REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION 27th ANNUAL REPORT ON MONITORING THE APPLICATION OF EU LAW (2009)
Date: 2010-10-01
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU control, EU legal system, European Union, application of EU law

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EUROPEAN COMMISSION 

Brussels, 1.10.2010 
COM(2010) 538 final 

REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION 

27th ANNUAL REPORT ON MONITORING THE APPLICATION OF EU LAW 
(2009) 

SEC(2010) 1143 
 SEC(2010) 1144 

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REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION 

27th ANNUAL REPORT ON MONITORING THE APPLICATION OF EU LAW 
(2009) 

1. 

INTRODUCTION 

In 2007 the Commission Communication on 'A Europe of results'1 stated that the Commission 
would develop the focus of its annual report on strategic issues, evaluation of the current state 
of the law, priorities and programming of future work.  

This report will follow a structure similar to last year's, modified  to accommodate the main 
issues relevant to 2009. 

2. 

GENERAL INFORMATION 

2.1. 

Introduction 

The  Treaty  on  European  Union  (TEU)  and  the  Treaty  on  the  functioning  of  the  European 
Union  (TFEU)  entered  into  force  on  1  December  2009.  These  treaties  modify  some 
competences  of  the  EU  and  add  some  monitoring  and  enforcement  functions  for  the 
Commission  while  maintaining  some  of  the  general  rules.  Article  4  TEU  maintains  the 
primary obligation of Member States to ensure the correct application of EU law (ex-Art. 10 
of  the  Treaty  establishing  the  European  Community  (TEC)).  Article  17  TEU  maintains  the 
responsibility  of  the  Commission  to  ensure  the  application  of  EU  law  (ex-Art.  211  TEC). 
Articles 258 and 260 TFEU concern the authority of the Commission to bring infringement 
proceedings (ex-Art. 226 and 228 ECT). Article 260 TFEU contains two new elements:  

•  the  Commission  may  ask  the  Court  of  Justice  of  the  European  Union  (ECJ)  to 
impose financial sanctions on a Member State for late transposition of a directive 
adopted  under  a  legislative  procedure  when  bringing  a  case  before  the  Court  of 
Justice under Article 258 TFEU; and  

•  the Commission has only to give the Member State the opportunity to make any 
observations  before  making  a  second  referral  to  the  ECJ  under  Article  260.2 
TFEU, following a first ruling under Article 258 TFEU.  

The Commission plans to adopt a communication updating its approach to the application of 
these provisions.  

At  the  end  of  20092,  EU  law  comprised,  apart  from  the  rules  of  the  Treaty,  some  6140 
regulations and just under 1820 directives in force throughout the 27 Member States. 

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COM(2007)502. 

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2.2. 

General statistics on complaints and infringement procedures 

The infringement process plays an essential role in guaranteeing the correct application of the 
law. At the end of 2009, around 77 % of complaints were closed before the first formal step in 
an  infringement  proceeding;  around  a  further  12  %  of  the  total  were  closed  before  the 
reasoned opinion and around a further 7 % before a ruling from the ECJ.  

At the end of 2009, the Commission was handling around 2900 complaints and infringement 
files.  The  total  number  decreased  by  16  %  from  end-2008,  with  a  26  %  decrease  in 
proceedings  for  failure  to  notify  measures  transposing  directives.  Complaints  accounted  for 
54 % of the total or 63 % of all cases on issues other than late transposition of directives, a 15 
% decrease from 2008. The number of own initiative cases under examination at the end of 
2009 decreased by 11 % compared to 2008. 

An  average  of  51  %  of  the  total  of  required  transposition  measures  in  2009  were  late, 
compared with 55 % for 2008, in the context of a reduced number of directives falling to be 
transposed in 2009. 

Comparing infringement registration years 1999-2003 with 1999-2008, the average time taken 
to  process  infringements,  from  opening  the  file  to  sending  the  application  to  the  ECJ  under 
Article 258 TFEU, fell from around 27 to 24 months. The average time taken to process cases 
concerning failure to notify Member State measures transposing directives  remained around 
15  months.  In  2009,  2  second  referrals  were  made  to  the  Court  under  ex-Article  228  ECT 
(now Article 260 TFEU), compared with no cases in 2008. 

The Commission notes that the volume of registered complaints and infringement proceedings 
is being affected by changes in its working methods being tested.3 As these changes will take 
some time to take full effect, it is too early to draw conclusions. 

2.3. 

