id stringlengths 1 5 | text stringlengths 316 726 | title stringclasses 1 value |
|---|---|---|
501 | The Commission first gave thought to the strategy for Interreg III at the end of 1997. A document setting out the basic options was drawn up in March 1998. The Commission guidelines were not finalised until January/May 2000, or, in the case of Strand C, the early months of 2001. However, given the particular difficulties associated with the preparation of Interreg programmes, the Member States had already set to work. An analogous situation emerged with regard to the various methodological working papers that the Commission prepared specifically for Interreg (see paragraph 21). | |
502 | A single managing authority and a single paying authority were designated for each programme. A steering committee was set up comprising representatives from each country concerned. Attempts to establish EEIGs as agents for the implementation of Interreg programmes were unsuccessful (Alps and north-west Europe), despite Commission encouragement (see paragraph 16). However, legal entities of this description could provide representation for the Member States involved in a CIP, a situation which is not possible when regional governments act as the single authorities, as in the case of the programmes that were examined. | |
503 | With one exception (Ireland-Wales), all of the programmes examined included a statistically-based integrated regional description. The Strand B programmes examined offer the most complete analysis, a situation that can undoubtedly be explained by the higher number of Member States participating in each programme. There are numerous difficulties in obtaining harmonised and up-to-date statistics: the absence of statistics in one or other of the Member States, statistics submitted on different dates or according to different criteria, and poor data reliability owing to the small geographical divisions encountered at Strand A level. | |
504 | It appears from the first projects to have been adopted that the definition of trans-European projects has been respected and that many projects entail the cooperation of all the partners. Nonetheless, some offer limited added value because they do not focus on practical action or could have been implemented in other regions. Although the systems of selection criteria could be improved, this weakness is largely due to the imprecise nature of the stated objectives and the broad scope of the measures within each CIP (see paragraphs 59 to 63). | |
505 | In its guidelines the Commission gives European economic interest groupings (EEIGs) as one of the avenues to be explored; this was done in a number of programmes but the results were rather disappointing, as is stated in paragraph 44. The Final Report on the ex post evaluation of Interreg II published in December 2003 has since confirmed that the EEIG instrument is not geared towards cooperation between public law based authorities and that it is very time and resource consuming to set up and created practical difficulties in operation. | |
506 | Cross-border programmes have similar objectives to those of traditional Structural Fund programmes, but with the specific feature set out in point 9 of the guidelines, namely the development of cross-border economic and social centres. This can only be achieved by developing as many links as possible between neighbouring socio-economic fabrics which, because of borders, have no links. The fundamental problem for border areas is the limited exchanges between actors on the two sides of the border. | |
507 | As the Commission explained in paragraph 63, the bottom-up approach brings out concerns not identified by expert analysis. These concerns of regional and local authorities are used in cross-border areas in addition to expert studies to determine strategy and priorities. It is difficult to measure the impact of CIPs because of the intangible nature of cooperation objectives (see the reply to paragraph 73). The Commission pays attention to the analysis of the starting situation. It is for this reason that it proposed context indicators. | |
508 | The principal objective of cross-border CIPs is to develop cross-border economic and social centres through joint strategies for sustainable territorial development and not only to resolve problems directly linked to borders. The main concern is to overcome the major handicap of these areas which lies in the weak links between actors who are located close to each other but in different Member States. Programmes do, none the less, seek to resolve certain specific problems linked to the existence of borders. | |
509 | On 29 November 2004, the Commission received a notification of a proposed concentration pursuant to Article 4 of Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 by which the undertakings Dresdner Bank AG (Dresdner Germany), controlled by Allianz AG (Allianz, Germany) and Cetelem S.A. (Cetelem S.A., France) controlled by BNP Paribas S.A (BNP Paribas, France) acquire within the meaning of Article 3(1)(b) of the Council Regulation, joint control of the undertaking Cetelem Bank Gmb H (Cetelem, Germany) by way of purchase of shares. | |
510 | On 1 December 2004, the Commission received a notification of a proposed concentration pursuant to Article 4 of Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 by which the undertaking Deutsche Umwelt Investment AG (DUI, Germany), belonging to Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. L.P. (KKR, USA), acquires within the meaning of Article 3(1)(b) of the Council Regulation control of the whole of the undertaking Der Grüne Punkt – Duales System Deutschland AG (DSD, Germany) by way of purchase of shares. | |
511 | In order to guarantee the punctual observance by the carriers which accept the present public service obligations, a joint monitoring committee is established with the Councillor of Transportation of the Autonomous Region of Sardinia to monitor the performance of the public service obligations (the Joint Monitoring Committee). The Joint Monitoring Committee is composed of one member nominated by the Regional Councillor of Transportation, one member nominated by the Minister of Infrastructure and Transportation, one member nominated by ENAC, and one member nominated by each carrier which has accepted the public service obligations. | |
512 | Slots have been reserved at Paris (Orly) airport for the scheduled Périgueux (Bassillac) — Paris (Orly) service pursuant to Article 9 of Council Regulation (EEC) No 95/93 of 18 January 1993 on common rules for the allocation of slots at Community airports, as amended by Regulation (EC) No 793/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 April 2004. Air carriers interested in this route can obtain information about the allocation of these slots from the Paris airports coordinator. | |
