Opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee on the  Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council correcting Directive 2004/18/EC on the coordination of procedures for the award of public works contracts, public supply contracts and public service contracts (COM(2005) 214 final — 2005/0100 (COD))
Date: 2005-09-28
Institutions: European Economic and Social Committee
Subjects: award of contract, public contract, services contract, supplies contract, works contract

31.1.2006

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 24/11

Opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee on the ‘Proposal for a Directive of the
European Parliament and of the Council correcting Directive 2004/18/EC on the coordination of
procedures for the award of public works contracts, public supply contracts and public service
contracts’

(COM(2005) 214 final — 2005/0100 (COD))

(2006/C 24/02)

On 8 June 2005 the Council decided, under Article 95 of the Treaty establishing the European Com-
munity, to consult the European Economic and Social Committee on the abovementioned proposal.

The Section for the Single Market, Production and Consumption, which was responsible for preparing the
Committee's work on the subject, adopted its opinion on 27 July 2005. The rapporteur working alone was
Mr Petringa.

At its 420th plenary session, held on 28 and 29 September 2005 (meeting of 28 September 2005), the
European Economic and Social Committee adopted the following opinion by 161 votes in favour with
three abstentions.

1. Introduction

1.1
Directive 2004/18/EC of 31 March 2004 regulates and
guarantees the coordination of the procedures for the award of
public works contracts, public supply contracts and public
service contracts. This directive consolidated the previous direc-
tives on the subject, modifying their content and creating a
simplified legal framework.

1.2
In defining its scope, the directive lays down a series of
thresholds below which it does not apply; it also provides for a
specific procedure through which these thresholds can be peri-
odically realigned.

1.3
The thresholds in the directive are expressed in euro,
while those defining the international obligations of the Union
on public contracts in WTO terms are expressed in Special
Drawing Rights (SDRs). Article 78 of the Directive allows the
Commission to check and modify the thresholds if the develop-
ment of SDR/euro exchange rates makes it necessary. Even
when a revision takes place, however, the level of the thresh-
olds should remain essentially the same.

[Article 8b)], and to public supply
awarding authorities
contracts awarded by the awarding authorities non included in
Annex IV (that is to say awarding authorities other than central
government authorities).

Owing to a clerical error, Article 78 provides that
1.5
contracts subsidised to a level of more than 50 % by the
awarding authorities, mentioned in Article 8b),
shall be
realigned on a different value, which in fact reduces their level.

2. Conclusions

2.1
The present draft directive simply calls for the correction
of the clerical error. By correcting Article 78, consistency is
restored between the threshold given in Article 8, which regu-
lates the scope of the directive, and the mechanism for revising
the thresholds provided for in Article 78 itself.

The EESC can only endorse a modification which

2.2
restores consistency to the regulatory text.

1.4
The Commission had decided in particular to make no
change in the thresholds of EUR 249,000 applying to public
service contracts subsidised to a level of more than 50 % by the

2.3
The above is particularly important in view of the next
deadline for revising the thresholds under Article 78(4), namely
November 2005.

Brussels, 28 September 2005.

The President

of the European Economic and Social Committee

Anne-Marie SIGMUND