Petitions 

The  number  of  petitions  to  the  European  Parliament  raising  issues  concerning  the  correct 
application  of  EU  law  depends  on  decisions  by  citizens,  businesses  and  civil  society  to 
manifest their concerns in this way. Even if most petitions do not concern infringements, they 
provide Parliament and Commission with useful information on citizens' concerns. 

Environmental  protection  and  the  internal  market  continue  to  stimulate  most  petitions:  173 
and  82  new  petitions  respectively.  In  environmental  protection,  impact  assessment  (52), 
nature  (50),  waste  water  (26),  water  quality  management  and  resource  protection  (17),  air 
quality and noise (13) as well as industrial emissions (6), accounted for most volume. In the 
internal  market,  recognition  of  professional  qualifications  (28),  services  (19),  company  law 
(10), public procurement (8) and financial institutions (17) figured highly. Fundamental rights 
(43),  free  movement  of  persons  (36),  citizenship  and  electoral  rights  (12)  in  the  field  of 
justice, freedom and security; road safety, including recognition of driving licenses and road 

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All references are to 2009 except where otherwise indicated. 
See further below,section 3.4 

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traffic laws (30); co-financing of projects under regional policy (18); and information society 
(9) also featured prominently. 

Among the many and varied matters covered by petitions, particular mention may be made of 
the petitions drawing attention to the waste situation in Campania in Italy and a wider range 
of waste management issues, particularly in Greece and Spain. In the internal market, many 
petitions  identified  sometimes  complex  aspects  of  individual  situations  of  recognition  of 
professional  qualifications.  Restrictions  on  the  activities  of  pharmacies  and  gambling  and 
sports  betting  were  also  targeted  in  the  area  of  services  generally,  while  credit  institutions, 
securities,  free  movement  of  capital  and  payments  issues  attracted  attention  in  the  financial 
services area. Numerous petitions concerned the infringement proceeding currently before the 
Court of Justice concerning the urban law in Valencia.4 

3. 

CURRENT 
ENFORCEMENT 

ISSUES 

IN 

IMPLEMENTATION,  MANAGEMENT  AND 

3.1. 

Late transposition and reporting and preventive action 

a) 

Late transposition 

Despite  recent  improvement  of  the  overall  transposition  deficit,  the  number  of  infringement 
cases opened for late transposition of directives continued as a major concern. High volumes 
were evident for: medical devices (22 new cases), working conditions in inter-operable cross-
border railways (17), amended rules on deposit guarantee schemes (17) and the groundwater 
directive  (17),  for  example.  Late  transposition  was  also  widespread  in  the  area  of  technical 
updating of directives in the area of enterprise. 24 Member States received letters of formal 
notice for late or inadequate communication of reports in the priority area of greenhouse gas 
emissions. 

Sometimes the delay was prolonged: judgments of the ECJ were delivered in seven cases on 
the 2005 directive on the recognition of professional qualifications, these transpositions being 
over  two  years  late.  In  the  field  of  company  law,  corporate  governance  and  anti-money 
laundering, around 140 infringement proceedings for late transposition had to be managed of 
which  11  reached  the  stage  of  an  ECJ  ruling.  Four  cases  reached  ECJ  rulings  on  Directive 
2004/83  on  the  refugee  status  of  third  country  nationals  or  stateless  persons.  In  the  area  of 
civil justice, Greece was referred to the ECJ a second time with a request for the imposition of 
financial sanctions for being over three years late with the transposition of Directive 2004/80 
on compensation to crime victims.  

Conclusion:  Late  transposition  and  late  reporting  continue  to  constitute  a  widespread, 
systematic problem, affecting both technical updating of measures important to EU industry, 
priority  EU  policies  and  measures  of  interest  to  individual  citizens.  Although  some 
improvement has been registered this year over last, extensive and constant delay continue to 
undermine the attainment of EU objectives. 

b) 

Preventive measures 

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Case C-306/08, Commission v. Spain. 

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Contact  networks  for  directive  transposition  and  web-based  question-and-answer  tools  have 
continued  to  be  created.  A  good  example  is  the  web  tool  created  for  the  payment  services 
Directive 2007/64, later extended to the e-money Directive 2009/110. It contains information 
on the directive itself and on the progress of transposition, including use of options. Likewise 
a public database including texts of national laws, European and national case-law has been 
created in the field of unfair commercial practices. 