513 | The United Kingdom has decided to modify the public service obligations in respect of the scheduled air services between the Orkney Mainland (Kirkwall) and the islands of Westray, Sanday, Stronsay and Eday as set out in the Notice published in the Official Journal of the European Communities C 363 of 19 December 2001, as modified in the Official Journal of the European Union C 295 of 5 December 2003, pursuant to Article 4(1)(a) of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2408/92 of 23 July 1992 on access for Community air carriers to intra-Community air routes. | |
514 | If on 28.2.2005 no air carrier has begun or is about to begin operating scheduled air services between Cherbourg (Maupertus) and Paris (Orly) in accordance with the public service obligation imposed and without requesting financial compensation, France has decided, in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 4(1)(d) of the abovementioned Regulation, to limit access to a single carrier and to offer the right to operate such services from 1.4.2005 by public tender. | |
515 | Object of invitation to tender: Operation from 1.4.2005 of scheduled air services between the Shetland Mainland and the Islands of Foula (from Tingwall), Fair Isle (from Tingwall/Sumburgh), Out Skerries (from Tingwall) and Papa Stour (from Tingwall) in accordance with the Public Service Obligations imposed on the routes and published in the Official Journal of the European Communities No C 394/05 of 30.12.1997, as modified in the Official Journal of the European Communities No C 356/3 of 12.12.2000, No C 358/07 of 15.12.2001 and No C 306 of 10.12.2004. | |
516 | Council Regulation (EC) No 540/98 (hereafter the shipbuilding Regulation) abolished operating aid for shipbuilding as of 31 December 2000 and set the conditions for the phasing out of such aid. Under the Regulation, operating aid could only be given to ships contracted until 31 December 2000 at the latest and delivered within three years from the signing of the contract. The last effective delivery date for a ship to qualify for operating aid was therefore 31 December 2003. | |
517 | If on 28.2.2005 no air carrier has begun or is about to begin operating scheduled air services between Castres (Mazamet) and Paris (Orly) in accordance with the public service obligation imposed and without requesting financial compensation, France has decided, in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 4(1)(d) of the above-mentioned Regulation, to limit access to a single carrier and to offer the right to operate such services from 1.4.2005 by public tender. | |
518 | Provided the conditions set out below are satisfied, any legal entity established in a third country not covered by Article 6(2) of the Rules for Participation (entities in countries having concluded an S&T agreement with the Community may participate by right) may participate in this call provided that such an involvement would be beneficial or essential to the proposed activity, and is over and above the specified minimum number of participants from Member State or associated countries. | |
519 | A conference of Parliamentary Committees for Union Affairs may submit any contribution it deems appropriate for the attention of the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission. That conference shall in addition promote the exchange of information and best practice between national Parliaments and the European Parliament, including their special committees. It may also organise interparliamentary conferences on specific topics, in particular to debate matters of common foreign and security policy, including common security and defence policy. Contributions from the conference shall not bind national Parliaments and shall not prejudge their positions. | |
520 | A Judge may be deprived of his office or of his right to a pension or other benefits in its stead only if, in the unanimous opinion of the Judges and Advocates-General of the Court of Justice, he no longer fulfils the requisite conditions or meets the obligations arising from his office. The Judge concerned shall not take part in any such deliberations. If the person concerned is a member of the General Court or of a specialised court, the Court shall decide after consulting the court concerned. | |
521 | RECALLING that the Kingdom of Denmark, Ireland and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland acceded to the European Communities on 1 January 1973; that the Hellenic Republic acceded to the European Communities on 1 January 1981; that the Kingdom of Spain and the Portuguese Republic acceded to the European Communities on 1 January 1986; that the Republic of Austria, the Republic of Finland and the Kingdom of Sweden acceded to the European Communities and to the European Union established by the Treaty on European Union on 1 January 1995; | |
522 | The texts of the acts of the institutions, bodies, offices and agencies of the European Communities or of the European Union established by the Treaty on European Union which were adopted before the accessions referred to in Article 1 and which were subsequently drawn up successively in the English and Danish languages, in the Greek language, in the Spanish and Portuguese languages, and in the Finnish and Swedish languages, shall be authentic from the date of the respective accessions referred to in Article 1, under the same conditions as the texts drawn up and authentic in the other languages. | |
523 | Where, in cases referred to in this Protocol, the United Kingdom or Ireland is bound by a measure adopted pursuant to Section 2 or Section 3 of Chapter IV of Title III of Part III of the Constitution, to Article III-260 of the Constitution, insofar as that Article relates to the areas covered by those Sections, to Article III-263 or to Article III-275(2)(a) of the Constitution, the relevant provisions of the Constitution shall apply to that State in relation to that measure. | |
524 | With regard to measures adopted by the Council pursuant to Article I-41, Article III-295(1) and Articles III-309 to III-313 of the Constitution, Denmark does not participate in the elaboration and the implementation of decisions and actions of the Union which have defence implications. Therefore Denmark shall not participate in their adoption. Denmark will not prevent the other Member States from further developing their cooperation in this area. Denmark shall not be obliged to contribute to the financing of operational expenditure arising from such measures, nor to make military capabilities available to the Union. | |
525 | The agreement referred to in Article 1 shall ensure that accession of the Union shall not affect the competences of the Union or the powers of its institutions. It shall ensure that nothing therein affects the situation of Member States in relation to the European Convention, in particular in relation to the Protocols thereto, measures taken by Member States derogating from the European Convention in accordance with Article 15 thereof and reservations to the European Convention made by Member States in accordance with Article 57 thereof. | |
