Bill to create a single agency to investigate train, ship and plane accidents

Automatic summary, not yet reviewed

1. The bill would create an Independent Administrative Authority to investigate the technical causes of rail, maritime and civil aviation accidents and incidents, in order to improve safety and prevent future events.
2. The investigation would aim to establish causes and issue safety recommendations, but not to decide blame or liability, which belongs to the courts.
3. The Authority would investigate serious rail accidents, very serious maritime accidents involving ships flying the Spanish flag or occurring in Spanish waters, and serious civil aviation accidents and incidents. It could also investigate other events if lessons for safety can be drawn from them.
4. Investigations would follow principles of transparency and participation: victims, their relatives and interested parties would be kept informed of progress, and victims would receive factual information within 48 hours of the accident.
5. The final report would be published, in principle, within a maximum of 12 months from the accident, extendable in 12-month periods. Safety recommendations would not be binding, but recipients would have to comply or explain why they do not.
6. Reserved information from investigations (witness statements, the identity of those who testify, sensitive data such as health information) could only be handed over to courts, the Public Prosecutor's Office, parliamentary investigation committees or in other limited cases, and the duty of confidentiality would be indefinite.
7. The Authority would be governed by a Council made up of a President and six Council members, two for each mode of transport. The President would be appointed by royal decree of the Council of Ministers with the prior approval of the relevant committee of the Congress of Deputies, which could also veto the Council members. Terms would last six years with no reelection.
8. Creating the Authority would abolish the three current commissions (CIAF, CIAIM and CIAIAC), which would keep working until the new body is set up. The new Authority would be funded through the General State Budgets and a share of certain safety fees in the three transport modes.

Who it affects

• Victims of transport accidents and their relatives: They would have the right to be informed of the scope and progress of investigations, and to receive factual information before it is made public.
• Rail, maritime and air transport companies and infrastructure managers: They would have to notify accidents to the Authority and cooperate with investigations, and could receive safety recommendations.
• Air passengers and transport users: They would indirectly fund the Authority through the share of safety fees allocated to it.
• Judges and the Public Prosecutor's Office: They could request reserved information from technical investigations, after a prior notice step involving the Authority.

Words worth knowing

Autoridad Administrativa Independiente (Independent Administrative Authority)

A public body with its own legal personality that acts independently of the Government, although it relates to the Government through a ministry.

Cultura justa (just culture)

An approach under which staff are not punished for errors consistent with their experience and training, but gross negligence, intentional violations and destructive acts are not tolerated.

Recomendaciones de seguridad (safety recommendations)

Non-binding proposals from the Authority to improve safety; recipients must comply or give reasoned reasons for not doing so.

Deber de reserva (duty of confidentiality)

The obligation not to disclose confidential information obtained in an investigation, which lasts as long as the information remains reserved.

Real decreto del Consejo de Ministros (royal decree of the Council of Ministers)

A rule approved by the Government meeting as the Council of Ministers.

It summarizes the text as it was introduced. It is written by artificial intelligence and may contain mistakes: the official text is what counts. Read the official text · How we make summaries