distinguished panel of experts in the freight transport industry who will discuss the development of intelligent cargo to improve efficiency and sustainability and the management of complex supply chains through intelligent IT systems. They will give some insight on their expectations with regard to innovation and market trends and how all of these might affect operations in the future.

Members of the European Parliament heard yesterday practical evidence of how use of the European Modular System (EMS) truck combinations can improve the efficiency of combined transport and further contribute to reducing greenhouse gas emissions. During the lunchtime debate hosted by Belgian liberal MEP Philippe De Backer, key industry speakers presented first results of some of the EMS trials in combined transport both in Germany and the Netherlands where successful EMS combined transport has been ongoing for a number of years.

CLECAT has taken note of the opinion of the European Court Justice Advocate General Niilo Jääskinen on pending cases against Germany, Austria, Spain, Hungary and Portugal for failure to correctly implement various parts of the First Railway Package.Nicolette van der Jagt, Director General, said: "The opinion of the Advocate General shows again the importance to advance the discussions on the 4th Railway Package and confirms in our opinion the need for the Commission to create a clearer legal framework against which liberalisation can take place."

CLECAT, the European Association for forwarding, transport, logistic and Customs services, is to hold its 12th annual event on Thursday 29th November in Brussels.  Under the theme “Balancing facilitation and security in Global Supply Chains”, the Forum will debate a number of important developments in supply chain security that require changes in business practices from all involved parties in the supply chain.

The EMS Forum welcomes clarity on the cross-border use of EMS and strongly supports the European Commission in its respect of the original intentions of the legislator. The EMS Forum is responding to a letter by European Parliament President, Martin Schulz, to the President of the European Commission, and supporting the current legal interpretation of EU Directive 96/53 on the weights and dimensions of commercial vehicles, which now permits cross-border trials of EMS within the EU.