526 | The Council expressed regret at the imposition of new restrictions on private enterprise since the last evaluation, with negative consequences for many Cuban people. It repeated its view that the opening of the Cuban economy would benefit all its people, while expressing its rejection of all unilateral measures against Cuba which are contrary to commonly accepted rules of international trade. It has never been European Union policy to try to bring about change by coercive measures with the effect of increasing the economic hardship of the Cuban people. | |
527 | On 9 December 2004, the Commission received a notification of a proposed concentration pursuant to Article 4 of Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 by which the undertaking Aeronautical Rotor Blades Inc. (RBI, US), belonging to the Textron Group, and Hawker Pacific Pty Limited (HP, Hong-Kong), controlled by Saab AB, acquire within the meaning of Article 3(1)(b) of the Council Regulation joint control of the undertaking RBI Hawker Ltd by way of purchase of shares in a newly created company constituting a joint venture. | |
528 | Judgment of the Court of First Instance of 6 October 2004 in Case T-356/02: Vitakraft-Werke Wührmann & Sohn Gmb H & Co. KG v Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market (Trade Marks and Designs) (OHIM) (Community trade mark — Opposition proceedings — Earlier figurative mark including the verbal element ‘Krafft’ — Application for Community word mark VITAKRAFT — Relative ground for refusal — Genuine use of the earlier mark — Similarity of the signs — Article 8(1)(b) of Regulation (EC) No 40/94 — Rule 22(2) of Regulation (EC) No 2868/95) | |
529 | Judgment of the Court of First Instance of 6 October 2004 in Joined Cases T-117/03 to T-119/03 and T-171/03: New Look Ltd v Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market (Trade Marks and Designs) (OHIM) (Community trade mark — Opposition proceedings — Earlier Community figurative mark comprising the letter combination ‘NL’ — Applications for Community figurative marks comprising the terms ‘NLSPORT’, ‘NLJEANS’, ‘NLACTIVE’ and ‘NLCollection’ — Relative ground for refusal — Likelihood of confusion — Similarity of the signs — Article 8(1)(b) of Regulation (EC) No 40/94) | |
530 | stresses that regional airports are another element of a region's access infrastructure, which also includes roads, rail, etc. and just as public sector investment in these access modes is supported, so too should public sector investment in regional airport infrastructure be facilitated and encouraged; the Committee further welcomes European Commission acceptance for public-sector investment to support the start-up of regional air services operating from them, including those provided by low-cost carriers; | |
531 | bearing in mind the Third report on Social and Economic Cohesion, presented by the European Commission on the 18 February 2004 where it states that particular geographical or natural handicaps may intensify development problems, particularly in the outermost regions of the Union and in many islands, the Commission shall address these handicaps by supporting or creating measures such as education and incentives for islands and the outermost regions of the Union to modernize social protection for more and better jobs to their own citizens especially to those finding it hard to find jobs away from their native locality; | |
532 | underlines the importance of financing for cooperatives. It is necessary to assess the possibility of including a specific reference to cooperatives in financial instruments managed by the European Investment Fund, particularly the funds which form part of the Multi-Annual Programme for Enterprise and Entrepreneurship and in particular for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises. Efforts should also be made to ensure that cooperatives have full access to Community programmes and information about these programmes; | |
533 | recommends funding provision from governments and from EU Structural Fund allocations for the provision of broadband technology in areas where it may not be commercially viable, thus ensuring the availability of e Government in all areas of the European Union focussing on those areas where access and/or rate of development of access is low. The specific features of the regions, especially their size and population, must be taken into account when determining the infrastructure funding needed to ensure access throughout the EU; | |
534 | supports safeguarding the right to information, including information in relation to events that are subject to exclusive rights and events of major importance for society; the Co R underscores its view that the rules for the broadcasting of major events on free-to-air television should be flexible, bearing in mind the specific linguistic features of each individual country, and that consideration should be given to drawing up a European list of major events; the Co R also recommends establishing, at European level, a right to short television reports on information of general interest; | |
535 | feels that it is important to ensure that all people enjoying international protection in the Member States are covered by the Fund's activities, regardless of the national procedure under which they entered the Member State; also believes it is important to take special account of the needs of the most vulnerable refugees in implementing the programme. The most vulnerable groups include, for example, unaccompanied minors, single mothers or single women (women at risk), victims of torture, abuse or other inhuman and degrading treatment and people in need of special medical treatment; | |
536 | Article 9(3) of the Council Decision of 28 September 2000 establishing the European Refugee Fund (see OJ L 252 of 6.10.2000, page 12 et seq.) [ERF I] has proved its worth and should therefore be incorporated into ERF II. In particular, the responsible authorities should continue to select projects according to the criterion of the situation of the region or the local organising body and the criterion of need. These appraisals can be carried out by regional and local coordination bodies in the individual Member States. External experts are not in a position to make such appraisals. | |
537 | On 16 December 2004 the Commission received a notification of a proposed concentration pursuant to Article 4 of Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 by which the undertakings De Raekt B.V. (De Raekt, The Netherlands) and ING Corporate Investments Participaties B.V. (ING CIP, The Netherlands) belonging to ING Groep N.V. (ING Group, The Netherlands) acquire joint control within the meaning of Article 3(1)(b) of the Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 of the whole of the undertaking Van Gansewinkel Groep B.V. (VGG, The Netherlands) by purchase of shares. | |
