Judgment of the Court of 9 September 2003 in Case C-285/01 (Reference for a preliminary ruling from the Cour administrative d'appel de Douai): Isabel Burbaud v Ministère de l'Emploi et de la Solidarité (Recognition of diplomas — Hospital managers in the public service — Directive 89/48/EEC — Definition of "diploma" — Entrance examination — Article 48 of the EC Treaty (now, after amendment, Article 39 EC))
Date: 2003-11-01
Institutions: Court of Justice
Subjects: higher education, interpretation of the law, medical training, recognition of diplomas, vocational training

1.11.2003

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 264/11

for a preliminary ruling in the proceedings pending before that
court between Monsanto Agricoltura Italia SpA and Others
and Presidenza del Consiglio dei Ministri and Others, on
the interpretation and validity of the first subparagraph of
Article 3(4) and the first paragraph of Article 5 of Regulation
(EC) No 258/97 of the European Parliament and of the Council
of 27 January 1997 concerning novel foods and novel food
ingredients (OJ 1997 L 43, p. 1), and on the interpretation of
Article 12 thereof, the Court, composed of: G.C. Rodríguez
Iglesias, President, J.-P. Puissochet and C.W.A. Timmermans
(Rapporteur)
(Presidents of Chambers), C. Gulmann,
D.A.O. Edward, A. La Pergola, P. Jann, V. Skouris, S. von Bahr,
J.N. Cunha Rodrigues and A. Rosas, Judges; S. Alber, Advocate
General; L. Hewlett, Principal Administrator, for the Registrar,
has given a judgment on 9 September 2003, in which it has
ruled:

1.

2.

foods and novel

The first subparagraph of Article 3(4) of Regulation (EC)
No 258/97 of the European Parliament and of the Council of
27 January 1997 concerning novel
food
ingredients must be interpreted as meaning that the mere
presence in novel foods of residues of transgenic protein at
certain levels does not preclude those foods from being considered
substantially equivalent to existing foods and, consequently, use
of the simplified procedure for placing those foods on the
market. However, that is not the case where the existence of a
risk of potentially dangerous effects on human health can be
identified on the basis of the scientific knowledge available at
the time of the initial assessment. It is for the national court to
determine whether that condition is satisfied.

In principle, the issue of the validity of the use of the simplified
procedure laid down in Article 5 of Regulation No 258/97 for
the placing of novel foods on the market does not affect the
power of the Member States to adopt measures falling under
Article 12 of the Regulation, such as the Decree of 4 August
2000 at issue in the main proceedings. Since the simplified
procedure does not
imply any consent, even tacit, by the
Commission, a Member State is not required to challenge the
lawfulness of such a consent before adopting such measures.
Nevertheless, those measures can be adopted only if the Member
State has first carried out a risk assessment which is as complete
as possible given the particular circumstances of the individual
the
case,
precautionary principle, the implementation of such measures is
necessary in order to ensure that novel foods do not present a
danger for the consumer, in accordance with the first indent of
Article 3(1) of Regulation No 258/97.

from which it is apparent that,

in the light of

3.

Consideration of the fourth question has disclosed no factor
such as to affect the validity of Article 5 of Regulation No 258/
97 as regards, inter alia, the condition for application of that

provision relating to substantial equivalence within the meaning
of the first subparagraph of Article 3(4) of the Regulation.

(1) OJ C 259 of 15.9.2001.

JUDGMENT OF THE COURT

of 9 September 2003

in Case C-285/01 (Reference for a preliminary ruling from
the Cour administrative d’appel de Douai): Isabel Burbaud
v Ministère de l’Emploi et de la Solidarité (1)

(Recognition of diplomas — Hospital managers in the public
service — Directive 89/48/EEC — Definition of ‘diploma’
— Entrance examination — Article 48 of the EC Treaty
(now, after amendment, Article 39 EC))

(2003/C 264/18)

(Language of the case: French)

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

In Case C-285/01: Reference to the Court under Article 234
EC by the Cour administrative d’appel de Douai (France) for a
preliminary ruling in the proceedings pending before that
court between Isabel Burbaud and Ministère de l’Emploi et de
la Solidarité, on the interpretation of Article 48 of the EC
Treaty (now, after amendment, Article 39 EC) and of Council
Directive 89/48/EEC of 21 December 1988 on a general
system for the recognition of higher-education diplomas
awarded on completion of professional education and training
of at least three years’ duration (OJ 1989 L 19, p. 16), the
Court, composed of: G.C. Rodríguez Iglesias, President,
J.-P. Puissochet, M. Wathelet, R. Schintgen and C.W.A. Timm-
ermans (Rapporteur) (Presidents of Chambers), C. Gulmann,
D.A.O. Edward, A. La Pergola, P. Jann, V. Skouris, F. Macken,
N. Colneric, S. von Bahr, J.N. Cunha Rodrigues and A. Rosas,
Judges; C. Stix-Hackl, Advocate General; L. Hewlett, Principal
Administrator, for the Registrar, subsequently H. von Holstein,
Deputy Registrar, has given a judgment on 9 September 2003,
in which it has ruled:

1.

