Judgment of the Court (Third Chamber) of 14 June 2001 in Case C-473/99: Commission of the European Communities v Republic of Austria (Failure by a Member State to fulfil its obligations — Directive 95/30/EC — Protection of workers from risks related to exposure to biological agents at work — Failure to implement within the prescribed period)
Date: 2001-07-28
Institutions: Court of Justice
Subjects: Austria, European Commission, action for failure to fulfil an obligation, biotechnology, health risk, occupational safety

C 212/2

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

28.7.2001

1. Articles 2(c) and (d), final indent, and 3 of the Second Council
Directive (88/357/EEC) of 22 June 1988 on the coordination
of laws, regulations and administrative provisions relating to
direct insurance other than life assurance and laying down
provisions to facilitate the effective exercise of freedom to provide
services and amending Directive 73/239/EEC permit a Member
State to levy insurance tax on a legal person established in
another Member State in respect of premiums which that legal
person has paid to an insurer, also established in other Member
State, to cover the business risks of its subsidiary or sub-
subsidiary established in the Member State making the levy. It
makes no difference if the legal person which paid the premiums
and the legal person whose business risks are covered are two
companies in the same group linked by a relationship other
than that of parent and subsidiary company.

2.

In interpreting ‘policy-holder’ or ‘Member State in which the
risk is situated’ for the purposes of Article 2(d), final indent, of
Directive 88/357, the way in which the premium relating to
the risk insured is invoiced or paid within a group of companies
is immaterial.

(1) OJ C 204 of 17.7.1999.

JUDGMENT OF THE COURT

(Fifth Chamber)

of 14 June 2001

in Case C-345/99: Commission of the European Communi-
ties v French Republic (1)

(Failure by a Member State to fulfil its obligations —
Article 17(2) and (6) of the Sixth VAT Directive —
Deductibility of tax on the acquisition of vehicles used to
carry out taxable transactions — Limitation to vehicles used
exclusively for driving instruction)

(2001/C 212/03)

(Language of the case: French)

(Agents: K. Rispal-Bellanger and S. Seam, and, subsequently,
J.-F. Dobelle and S. Seam), supported by United Kingdom of
Great Britain and Northern Ireland (Agent: G. Amodeo, assisted
by G. Barling QC) — application for a declaration that, by
applying to vehicles used by taxable persons carrying on the
activity of driving instructors the condition that, in order for
such persons to be able to exercise their right to deduct the
value added tax charged on the initial acquisition of those
vehicles, they must be used exclusively for that activity, the
French Republic has failed to fulfil
its obligations under
Article 17(2) of the Sixth Council Directive 77/388/EEC of
17 May 1977 on the harmonisation of the laws of the Member
States relating to turnover taxes — Common system of value
added tax: uniform basis of assessment (OJ 1977 L 145, p. 1),
in the version resulting from Council Directive 95/7/EC of
10 April 1995 amending Directive 77/388 and introducing
new simplification measures with regard to value added tax —
scope of certain exemptions and practical arrangements for
implementing them (OJ 1995 L 102, p. 18) — the Court (Fifth
Chamber), composed of: A. La Pergola, President of
the
Chamber, D.A.O. Edward, P. Jann, S. von Bahr (Rapporteur)
and C.W.A. Timmermans, Judges; L.A. Geelhoed, Advocate
General; R. Grass, Registrar, has given a judgment on 14 June
2001, in which it:

1. Dismisses the application;

2. Orders the Commission of the European Communities to pay

the costs;

3. Orders the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern

Ireland to bear its own costs.

(1) OJ C 333 of 20.11.1999.