Expert  groups  played  important  roles  on  the  transposition  and  implementation  of  EU 
legislation  including  significant  developments  in  areas  such  as:  temporary  agency  work, 
European Works Councils and air  safety. Interpretative  guidelines and aides to stakeholders 
have been established in such areas as: managing vibrations and noise at work, remedies in 
public procurement and inspection of tissue and cell procurement. Guidelines have been made 
available for the marketing of plant protection products (47 in total) and bathing water quality. 

The  Payment  Services  Directive  Transposition  Group  met  ten  times  since  January  2008, 
including  participation  of  payment  market  and  consumer  representatives,  collecting  around 
300  questions,  providing  written  observations  contributing  to  a  common  understanding. 
Meetings  of  the  contact  group  continue  to  be  held  to  examine  how  the  requirements  of  the 
directive  on  returning  illegal  third  country  nationals  can  be  met,  including  workshops  to 
which international organisations and NGOs were invited. 

Important  preventive  work  continued  under  directive  98/34  with  advice  and  guidance 
provided  by  the  Commission  and  Member  States  on  over  700  national  draft  technical 
regulations  concerning  products  not  subject  to  EU  harmonisation  and  information  society 
services. The Committee on Standards and Technical Regulations met three times to discuss 
the  functioning  of  the  directive  and  a  new  working  group  was  set  up  to  consider  possible 
developments. 

The  implementation  and  application  of  the  Services  directive  has  been  the  subject  of  20 
bilateral meetings with Member States and 9 expert group meetings.  

A new Body of European regulators (BEREC) has been created by Regulation 1211/2009 to 
inter  alia  ensure  the  further  development  of  consistent  regulatory  practice  in  electronic 
communications. An Agency for Cooperation of Energy Regulators (ACER) has been created 
by Regulation 713/2009 to ensure an integrated framework for the uniform application of the 
internal market in electricity and gas. 

Following  the  entry  into  force  of  the  TEU,  the  area  of  police  and  judicial  cooperation  in 
criminal  matters  is  governed,  subject  to  a  transitional  period,  by  the  same  procedures  and 
rules  as  the  rest  of  EU  legislation.  An  array  of  measures  has  been  designed  to  improve  the 
implementation of the acquis, including: the organisation of regional workshops with national 
legislators  and  practitioners;  streamlined  contacts  and  bilateral  meetings  with  national 
administrators; publication of handbooks; support for stakeholder networks and involvement 
of Commission services in national training of judicial professions.  

The Commission has also reviewed the overall range of preventive measures being used with 
Member States in the expert group on the implementation and application of EU law to ensure 
transparency and identify useful developments. 

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Conclusion:  The  Commission  invites  Member  States  actively  to  participate  in  the 
identification  and  take-up  of  preventive  measures  for  each  new  legislative  measure  thereby 
reducing the need for recourse to longer term judicial interpretation or legislative revision.  

3.2. 

Correlation  tables  and  the  evaluation  of  the  conformity  of  Member  State 
legislation with the requirements of EU directives 

Correlation  tables  constitute  one  of  the  main  elements  of  preventive  action  by  listing  the 
provisions  of  Member  State  regulations  that  transpose  the  obligations  of  directives  into  the 
national  legal  system.  They  assist  initially  in  ensuring  the  conformity  of  draft  transposition 
measures. Later on they assist in ensuring that the transposition process is fully and correctly 
completed and they also help business and consumers to see how EU law has been transposed 
nationally.  They  facilitate  cooperation  between  Member  States  and  the  Commission  when 
reviewing  transposition,  allowing  early  identification  of  issues  and  dialogue.  They  also 
contribute to legal transparency and access to the law, pointing to the legal provisions relevant 
to  different  citizens'  and  business  interests.  They  can  make  an  important  contribution  to  the 
work being done in the Council of the European Union to connect EU with national databases 
containing legislative texts. 

The  Commission  will  continue  to  support  the  need  for  correlation  tables  in  discussion  with 
Member States and the other Institutions. 

Conclusions:  Correlation  tables  contribute  to  transparency  and  improve  access  to  the  law. 
They  represent  an  important  element  of  Member  State  cooperation  with  the  Commission  in 
ensuring  the  correct  implementation  of  directives.  The  Commission  will  continue  to  seek 
support from all EU institutions for the comprehensive provision of these tables.  

3.3.  Management of Treaty articles and EU legislation by expert groups 

The Commission has continued to develop the work of managing EU law with Member States 
through expert groups.  

