The EU's Council of Ministers adopted, on 14 September, a new directive that penalises ship-source pollution. The text amends Directive 2005/35/EC and obliges member states to impose penal sanctions for illegal discharges of polluting substances by ships, whether committed "with intent, recklessly orrnwith serious negligence". The states have until now been free to choose between penal law and administrative law in dealing with cases of ship-source pollution. In the future, they will have no choice. The 27 will be obliged to impose penal sanctions except for less serious cases that do not cause deterioration in the quality of water (although repeated offences may be regarded as a criminal offence).
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