WRITTEN QUESTION E-1609/02

by Erik Meijer (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(5 June 2002)

Subject: Agreement between national governments on acceptance of unlawful State aid to businesses which consume oil products whose price is rising

1. Is the Commission still basing its policy on its green paper Towards a European strategy for the security of energy supply of 29 November 2000, in which it expressed the view that attempts to offset rises in oil prices by lowering taxation should be discouraged, and does it still believe that fiscal instruments must be used in a manner compatible with the economic policy guidelines and the commitments given on budgetary consolidation?

2. Does the Commission still aim to bring about a situation in which freight transport charges take account of the greenhouse effect, and will it introduce a harmonised Community excise duty on diesel for professional use which exceeds the current average rate of excise on diesel, as it stated its intention of doing in answer to my questionNoE-2595/01(1) of 11 September 2001?

3. Can the Commission confirm that it decided on 14 May 2002 not to appeal to the Court of Justice of the European Communities against the cuts in diesel excise implemented in Italy, France and the Netherlands in 2001, although it initially regarded this attempt to compensate road haulage firms for rises in the price of oil products as unlawful State aid?

4. Are the national support measures of September 2000 continuing to have an impact, and which of these measures will remain in force beyond the end of 2002?

5. If the appropriate ministers of the Member States unanimously adopt a decision pursuant to Article 88 of the Treaty each, for different reasons, fearing that their country may be found guilty of providing unlawful State aid (in the form not only of tax cuts but also of lower insurance contributions, as in Belgium) is it then impossible for the Commission to appeal to the Court of Justice?

6. On what grounds did the Commission decide not to appeal?

7. What precedent does this case set for future State aid by Member States, should they continue, or once again decide, to assist businesses based within their territory at the expense of their tax revenue? Will such aid in practice be permitted from now on if all fifteen agree to mutually protect their various national measures?

Sources: Algemeen Dagblad & De Standaard, 15 May 2002

(1) OJ C 147 E, 20.6.2002, p. 30.

Answer given by Mrs de Palacio on behalf of the Commission

(23 July 2002)

1. The Commission is basing its energy and transport policy on its Green Paper Towards a European strategy for the security of energy supply of 29 November 2000(1), and on its White Paper European transport policy for 2010: time to decide of 12 September 2001(2).

2. The Commission is working on a methodology on infrastructure tariffs, facilitating a more accurate tarification procedure. Therein it intends to propose common rules concerning freight transport charges to cover the costs of using the infrastructure. The costs corresponding to the greenhouse effect and carbon-dioxide (CO2) emission, however, seem to be better taken into account by the fuel excise duties rather than by direct, distance-related charges. Furthermore, the Commission intends to present

a proposal for a Council Directive, which will aim at creating a fiscal framework for diesel, used as motor fuel for professional purposes and approximating excise duties on petrol and diesel. The main line of this proposal is announced in the White Paper on Common Transport Policy(3).

3. The Commission confirms that it did not propose the referral to the Court of Justice of the files in question.

4. The Council on 12 March 2001, acting on a proposal by the Commission, authorised France, Italy and the Netherlands to apply until 31 December 2002 differentiated levels of excise duties on diesel used by commercial vehicles. This Council Decision was without prejudice to Articles 87 and 88 of the EC Treaty (recital 5), which the Commission later applied in its decision to open formal State aid investigations concerning the same measures. Beyond 2002, the Commission does not possess any information as to the continuation of these measures. The Commission understood from the Dutch notification that this measure will terminate by 1 October 2002.

5. The Commission will continue assessing State aid measures on its own merit and will decide or not if a referral of the file to the Court of Justice is considered appropriate.

6. The Commission, taking into account the political and legal analysis of the situation, decided not to refer the files to the Court of Justice.

7. The Commission will continue to examine State aid measures on a case by case basis and assess if measures can be considered compatible with the EC Treaty or not. The procedure foreseen in the third subparagraph of Article 88(2) of the EC Treaty is an exceptional means, the Council may revert to at the request of a Member State in case of exceptional circumstances.

(1) COM(2000) 769 final.

(2) COM(2001) 370 final.

(3) COM(2001) 370 final.