WRITTEN QUESTION E-0324/99

by Ernesto Caccavale (UPE) to the Commission

(23 February 1999)

Subject: Unlawful direct award of bookmaking licences in Italy

In Italy, the award of bookmaking licences is governed by Decree of the President of the Republic No 169 of 8 April 1998 which provides that the Ministry of Finance, in agreement with the Ministry of Agriculture, shall grant such licences to natural or legal persons by means of an invitation to tender in accordance with Community legislation. It provides in addition that those ministries shall publish by 31 December of each year a plan of the licences which will be put up for tender the following year. Article 25 of that decree expressly extends until 31.12.1998 the licences which were currently awarded to the UNIRE (Unione Nazionale per l'Incremento delle Razze Equine - National Union for the Promotion of Horse Breeding) to run betting-shops and which were valid on the date of the entry into force of the Regulation and prolongs the extension to 31.12.1999 if it should prove impossible to publish that invitation to tender by 31.12.1998. The Ministry of Finance has not yet taken steps to have the planned licences published and has not yet put out the corresponding invitation to tender according to Community legislation thereby perpetuating the "extension". At present, therefore by virtue of a law giving it exclusive bookmaking rights, the UNIRE holds a dominating position on the national market in addition to being a public body whose aim is to support horse-breeding undertakings.

Can the Commission therefore say whether:

- the award in question is the award of a service contract, thus falling within the scope of Directive 92/50/EEC(1), or whether it is service concession which comes within the scope of the general provisions of the EEC Treaty?

- it believes that the temporary award, in the absence of a European invitation to tender, results in favouring the existing monopolistic groups on the betting market in breach of the European rules on free competition?

- it intends to take steps to ensure that a precise date is fixed for the publication of Community invitations to tender for the opening of new betting shops on the basis of the Community competition rules and with equal conditions for the economic operators in this sector?

Answer given by Mr Monti on behalf of the Commission

(19 April 1999)

On the basis of the information provided by the Honourable Member, the Commission is unable to establish whether the award of bookmaking licences under the Italian law in question should be regarded as the award of service contracts or as a service concession within the meaning of Community law, and therefore whether the provisions of Directive 92/50/EEC or the general principles of the EC Treaty are applicable in this case. This distinction depends on a number of factors, in particular the type of remuneration the managing companies receive and the extent of the risk they assume.

The Commission therefore feels that it would be useful to ask the Italian authorities to provide this information, and will accordingly send them a letter on this matter as soon as possible. Should the Commission find that there has been an infringement of Community law, it will assess whether infringement proceedings should be initiated under Article 169 of the EC Treaty.

In any event, the Commission can already answer the second question asked by the Honourable Member. Even if it were the case that an organisation such as the UNIRE (Unione Nazionale per l'Incremento delle Razze Equine - National Union for the Promotion of Horse Breeding) were temporarily the only beneficiary of a concession, this on its own would not constitute a breach of Community competition rules.

(1) OJ L 209, 24.7.1992, p. 1.