538 | The Norwegian Government argues that the measure does not confer an advantage on Entra compared to private undertakings in a similar situation. Under a particular statutory scheme, a state measure is defined as favoring certain undertakings in comparison to others, which, in light of the objective pursued, are in a comparable legal and factual situation. The Authority remains unconvinced that Article 61(1) EEA has no relevance for the exemption from document duty and registration fees following comparison with private undertakings. | |
539 | In the programme, the debt ratio peaks at 75,2 % in 2004 and then declines by almost 7 percentage points to reach 68,4 % of GDP by 2007. This strong decrease is mainly driven by increasingly positive primary balances and nominal GDP growth exceeding interest payments on government debt in 2005-2007. The evolution of the debt ratio may be less favourable than projected given the risks to the deficit outcomes mentioned above. | |
540 | Gross public debt is relatively low and will remain so in the future. After increasing to 29,5 % of GDP by 2005, the debt ratio is expected to fall back to 28,4 % of GDP in 2007. Regarding long term sustainability, Slovenia faces risks of budgetary imbalances in meeting the costs of an ageing population. Implementing thoroughly the pension reform and putting in place a stable health-care system together with securing an adequate primary surplus are essential for placing public finances on a sustainable footing. | |
541 | On 16 December 2004, the Commission received a notification of a proposed concentration pursuant to Article 4 of Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 by which the undertaking Electra European Fund LP (Guernsey) acquires within the meaning of Article 3(1)(b) of the Council Regulation control of Thyssen Krupp Rautenbach Castings Gmb H and Thyssen Krupp Aluminium-Technik with exception to the Spanish subsidiary Thyssen Krupp Guss S.A., together Thyssen Krupp Fahrzeugguss business Group (TKFG, Germany), currently controlled by Thyssen Krupp Automotive AG Group, by way of purchase of shares. | |
542 | On 17 December 2004, the Commission received a notification of a proposed concentration pursuant to Article 4 of Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 by which the undertaking Iesy Repository Gmb H (Iesy, Germany), controlled by Apollo Management V, L.P., USA, acquires within the meaning of Article 3(1)(b) of the Council Regulation control of the whole of the undertakings ISH Gmb H & Co KG and ISH KS NRW Gmb H & Co KG (ISH, Germany) by way of purchase of shares. | |
543 | The European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (hereinafter referred to as the Agency) was established by Council Regulation (EC) No 2062/94 of 18 July 1994. The Agency's task is to collect and disseminate information on national and Community priorities in the field of safety and health at work, to support national and Community organisations involved in the formulation and implementation of policy and to provide information on preventive measures. Table 1 contains a summary of the Agency's responsibilities and activities based on information provided by the Agency. | |
544 | The Agency wishes to note that, in order to reinforce the control of expenditures, all contracts signed from September 2003 onwards with the Topic Centres include a clause by which the beneficiary will carry out an external audit of the use of the funds made available by the grant agreement. The auditors shall produce their professional opinion, the purpose of the audit being to certify that the financial documents submitted to the Agency by the beneficiary comply with the financial provisions of the agreement, that the costs declared are the actual costs and that all receipts have been declared. | |
545 | The European Environment Agency (hereinafter called the Agency) was established by Council Regulation (EEC) No 1210/90 of 7 May 1990. It is responsible for setting up an observation network that provides the Commission, the Member States and, more generally, the public with reliable information on the state of the environment. The information should, in particular, enable the European Union and the Member States to take action to safeguard the environment and assess the effectiveness of such action. Table 1 summarises the Agency's competencies and activities on the basis of information it has forwarded. | |
546 | The Centre has set up a contracts unit to ensure that contracts to be awarded for studies are correct, but this unit is not informed about the procedures that are under way until the selection reports have been signed. It is unable to do anything to prevent irregularities at the initial stages (choice of procedure, examination of invitations to tender and publicity measures). Extending this unit's powers appears especially necessary insofar as a study of various files has brought to light inconsistencies and formal errors in the management of contract award procedures. | |
547 | The budget for 2003 allocated to the activities of the national focal points of the REITOX network was the subject of a parliamentary reservation until the end of April. Therefore, it was not possible to sign the subsidies until very late in the year. Furthermore, the EMCDDA decided not to make advance payments for 2004 until it had examined and closed the cost statements of the 2003. When renewing contracts in the future, the EMCDDA will naturally give due consideration to the real progress achieved in the work requested the year before and to an evaluation of its quality. | |
548 | Article 8 of the Office's new financial regulation provides that the budget shall contain differentiated appropriations, which make a distinction between commitment appropriations and payment appropriations. Even though the 2003 budget was adopted before the new rules and only contains non-differentiated appropriations, at the moment of closure of the accounts the Office considered the appropriations under Title III, which finance its operations, to be differentiated. In order to take this approach, the Office ought to have adopted an amending budget that distinguished, with appropriate comments, between the commitment appropriations and the payment appropriations. This was not the case. | |
549 | On 23 December 2004, the Commission received a notification of a proposed concentration pursuant to Article 4 of Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 by which the undertakings Total France SA, belonging to the Total Group (Total, France), and Sasol Wax International AG (Sasol Wax, Germany), belonging to the Sasol Group (Sasol, South Africa), acquire within the meaning of Article 3(1)(b) of the Council Regulation joint control of the undertaking Sasol Wax Gmb H (JV, Germany ) by way of purchase of shares. | |
550 | Judgment of the Court (Grand Chamber) of 16 November 2004 in Case C-327/02 (reference for a preliminary ruling from the Rechtbank te 's-Gravenhage): Lili Georgieva Panayotova and Others v Minister voor Vreemdelingenzaken en Integratie (Association Agreements between the Communities and, respectively, Bulgaria, Poland and Slovakia — Right of establishment — National legislation under which applications for full residence permits with a view to establishment are rejected without examination where the applicant lacks a temporary residence permit) | |
551 | The meaning of waste for the purposes of the first subparagraph of Article 1(a) of Directive 75/442, as amended by Directive 91/156 and by Decision 96/350, is not to be interpreted as excluding all production or consumption residues which can be or are reused in a cycle of production or consumption, either without prior treatment and without harm to the environment, or after undergoing prior treatment without, however, requiring a recovery operation within the meaning of Annex II B to that directive. | |
552 | Judgment of the Court (Third Chamber) of 28 October 2004 in Case C-124/03 (reference for a preliminary ruling from the College van Beroep voor het bedrijfsleven): Artrada (Freezone) NV, Videmecum BV, Jac. Meisner Internationaal Expeditiebedrijf BV v Rijksdienst voor de keuring van Vee en Vlees (Health checks — Production and placing on the market of raw milk, heat-treated milk and milk-based products — Mixture made of sugar, cocoa and skimmed-milk powder, imported from Aruba) | |
553 | Article 2(2) of Council Directive 92/46/EEC of 16 June 1992 laying down the health rules for the production and placing on the market of raw milk, heat-treated milk and milk-based products is to be interpreted as meaning that the expression milk for the manufacture of milk-based products does not include milk constituents of a product which also contains other non-milk constituents if the milk constituent cannot be separated from the non-milk constituents. | |
554 | Failure to fulfil obligations Directive 98/24/ECProtection of the health and safety of workers Risks related to chemical agents at work Failure to transpose throughout the territory of the Member State concerned within the prescribed period Language of the case: German In Case C-357/03 Commission of the European Communities (Agents: D. Martin and H. Kreppel) v Republic of Austria (Agent: E. Riedl) – action under Article 226 EC for failure to fulfil obligations, brought on 19 August 2003 – the Court (Second Chamber), composed of: C.W.A. Timmermanns (Rapporteur), President of the Chamber, C. Gulmann, J. Makarczyk, P. | |
555 | Failure to fulfil obligations Directive 2001/18/ECDeliberate release of genetically modified organisms into the environment Failure to transpose within the prescribed period Language of the case: German In Case C-421/03 Commission of the European Communities (Agent: U. Wölker) v Republic of Austria (Agent: E. Riedl) – action under Article 226 EC for failure to fulfil obligations, brought on the 3 October 2003 – the Court (Fourth Chamber), composed of: N. Colneric, acting for the President, J.N. Cunha Rodrigues and E. Levits (Rapporteur), Judges; J. Kokott, Advocate General; R. | |
556 | Failure of a Member State to fulfil obligations Directive 2001/14/ECThe Community's railways Allocation of infrastructure capacity, the levying of charges for the use of infrastructure and safety certification Failure to transpose within the prescribed period Language of the case: English In Case C-482/03: action under Article 226 EC for failure to fulfil obligations, brought on 19 November 2003, between Commission of the European Communities (Agent: W. Wils) and Ireland (Agents: D. O'Hagan and D. Moloney, BL) — the Court (Sixth Chamber), composed of: J.-P. Puissochet, acting for the President of the Sixth Chamber, S. von Bahr and U. | |
557 | Failure to fulfil obligations Article 28 ECMeasures having equivalent effect Sale of food supplements by mail order Prohibition Language of the case: German In Case C-497/03 Commission of the European Communities (Agents: J.C. Schieferer and B. Schima) v Republic of Austria (Agent: E. Riedl) — action under Article 226 EC for failure to fulfil obligations, brought on 24 November 2003 — the Court (Fourth Chamber), composed of: K. Lenaerts, President of the Chamber, J.N. Cunha Rodrigues and M. Ilešič (Rapporteur), Judges; D. Ruiz-Jarabo Colomer, Advocate General; R. | |
558 | Failure of a Member State to fulfil its obligations Directive 98/44/ECLegal protection of biotechnological inventions Failure to transpose within the prescribed period Language of the case: German In Case C-5/04 Commission of the European Communities (Agents: K. Banks and C. Schmidt) v Federal Republic of Germany (Agent: M. Lumma) – action under Article 226 EC for failure to fulfil obligations, brought on 9 January 2004 – the Court (Fourth Chamber), composed of: J.N. Cunha Rodrigues, acting for the President of the Fourth Chamber, K. Schiemann and M. Ilešič (Rapporteur), Judges; F.G. Jacobs, Advocate General; R. | |
559 | Failure of a Member State to fulfil its obligations Directive 2001/29/ECHarmonisation of certain aspects of copyright and related rights in the information society Failure to transpose within the prescribed period Language of the case: French In Case C-143/04 Commission of the European Communities (Agent: K. Banks) v Kingdom of Belgium (Agent: A. Goldmann) – action under Article 226 EC for failure to fulfil obligations, brought on 17 March 2004 – the Court (Sixth Chamber), composed of: J.-P Puissochet, acting for the President of the Sixth Chamber, S. von Bahr and J. Malenovský (Rapporteur), Judges; J. Kokott, Advocate General; R. | |
560 | Order of the Court (Sixth Chamber) of 5 October 2004 in Case C-192/03 P: Alcon Inc. against the Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market (Trade Marks and Designs) (OHIM), Dr Robert Winzer Pharma Gmb H (Appeal — Community mark — Regulation (EC) No 40/94 — Nullity of the Community mark — Article 51 of Regulation No 40/94 — Absolute grounds for refusal of registration — Article 7(1)(d) of Regulation No 40/94 — Distinctive character acquired through use — Article 7(3) of Regulation No 40/94 — Word mark ‘BSS’) | |
561 | The applicant further claims that the Commission's reasoning is wrong, inadequate and contradictory and for this reason violates Article 253 EC. It also invokes a breach of its right to be heard under Article 6 of Regulation 2842/98 and contends that the Commission failed to carry out a proper investigation within a reasonable time, thereby breaching Article 10 EC, Article 6 of the European Convention of Human Rights and the principle that the Commission must act within a reasonable time. | |