JUDGMENT OF THE COURT

(Third Chamber)

of 14 June 2001

in Case C-473/99: Commission of the European Communi-
ties v Republic of Austria (1)

(Failure by a Member State to fulfil its obligations —
Directive 95/30/EC — Protection of workers from risks
related to exposure to biological agents at work — Failure to
implement within the prescribed period)

(2001/C 212/04)

(Language of the case: German)

(Provisional translation; the definitive translation will be published
in the European Court Reports)

(Provisional translation; the definitive translation will be published
in the European Court Reports)

In Case C-345/99: Commission of the European Communities
(Agents: E. Traversa and H. Michard) v French Republic

In Case C-473/99: Commission of the European Communities
(Agent: W. Bogensberger) v Republic of Austria (Agent:

28.7.2001

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 212/3

C. Pesendorfer) — application for a declaration that, by not
adopting, within the prescribed period, all the laws, regulations
and administrative provisions necessary to comply with Com-
mission Directive 95/30/EC of 30 June 1995 adapting to
technical progress Council Directive 90/679/EEC on the
protection of workers from risks related to exposure to
biological agents at work (seventh individual Directive within
the meaning of Article 16(1) of Directive 89/391/EEC) (OJ
1995 L 155, p. 41), the Republic of Austria has failed to fulfil
its obligations under the EC Treaty — the Court (Third
Chamber), composed of: C. Gulmann, President of the Chamb-
er, J.-P. Puissochet and J.N. Cunha Rodrigues (Rapporteur),
Judges; L.A. Geelhoed, Advocate General; R. Grass, Registrar,
has given a judgment on 14 June 2001, in which it:

1. Declares that, by not adopting, within the prescribed period, all
the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to
comply with Commission Directive 95/30/EC of 30 June
1995 adapting to technical progress Council Directive
90/679/EEC on the protection of workers from risks related to
exposure to biological agents at work (seventh individual
Directive within the meaning of Article 16(1) of Directive
89/391/EEC), the Republic of Austria has failed to fulfil its
obligations under the Directive;

2. Orders the Republic of Austria to pay the costs.

(1) OJ C 63 of 4.3.2000.

JUDGMENT OF THE COURT

(Fifth Chamber)

of 14 June 2001

K. Rispal-Bellanger and S. Seam) — application for a declar-
ation that by reintroducing from 1 January 1998 a total
prohibition on the right to deduct value added tax on diesel
used as fuel for vehicles on the purchase of which no value
added tax is deductible after having, on several occasions,
introduced a partial right to deduct the French Republic has
failed to fulfil its obligations under Article 17(2) of the Sixth
Council Directive 77/388/EEC of 17 May 1977 on the
harmonisation of the laws of the Member States relating to
turnover taxes — Common system of value added tax: uniform
basis of assessment (OJ 1977 L 145, p. 1), in the version
resulting from Council Directive 95/7/EC of 10 April 1995
amending Directive 77/388 and introducing new simplifi-
cation measures with regard to value added tax — scope of
certain
for
implementing them (OJ 1995 L 102, p. 18) — the Court (Fifth
the
Chamber), composed of: A. La Pergola, President of
Chamber, D.A.O. Edward, P. Jann, S. von Bahr (Rapporteur)
and C.W.A. Timmermans, Judges; L.A. Geelhoed, Advocate
General; R. Grass, Registrar, has given a judgment on 14 June
2001, in which it:

arrangements

exemptions

practical

and

1. Declares that by reintroducing from 1 January 1998 a total
prohibition on the right to deduct value added tax on diesel
used as fuel for vehicles on the purchase of which no value
added tax is deductible, after having introduced a partial right
to deduct, the French Republic has failed to fulfil its obligations
under Article 17(2) of the Sixth Council Directive 77/388/EEC
of 17 May 1977 on the harmonisation of the laws of the
Member States relating to turnover taxes — Common system
of value added tax: uniform basis of assessment, in the version
resulting from Council Directive 95/7/EC of 10 April 1995
amending Directive 77/388 and introducing new simplification
measures with regard to value added tax — scope of certain
exemptions and practical arrangements for implementing them.

in Case C-40/00: Commission of the European Communi-
ties v French Republic (1)

2. Orders the French Republic to pay the costs.

(Failure by a Member State to fulfil its obligations —
Article 17(2) and (6) of the Sixth VAT Directive —
Reintroduction, after the date of entry into force of the
Directive, of a total abolition of the right to deduct VAT
charged on diesel used as fuel for vehicles and machines on
the purchase of which no VAT is deductible)

(1) OJ C 149 of 27.5.2000.

(2001/C 212/05)

(Language of the case: French)

(Provisional translation; the definitive translation will be published
in the European Court Reports)

In Case C-40/00: Commission of the European Communities
(Agents: E. Traversa and C. Giolito) v French Republic (Agents: