CELEX: 62009CJ0187
Failure of a Member State to fulfil obligations
Directive 2006/40/EC
Air conditioning in motor vehicles
Incomplete transposition

By its application, the Commission of the European Communities requests the Court to declare that, by failing to adopt all
the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with Directive 2006/40/EC of the European Parliament
and of the Council of 17 May 2006 relating to emissions from air-conditioning systems in motor vehicles and amending Council
Directive 70/156/EEC (OJ 2006 L 161, p. 12), or, in any event, by failing to communicate them to the Commission, the United
Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland has failed to fulfil its obligations under that directive.
Under Article 10 of Directive 2006/40, Member States were required to adopt and publish the laws, regulations and administrative
provisions necessary to comply with that directive by 4 January 2008. They were also required, pursuant to that article, to
communicate to the Commission the text of the main provisions of national law which they adopt in the field covered by that
directive.
As it had not received any information from the United Kingdom as to the measures adopted in compliance with Directive 2006/40,
and not having any other information allowing it to conclude that the necessary provisions had been adopted, the Commission
initiated the infringement procedure.
Having given the United Kingdom formal notice to submit its observations, the Commission issued a reasoned opinion on 27 November
2008 in which it called on that Member State to take the measures necessary for compliance with that opinion within two months
of its receipt.
In its reply of 3 February 2009, the United Kingdom acknowledged that it had not fully transposed Directive 2006/40 and informed
the Commission of the measures which it contemplated adopting with a view to transposing fully that directive.
However, as the Commission had no information from which it could conclude that all of the measures necessary to transpose
Directive 2006/40 in full had been taken, it brought the present action.
The United Kingdom accepts that the action brought by the Commission is well founded. It submits, however, that Directive
2006/40 was partially transposed and that most of the difficulties encountered during the transposition of the remaining measures
have been resolved. In that connection, it has provided the Commission with a schedule for implementation of Directive 2006/40.
It must, however, be recalled that, according to settled case-law, the question whether a Member State has failed to fulfil
its obligations must be determined by reference to the situation obtaining in the Member State at the end of the period laid
down in the reasoned opinion, and the Court cannot take account of any subsequent changes (see, inter alia, Case C‑111/00
Commission
v
Austria
[2001] ECR I‑7555, paragraph 13, and Case C‑135/05
Commission
v
Italy
[2007] ECR I‑3475, paragraph 36).
In the present case, it is common ground that the measures necessary to ensure full transposition of Directive 2006/40 had
not been adopted when the period laid down in the reasoned opinion expired.
In those circumstances, the action brought by the Commission is well founded.
In the light of the foregoing, by failing to adopt all the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply
with Directive 2006/40, the United Kingdom has failed to fulfil its obligations under that directive.

Costs
Under Article 69(2) of the Rules of Procedure, the unsuccessful party is to be ordered to pay the costs if they have been
applied for in the successful party’s pleadings. As the Commission has applied for costs to be awarded against the United
Kingdom, and the latter has been unsuccessful, the United Kingdom must be ordered to pay the costs.
On those grounds, the Court (Fifth Chamber) hereby:
1.
Declares that, by failing to adopt all the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with Directive
2006/40/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 May 2006 relating to emissions from air-conditioning systems
in motor vehicles and amending Council Directive 70/156/EEC, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland has
failed to fulfil its obligations under that directive;
2.
Orders the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland to pay the costs.
[Signatures]
*
Language of the case: English.