562 | On 23 December 2004, the Commission received a notification of a proposed concentration pursuant to Article 4 and following a referral pursuant to Article 4(5) of Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 by which the undertaking Nordic Capital Fund V (Nordic Capital, Channel Islands), ultimately controlled by a number of private individuals, through an acquisition vehicle, acquires within the meaning of Article 3(1)(b) of the Council Regulation control of the whole of the undertaking Plastal Holding AB (Plastal, Sweden) by way of purchase of shares. | |
563 | The applicant alleges that it was not investigated during the period of investigation on which the countervailing measure was based, i.e. the period from 1 October 1998 to 30 September 1999 (the original investigation period) for reasons other than the refusal to cooperate. The applicant alleges that it did not export the product concerned to the Community during the original investigation period, and that it is not related to any of the exporting producers of the product which are subject to the existing measure. | |
564 | Where it is found that any interested party has supplied false or misleading information, the information shall be disregarded and use may be made of the facts available. If an interested party does not cooperate or cooperates only partially, and findings are therefore based on facts available in accordance with Article 28 of the basic Regulation, the result may be less favourable to that party than if it had cooperated. | |
565 | On 10 January 2005, the Commission received a notification of a proposed concentration pursuant to Article 4 of Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 by which the undertakings CNP Assurances S.A. (CNP, France) and Fineco Group S.p.A. (Fineco Group, Italy) controlled by Capitalia S.p.A. (Capitalia, Italy) acquire within the meaning of Article 3(1)(b) of the Council Regulation joint control of Fineco Vita S.p.A. (Fineco Vita, Italy), currently controlled by Capitalia, by way of purchase of shares. | |
566 | In this context, the Commission has doubts on what will be the impact of the aid on employment and other factors for the regions concerned or indeed for the industries at stake in both countries. Both Poland and Portugal are textile producers. The companies concerned, Orfama, Archimode and Wartatex are located in assisted regions in the respective countries. This requires a balancing exercise when assessing the appropriateness of the aid to the Portuguese company. The Commission also questions whether the same project received aid from Poland. | |
567 | On 14 January 2005, the Commission received a notification of a proposed concentration pursuant to Article 4 of Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 by which the undertakings Beleggingsmaatschappij Smitho B.V., which trades as CVC International Palink (CVC International, the Netherlands), and which is controlled by Citigroup Inc. (USA), and Baltisches Haus Limited (BH, Isle of Man), acquire within the meaning of Article 3(1)(b) of the Council Regulation joint control of UAB Palink (Lithuania), by way of purchase of shares. | |
568 | Judgment of the Court (Third Chamber) of 2 December 2004 in Case C-41/02: Commission of the European Communities v Kingdom of the Netherlands (Failure of a Member State to fulfil obligations — Articles 30 and 36 of the EC Treaty (now, after amendment, Articles 28 EC and 30 EC) — Foodstuffs to which vitamins or mineral salts have been added — National legislation making their marketing subject to there being a nutritional need — Measures having equivalent effect — Justification — Public health — Proportionality) | |
569 | The condition that the person concerned should have completed lastly … periods of insurance … in accordance with the provisions of the legislation under which the benefits are claimed for the purposes of Article 67(3) of Regulation No 1408/71, as amended, precludes the obligation to aggregate periods of employment only where a period of insurance was completed in another Member State after the last period of insurance completed under the legislation under which the benefits are claimed. | |
570 | Failure by a Member State to fulfil its obligations Environment Waste management Factory site and waste in province of Foggia Directive 75/442/EEC amended by Directive 91/156/EECArticles 4 and 8Language of the case: Italian In Case C-447/03 Commission of the European Communities (Agents: R. Amorosi and M. Konstantinidis) v Italian Republic (Agent: I.M. Braguglia and M. Fiorilli) – action under Article 226 EC for failure to fulfil obligations, brought on 22 October 2003 – the Court (Fifth Chamber), composed of: C. Gulmann, acting as President of the Fifth Chamber, G. Arestis and J. | |
571 | Failure of a Member State to fulfil its obligations Directive 89/654/EECProtection of workers Safety and health of workers in the workplace Emergency doors, windows and skylights Failure to transpose Language of the case: German In Case C-16/04, action under Article 226 EC for failure to fulfil obligations, brought on 20 January 2004, Commission of the European Communities (Agents: H. Kreppel and D. Martin) against Federal Republic of Germany (Agents: C.-D. Quassowski and M. Lumma) – the Court (Sixth Chamber), composed of A. Borg Barthet (Rapporteur), President of the Chamber, J.-P. | |
572 | Failure of a Member State to fulfil its obligations Directive 2001/17/ECReorganisation and winding-up of insurance undertakings Failure to transpose within the prescribed period Language of the case: French In Case C-85/04: action under Article 226 EC for failure to fulfil obligations, brought on 23 February 2004, Commission of the European Communities (Agents: E. Traversa and P. Léouffre) against French Republic (Agents: G. de Bergues and O. Christmann) – the Court (Fourth Chamber), composed of: J.N. Cunha Rodrigues, acting as President of the Fourth Chamber, M. Ilešič (Rapporteur) and E. | |
573 | Failure of a Member State to fulfil its obligations Directive 2001/17/ECReorganisation and winding-up of insurance undertakings Failure to transpose within the prescribed period Language of the case: French In Case C-87/04: action under Article 226 EC for failure to fulfil obligations, brought on 23 February 2004, Commission of the European Communities (Agents: E. Traversa and P. Léouffre) against Kingdom of Belgium (Agent: E. Dominkovits) – the Court (Fourth Chamber), composed of: J.N. Cunha Rodrigues, acting as President of the Fourth Chamber, M. Ilešič (Rapporteur) and E. Levits, Judges; L.A. Geelhoed, Advocate General; R. | |
574 | Judgment of the Court of First Instance of 18 November 2004 in Case T-176/01: Ferriere Nord Sp A v Commission of the European Communities (State aid — Community guidelines on State aid for environmental protection — Steel undertaking — Products coming under the EC Treaty — Approved aid scheme — New aid — Initiation of the formal procedure — Time-limits — Rights of the defence — Legitimate expectation — Statement of reasons — Applicability ratione temporis of the Community guidelines — Environmental objective of the investment) | |
