Keywords

Summary



Keywords

1. Economic and social cohesion — Structural assistance — Community financing granted for national operations — Principles — Decision reducing, suspending or cancelling assistance originally granted on account of irregularities — Irregularities having no specific financial impact — Whether permissible

(Council Regulation No 4253/88, Art. 24(2))

2. Procedure — Application initiating proceedings — Formal requirements — Statement of the subject-matter of the proceedings — Summary of the pleas in law relied upon

(Rules of Procedure of the Court, Art. 38(1)(c))

3. Economic and social cohesion — Structural assistance — Community financing granted for national operations — Commission decision reducing assistance on account of irregularities — Irregularities tolerated in respect of previous year on grounds of fairness — Infringement of the principles of legal certainty and protection of legitimate expectations — None

Summary

1. Under Article 24(2) of Regulation No 4253/88 laying down provisions for implementing Regulation No 2052/88 as regards coordination of the activities of the different Structural Funds between themselves and with the operations of the European Investment Bank and the other existing financial instruments, as amended by Regulation No 2082/93, if the examination in respect of an operation or measure for which Community assistance was granted reveals an irregularity, the Commission may reduce, suspend or cancel that assistance.

In that respect, even irregularities which do not have a specific financial impact may justify the application of financial corrections on the part of the Commission in so far as they may be seriously prejudicial to the financial interests of the Union and to compliance with Community law.

(see paras 27, 31)

2. It is clear from Article 38(1)(c) of the Rules of Procedure of the Court, and from the case-law relating to that provision, that an application must state the subject-matter of the proceedings and a summary of the pleas in law on which the application is based, and that that statement must be sufficiently clear and precise to enable the defendant to prepare its defence and the Court to rule on the application. It is therefore necessary for the basic legal and factual particulars on which a case is based to be indicated coherently and intelligibly in the application itself.

(see para. 50)

3. Where there is a Commission decision reducing Community financial assistance, the fact that the Commission did not carry out the correction of declared expenditure due in respect of a previous year, but tolerated the irregularities on grounds of fairness, does not give rise to any right on the part of the Member State concerned to demand that the same position be taken with regard to the irregularities with respect to the following financial year by virtue of the principle of legal certainty or the principle of protection of legitimate expectations.

In that regard, nor does such a decision infringe the principle of legal certainty, which requires that legal rules be clear and precise, and aims to ensure that situations and legal relationships governed by Community law remain foreseeable, since the legislation applicable at the relevant time provided that the Commission may reduce the financial assistance in the event of proven irregularity.

(see paras 68-69)