The Type-Approval Authorities Expert Group (TAAEG) has been created to ensure uniform 
application of technical requirements for the marketing of motor vehicles in connection with 
the  system  becoming  mandatory  in  2012.  The  Group  of  Coordinators  adopted  the  Code  of 
Conduct  on  national  administrative  practices  under  the  Directive  on  the  recognition  of 
professional qualifications (2005/36) clarifying what the directive requires and best practice in 
its  application.  In  the  area  of  permitted  health  and  nutrition  claims  in  food  labelling 
(Regulation 1924/2006), meetings with Member States have been held on a monthly basis to 
manage some 44,000 Member State claims. 

Following  the  Metock  judgment5,  guidelines  were  discussed  in  the  expert  group  on  the 
application of Directive 2004/38 before the launch of a programme of bilateral meetings with 
all  Member  States  on  the  transposition  of  EU  rules  on  free  movement  of  citizens  and  their 
family members. 

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C-127/08 of 25 July 2008, Blaise Baheten, Metock and Others v. Minister for Justice, Equality and Law 
Reform. 

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In  January  2009,  the  EU  reacted  effectively  to  the  major  gas  crisis  involving  significant 
interruptions  of  supply.  Security  of  supply  was  effectively  safeguarded  through  a  common 
response,  building  on  the  work  of  the  Gas  Coordination  Group  established  by  Council 
Directive  2004/67/EC,  confirming  that  an  EU  approach  can  cater  for  the  specificities  of  all 
Member States and common action is the most effective. 

In  financial  services,  the  Capital  Requirements  Directive  Transposition  Group  continued  to 
work  on  interpretation  and  clarification  issues,  to  ensure  coherent  implementation  of  the 
existing rules. It assisted the Commission in the preparation of two implementing directives 
and  the  Commission  proposal  on  the  prudential  treatment  of  re-securitization  operations. 
These  measures  responded  to  the  financial  crisis  by  reinforcing  rules  on  liquidity,  large 
exposures  and  the  quality  of  capital,  while  ensuring  the  necessary  emergency  action  to 
maintain confidence in Deposit Guarantee Schemes.  

A new expert group on the management of Natura 2000 has also been established to collect 
and  exchange  information  on  best  practice  including  reconciling  nature  conservation  and 
economic development. 

Conclusions:  These  examples  confirm  the  great  variety  and  volume  of  management  work 
required between Commission and Member States to maximise the benefits of EU legislation.  

3.4. 

Information-provision  and  problem-solving  for  citizens,  business  and  civil 
society interests and complaints registration and management  

Citizens need to know where to find the kind of information they seek. The Commission has 
developed  a  number  of  services.  Citizens  need  to  be  able  to  find  the  right  service  for  their 
needs. The Commission is continuing to improve access, information and help on rights and 
opportunities through further development of the 'Your Europe' web portal.6 

The  complaints  procedure  constitutes  a  specific  source  of  information  for  the  Commission 
and a process by which citizens and business can express concerns on the correct application 
of  EU  law.  Up  to  October  2009  the  Commission  operated  a  system7  under  which  an  initial 
evaluation was made of in-coming correspondence to decide whether sufficient indications of 
a potential infringement were present to warrant registration as a complaint. This resulted in 
some correspondence not getting registered as complaints. 

This  gave  rise  to  concerns  among  correspondents,  in  Parliament  and  with  the  European 
Ombudsman. Since October 2009 the Commission has been testing a new method by which 
all  correspondence  on  the  application  of  EU  law  obtains  a  specific  registration  and  all 
correspondence  containing  clear  indications  that  it  is  intended  to  be  a  complaint  about  the 
application  of  EU  law  is  registered  as  a  complaint,  thereby  providing  a  more  direct  and 
positive  response  to  citizens.  This  method  is  beginning  to  produce  the  expected  significant 
increase  in  the  volume  of  registered  complaints,  whatever  their  content.  A  full  year  of 

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http://ec.europa.eu/youreurope/ 
described in its 2002 'Communication on relations with the complainant in respect of infringements of 
Community law' - COM(2002) 141 

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operation of this new method should provide a sufficient basis for the Commission to consider 
consolidating a number of improvements in a re-cast of its 2002 communication. 

During 2009 SOLVIT managed a further 50% increase in the volume of files beyond the 22% 
increase the previous year, while maintaining a constantly high 86% rate of success. Rights of 
residence,  social  security,  professional  qualifications  and  the  freedom  to  provide  services 
figured  highly  among  the  issues  raised.  SOLVIT  has  continued  to  increase  its  value  and 
efficiency,  offering  assistance  and  solutions  to  citizens  and  business  while  also  playing  an 
important role in the identification of structural impediments to free movement. 