575 | In practice, it has to be conceded that it is not easy to demonstrate exactly when an activity ceases to be temporary and becomes permanent. The need for clarity in this area, however, is essential on the grounds that economic operators have the right to know the real extent of their opportunities to carry out cabotage operations, and Member States have the right to protect their markets against service providers who, under the guise of temporary activity, actually engage in a permanent activity without submitting to the host State's rules on establishment. | |
576 | The Court added that the mere fact that an economic operator established in one Member State supplies identical or similar services in a repeated or more or less regular manner in a second Member State, without having an infrastructure there enabling it to pursue a professional activity there on a stable and continuous basis and, from the infrastructure, to hold itself out to, amongst others, nationals of the second Member State, cannot be sufficient for it to be regarded as established in the second Member State. | |
577 | Point 20 provides that the Commission shall take appropriate steps requiring any company concerned to reimburse any aid granted in breach of the conditions laid down in this Protocol in case the monitoring of the restructuring shows non-compliance by way of granting additional incompatible State aid to the steel industry. This provision enables the Commission to open a formal investigation, as in the absence of specific provisions in Protocol No 2 normal rules and principles should apply. | |
578 | At the end of April 2004 the Commission was informed that the Czech Republic has granted State aid to TZ in addition to the aid allowed under Protocol No 2, which according to the Commission's opinion could be treated as illegal restructuring State aid to the Czech steel sector. Therefore, the Commission can thus open the formal investigation procedure provided for in Article 88(2) EC Treaty. Also Council Regulation (EC) No 659/1999 laying down detailed rules for the application of Article 93 shall apply. | |
579 | On 19 January 2005, the Commission received a notification of a proposed concentration pursuant to Article 4 of Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 by which the undertakings Achmea Schadeservice B.V., belonging to the Achmea Holding N.V. group (Achmea, Netherlands) and Athlon Beheer Nederland B.V., belonging to the Athlon Holding N.V. group, (Athlon, Netherlands), acquire within the meaning of Article 3(1)(b) of the Council Regulation joint control of the undertaking Parts Plan B.V. (Parts Plan, Netherlands), by way of purchase of shares in a newly created company constituting a joint venture. | |
580 | Slots have been reserved at Paris (Orly) airport for the scheduled Aurillac – Paris (Orly) service pursuant to Article 9 of Council Regulation (EEC) No 95/93 of 18 January 1993 on common rules for the allocation of slots at Community airports, as amended by Regulation (EC) No 793/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 April 2004. Air carriers interested in this route can obtain information about the allocation of these slots from the Paris airports coordinator. | |
581 | If on 13 March 2005 no air carrier has commenced or is about to commence operating scheduled air services between Aurillac and Paris (Orly) in accordance with the public service obligation imposed and without requesting financial compensation, France has decided, in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 4(1)(d) of the abovementioned Regulation, to limit access to a single carrier and to offer the right to operate such services from 13 April 2005 by public tender. | |
582 | Insofar as by 31 August 2005 no air carrier has commenced or is about to commence scheduled air services on a route mentioned above in accordance with the public service obligations imposed and without requesting financial compensation, Sweden has decided, in accordance with the procedure laid down by Article 4(1)(d) of the abovementioned regulation, to limit access to only one air carrier and to offer by public tender the right to operate such services from 30 October 2005. | |
583 | According to the survey carried out by Eurostat, there were 81,1 million head of cattle in the European Union in May/June 2002. France, with 20,5 million head, had more than a quarter of the European herd, followed by Germany and the United Kingdom with 14,0 and 10,4 million head respectively, i.e. 17,3 and 12,8 % of the European herd. Italy’s herd, like that of Ireland, numbered more than 7,2 million head (8,9 %) and Spain’s more than 6 million (see diagram 1). | |
584 | Expenditure linked to direct aid rose from 3700 million euro in 1999 to 6000 million euro in 2002, i.e. 80,7 % and 84,4 % respectively of total expenditure on beef and veal. The budget for 2004 provides for a further increase in direct aid to 7300 million euro, i.e. 90,2 % of total expenditure on beef and veal. Table 2 shows the distribution of direct aid between the various Member States in 2002, while table 3 shows the distribution between the Member States, in 2002, of direct aid in connection with BSE. | |
585 | As from 1 January 1998, for every animal that is to be identified the competent authority in the Member State issues a passport within 14 days of notification of the animal’s birth or, in the case of animals imported from third countries, within 14 days of notification of its new identification. When an animal is moved, its passport accompanies it. In addition to the core data, the passport also provides additional information (see photograph 2). | |
586 | The Member States with computerised databases which the Commission has deemed to be fully operational may decide to discontinue issuing passports for movements of cattle within the Member State concerned; in this case, only cattle intended for intra-Community trade are required to have a passport containing data based on the computerised database. The Member States may also reduce the rate of on-the-spot checks from 10 to 5 %, if they have a fully operational database which enables them to carry out effective cross-checks. | |
587 | In contrast to the provisions concerning other parts of the system (ear tags, passports, registers, on-the-spot checks, administrative sanctions and transitional measures), the Commission has no legal competence to adopt implementing rules on setting up and controlling the various national databases (see paragraph 28). This major weakness in the system explains the differences noted in the Member States visited, as every Member State has developed its own database which operates in accordance with criteria which the Member State itself defined (see table 4). | |
