European ports policy: meeting contemporary governance challenges

Abstract

This article assesses how the European Union (EU) views the role of port authorities. It addresses the impact of EU law and EU policy on port governance models and, in particular, analyses whether the European Commission's 2007 ports policy communication provides adequate instruments to meet contemporary governance challenges. For that purpose, an overview is first given of some of the main governance challenges of European ports as well as a brief insight in governance reform processes in EU Member States. The article also contains a bird's-eye view on the evolution of EU ports policy, paying particular attention to the basic objectives involved, the debate on the port services’ Directive and the process that led to the Commission's new communication. The article concludes with further research questions on the influence of the EU on port governance reform in Member States.

Acknowledgements

The author wishes to thank the independent reviewers of this article and his promoter, Prof. Dr Eddy Van de Voorde, for their useful comments and suggestions. Thanks also to Ann De Lange, José Fernandez Garcia, Tina Kuypers, Isabelle Ryckbost and Prof. Dr Eric Van Hooydonk for their valuable assistance in tracing the older EU reference material.