The first EU Pilot Evaluation Report was adopted in March 2010.8 In view of the success of 
the project, the Commission has proposed the extension of EU Pilot to all Member States and 
its general use in the search for early resolution of potential infringements of EU law. 

Close cooperation between the Commission and Member States at all levels of government is 
also  crucial  to  improve  correct  application  of  EU  law  by  Member  States  and  decrease  the 
volume  of  complaints.  It  is  necessary  to  improve  dissemination  of  knowledge  of  EU 
legislation  among  legal  professionals,  step  up  training  on  EU-related  issues  and  make 
information accessible to all involved in the implementation of EU law, for instance through 
the European e-Justice Portal. 

Conclusions:  The  Commission  plans  a  review  of  its  general  policy  on  the  registration  of 
complaints and relations with complainants in the light of experience of the new methods now 
being tested. Horizontal instruments, such as SOLVIT and EU Pilot, continue to develop and 
prove  their  worth,  quickly  resolving  problems  faced  by  citizens  and  enterprises.  EU  Pilot 
provides  a  very  effective  complement  to  the  range  of  means  dedicated  to  ensuring  the 
application of EU Law, allowing for the early resolution of infringements without recourse to 
formal  proceedings  or  preparing  the  ground  for  such  proceedings  where  necessary.  The 
Commission  acknowledges  the  high  level  of  commitment  shown  by  the  Member  States  to 
ensure  the  success  of  these  instruments.  It  commits  itself  to  continue  to  work  closely  to 
develop  this  partnership,  having  invited  all  Member  States  to  participate  in  the  further 
development of EU Pilot. 

3.5. 

Enforcement issues 

The  REACH  regulation  (1907/2006)  is  due  to  be  enforced  primarily  through  a  system  of 
official  controls  and  other  actions  at  Member  State  level  still  being  developed  as  the  main 
REACH obligations are phased-in. The enforcement of obligations to restrict the marketing of 
certain  chemicals  became  operational  in  the  second  half  of  2009.  The  results  of  a  study  on 
national penalties are due for discussion with Member States in 2010 with a view to ensuring 
consistency.  

In 2009 the Commission produced a report on the first two years of application of Regulation 
2006/2004  on  consumer  protection  cooperation  and  adopted  a  Communication  on  the 
'Enforcement of the Consumer Acquis' setting out five areas for further work.9  

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The Commission also revised and strengthened the guidelines on the EU Rapid Information 
System  for  dangerous  consumer  products  (RAPEX)  under  Directive  2001/95.  A  framework 
was  also  established  to  measure  the  effectiveness  of  enforcement  at  national  level.  The 
Commission  is  also  preparing  a  regulation  to  be  adopted  under  Regulation  216/2008  on 
common rules in the field of civil aviation to provide for intermediate sanctions to withdrawal 
of certification.  

Infringement  proceedings  ensure  the  correct  interpretation  of  EU  law  and  the  correction  of 
infringements. National administrative and court proceedings allow for the actions of Member 
State authorities to be reviewed. Sometimes, it has been found appropriate for EU legislation 
to  include  provisions  on  appeal  procedures,  such  as  in  connection  with  access  to 
environmental 
integrated  pollution 
prevention and control permit decisions, remedies in public procurement or in the regulatory 
framework for electronic communications.  

information,  environmental 

impact  assessments, 

More  attention  needs  to  be  paid  to  enforcement  measures  in  the  preparation  of  new 
legislation,  including  rights  to  review  or  appeal  decisions,  to  ensure  effective  application. 
Existing enforcement methods may be developed or new ones introduced, dependent on the 
nature and volume of issues arising in different areas.  

Where  EU  legislation  refers  to  such  measures,  they  need  to  be  used  and  their  adequacy 
assessed. The  Commission will therefore  focus its activity on the correct implementation of 
those  processes,  reviewing  and  reporting  on  their  functioning  and  effectiveness  for  their 
purposes, refraining from substituting its own action for their use to avoid undermining their 
role.  

In  2009  the  Commission  further  developed  its  practice  in  the  organisation  of  inspections, 
sometimes in co-operation with Agencies. A record number of visits was carried out by the 
European Aviation Safety Agency resulting in requests for urgent correction of a number of 
significant  non-compliance  issues.  Close  to  200  inspections  were  carried  out  to  ensure  the 
effectiveness  of  national  maritime  security  measures  mainly  concerning  port  and  ship 
assessments and the effective application of security plans. 