Confirmation of passing the final examination of the École
nationale de la santé publique, which leads to permanent
appointment to the French hospital public service, must be
regarded as a ‘diploma’ within the meaning of Council Directive
89/48/EEC of 21 December 1988 on a general system for
the recognition of higher-education diplomas awarded on
completion of professional education and training of at least
three years’ duration. It is for the national court to determine,
for the purposes of applying point (a) of the first paragraph of

C 264/12

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

1.11.2003

Article 3 of that directive, whether a qualification obtained in
another Member State by a national of a Member State wishing
to pursue a regulated profession in the host Member State can
be regarded as a diploma within the meaning of that provision
and, if so, to determine the extent to which the training courses
whose successful completion leads to the award of
those
diplomas are similar with regard to both their duration and the
matters covered. If it is apparent from that court’s examination
that both qualifications constitute diplomas within the meaning
of that directive and that those diplomas are awarded on the
completion of equivalent education or training, the directive
precludes the authorities of the host Member State from making
access by that national of a Member State to the profession of
manager in the hospital public service subject to the condition
that he complete the training given by the École nationale de la
santé publique and pass the final examination at the end of
that training.

2. Where a national of a Member State holds a diploma obtained
in one Member State which is equivalent to the diploma
to take up
required in another Member State in order
employment in the hospital public service, Community law
precludes the authorities of the second Member State from
making that national’s access to the employment in question
subject to his passing a competition such as the entrance
examination of the École nationale de la santé publique.

(1) OJ C 275 of 29.9.2001.

for a preliminary ruling in the proceedings pending before that
court between Albacom SpA (C-292/01),
Infostrada SpA
(C-293/01) and Ministero del Tesoro, del Bilancio e della
Programmazione Economica, Ministero delle Comunicazioni,
on the interpretation of Directive 97/13/EC of the European
Parliament and of the Council of 10 April 1997 on a common
framework for general authorisations and individual licences
in the field of telecommunications services (OJ 1997 L 117,
p. 15), the Court (Fifth Chamber), composed of: M. Wathelet,
President of the Chamber, C.W.A. Timmermans, A. La Pergola,
P. Jann and S. von Bahr (Rapporteur), Judges; D. Ruiz-Jarabo
Colomer, Advocate General; R. Grass, Registrar, has given a
judgment on 18 September 2003, in which it has ruled:

Directive 97/13/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council
of 10 April 1997 on a common framework for general authorisations
and individual
licences in the field of telecommunications services
and, in particular, Article 11 thereof, prohibit Member States from
imposing financial charges other than and in addition to those
allowed by the directive, such as the contested charge in the main
proceedings, on undertakings which hold individual licences in the
telecommunications sector solely because they hold such licences.

(1) OJ C 275 of 29.9.2001 and OJ C 289 of 13.10.2001.

JUDGMENT OF THE COURT

JUDGMENT OF THE COURT

(First Chamber)

(Fifth Chamber)

of 18 September 2003

In Joined Cases C-292/01 and C-293/01 (Reference for a
preliminary ruling from the Consiglio di Stato): Albacom
SpA (C-292/01), Infostrada SpA (C-293/01) v Ministero
del Tesoro, del Bilancio e della Programmazione Econ-
omica, Ministero delle Comunicazioni (1)

(Telecommunications services — General authorisations and
licences — Directive 97/13/EC — Fees and
individual

charges for individual licences)

of 11 September 2003

in Case C-331/01: Kingdom of Spain v Commission of the
European Communities (1)

(EAGGF — Clearance of accounts — Additional payments
granted to producers of bovine animals in 1996 — Time-
limits for notification of results of checks)

(2003/C 264/20)

(Language of the case: Spanish)

(2003/C 264/19)

(Language of the case: Italian)

(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 Joined Cases C-292/01 and C-293/01: Reference to the
Court under Article 234 EC by the Consiglio di Stato (Italy)

In Case C-331/01, Kingdom of Spain (Agent:
initially by
M. López-Monís Gallego and subsequently by L. Fraguas
Gadea) v Commission of the European Communities (Agent:
S. Pardo Quintillán): Application for the annulment of Com-
mission Decision 2001/557/EC of 11 July 2001 excluding
from Community financing certain expenditure incurred by