Conclusions: The Commission confirms the need for increased focus on effective instruments 
to ensure the enforcement of EU law. These can be of horizontal application or designed for 
specific  sectors.  Where  EU  legislation  refers  to  national  procedures,  the  Commission  will 
prioritise the implementation and review of the performance of those enforcement provisions, 
avoiding  competing  or  alternative  action.  Inspections,  long-established  in  connection  with 
human  health,  are  being  used  increasingly  in  other  areas  such  as  transport  safety  and 
security,  where  they  can  play  a  strong  role  in  confirming  the  interpretation  of  the  law  and 
ensuring its correct application, confirming a strong commitment to results. 

3.6. 

The role of infringement proceedings 

The 2007 Communication on 'A Europe of results', set out current Commission policy on its 
work  to  ensure  the  correct  application  of  EU  law.  It  explained  the  new  focus  for  the 

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Commission's Annual Reports: on strategic issues, evaluation of the current state of the law in 
the  different  sectors,  priorities  and  programming  of  future  work.  The  Commission  staff 
working  document  annexed  to  this  Report  contains  detailed  indications  for  the  different 
sectors, including priorities in infringements management.  

Priorities  have  now  been  developed  across  the  full  range  of  the  Commission's  monitoring 
work down to the level of individual complaints and infringement proceedings according to 
the criteria set out in the 2007 Communication. The progress of complaints and infringements 
work  is  regularly  reviewed  in  the  light  of  the  nature  of  the  case  and  the  benchmarks  set. 
Particular attention is being paid to cases which have been open for a long time or for which 
no  recent  sufficient  progress  has  been  made.  Justifications  for  delayed  treatment  of  some 
cases are taken into account, for example while a different test case is being taken forward or 
where a reference has been made from a national court for a preliminary ruling from the ECJ 
on the same issue. Where there is an open proceeding before a national court, the Commission 
could  consider  to  close  files  on  which  no  formal  step  in  infringement  proceedings  has  yet 
been  taken,  and  suspend  active  infringement  proceedings,  in  particular,  in  cases  where  the 
national proceeding has the same subject as the infringement proceeding, as it would have a 
clear  basis  on  which  to  consider  further  action  once  the  national  court  process  has  been 
concluded.  In  these  cases,  the  Commission  will  remain  open  to  consider  any  continuing 
concerns of citizens following the conclusion of the national proceedings. 

Conclusions:  The  priorities  set  out  in  the  accompanying  document  to  this  Report  on  the 
"Situation in the different sectors" are designed to ensure that the Commission focuses on the 
actions  most  likely  to  ensure  the  timely  and  effective  application  of  the  law  in  the  widest 
interest of the greatest number of citizens and enterprises, ensuring efficiency by avoiding the 
duplication of existing proceedings. The Commission confirms its intention to work to these 
priorities. 

3.7. 

Reporting and reviewing implementation 

Increased attention is being paid to ex-post reporting on the impact of EU rules. Parliament 
has an increased focus on implementation issues. Provision is often included in EU legislation 
for  reports  on  the  first  years  of  application  of  the  measure.  The  Commission  staff  working 
document annexed to this Report contains references to many studies and reports produced by 
the Commission in 2009 and envisaged for 2010. 

Conclusions: The increased focus on ex post evaluation of the impact of EU legislation draws 
attention to the reports which the Commission is required to produce on the performance of 
different  EU  legislative  measures.  The  Commission  signals  the  value  of  these  reports,  often 
including detailed contributions from Member States, as one of its main contributions to the 
evaluation of the performance and impact of EU law. 

4. 

CONCLUSIONS 

This annual report demonstrates the critical importance of the full and correct application of 
EU law in delivering the rights and obligations created by EU law. This year's report makes it 
clear  that  priorities  have  continued  to  be  developed  and  followed  but  furthermore  that  the 
instruments  developed  over  time  to  facilitate  and  improve  the  monitoring  of  EU  law  are 

EN 

10 

   EN 

gaining  in  maturity  and  increasing  their  contribution  to  the  overall  effectiveness  and 
timeliness of the monitoring process. 

Challenges remain notably on some essential and basic aspects such as the correct and timely 
transposition  of  directives  The  preventive  approaches  now  being  developed  in  partnership 
with  the  Member  States  represent  a  considerable  investment  by  all  concerned  which  should 
pay dividends in terms of ensuring a faster and deeper conformity with EU law in the coming 
years. 

EN 

11 

   EN