588 | As there are no rules on how the databases are to be managed, the databases are very different from one Member State to another. No provision was made for any guidance by the Commission when the databases were set up in the Member States. Each Member State developed its own database and bore a large part of the design and development costs (the United Kingdom developed two independent systems; see paragraph 62). The databases were not developed according to a common operating system laid down at European level and the procedures for processing the data were not harmonised. | |
589 | The United Kingdom set up two separate databases, i.e. one in Great Britain and one in Northern Ireland. The two bases are incompatible, as evidenced by the failure of the work of cross-checking animal movements in the two databases. The work was carried out by the competent authority at the Court’s request. The data available do not provide an audit trail for animals traded between Northern Ireland and Great Britain. In addition, vets were using a different database and this was not in line with the objectives of the legislation. | |
590 | Note 2: The data concerning penalties imposed do not allow comparison of Member States, as the information forwarded has not been standardised; some Member States provide the number of penalties imposed (BE, IT), others the number of holdings and animals to which penalties are applied (FR, LU, PT, FI, UK-GB), or merely the number of holdings penalised (DK), or the number of cattle subject to penalties (SE); one Member State gives the number of cases subject to legal proceedings (ES). | |
591 | During the BSE crisis in 1996 the Commission introduced a regulation which was applicable exclusively in the United Kingdom and provided for the slaughter and destruction of cattle over 30 months old. During the second crisis, in 2000, the Commission adopted new measures, which applied to the other Member States. In this new regulation, the Commission stipulated that in order to be eligible for the payments granted for slaughter and destruction of cattle, animals must be identified and registered in conformity with the identification and registration regulation. | |
592 | Regulation (EC) No 1760/2000 does not give any definition of the conditions that a national database should fulfil in order to be recognised as operational. Having to cope with the legal vacuum, the Commission has based the first round of assessment and recognition of the fully operational character of national databases on a set of pragmatic and coherent criteria. The Commission services have developed a questionnaire and established a practice based on an internal checklist for the purposes of assessing the databases during on the spot visits. Furthermore the reports of FVO are taken into account. | |
593 | On 28 January 2005, the Commission received a notification of a proposed concentration pursuant to Article 4 of Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 by which the undertaking Cinven Limited (Cincen, UK) acquires within the meaning of Article 3(1)(b) of the Council Regulation control of the whole of the undertakings France Télécom Câble (FTC, France), a subsidiary of France Télécom SA (France), and NC Numéricâble (NCN, France), a subsidiary of Groupe Canal+ (France), by way of purchase of shares. | |
594 | Under the guidelines on national regional aid currently in force, operating aid is, in principle, prohibited. In exceptional circumstances, however, regional aid can be granted in regions eligible under the derogation in Article 87(3)(a) of the Treaty, provided that it is justified in terms of its contribution to regional development and its nature and that its level of aid is proportional to the handicaps it seeks to alleviate. Operating aid must also be both limited in time and progressively reduced. | |
595 | This publication confers the right to object to the application pursuant to Articles 7 and 12d of the abovementioned Regulation. Any objection to this application must be submitted via the competent authority in a Member State, in a WTO member country or in a third country recognized in accordance with Article 12(3) within a time limit of six months from the date of this publication. The arguments for publication are set out below, in particular under 4.6, and are considered to justify the application within the meaning of Regulation (EEC) No 2081/92. | |
596 | Where part of the working time of a worker is measured or predetermined or cannot be determined by the worker himself but the specific characteristics of the activity are such that, without being required to do so by the employer, the worker may also do work the duration of which is not measured or predetermined or can be determined by the worker himself, regulations 4(1) and (2) and 6(1), (2) and (7) shall apply only to so much of his work as is measured or predetermined or cannot be determined by the worker himself. | |
597 | by adopting legislation (Article 3(1)(i) and (l) of the DPCM of 3 September 1999 amending Annex A to the DPR of 12 April 1996) which, for the purposes of establishing whether or not a project falling within Annex II of Directive 85/337/EEC as amended must be the subject of an environmental impact assessment (EIA), sets an inadequate test in that projects which have a significant impact on the environment can be excluded from an EIA; | |
598 | In order to prevent abuses in the receipt of aid for skimmed-milk powder intended for animal feed, Regulations (EC) No 1255/1999 and (EC) No 2799/1999 lay down detailed machinery for monitoring undertakings using that product. Although that machinery leaves to the Member States the power to adopt supplementary supervisory measures in order to ensure observance of the provisions concerning the grant of the aid, it none the less does not allow them to impose on operators in the sector additional obligations of a different nature from those which Regulation No 2799/1999 imposes on the undertakings in receipt of the aid. | |
599 | Finally, the Italian authorities cannot rely on the fact that Law No 250/2000 has never in fact been applied owing to the fact that the Ministerial decree which was to specify the tracers and to determine detailed rules concerning their use was never adopted. As the Court has consistently held, the fact that legislation contrary to Community law is scarcely or indeed never applied cannot have the effect of nullifying the infringement in that connection. | |
600 | Competition Decision finding an infringement of Article 81 ECMarket in beef and veal Action for annulment Unlimited jurisdiction Time-limit for bringing application Introduction out of time Inadmissibility Language of the case: French In Case T-252/03: Fédération nationale de l'industrie et des cinnerces en gros des viands (FNICGV), established in Paris (France), represented by P. Abegg and E. Prigent, lawyers, with an address for service in Luxembourg, supported by French Republic (Agents: R. Abraham, G. de Bergues and F. Million, with an address for service in Luxembourg), against Commission of the European Communities (Agents: P. |
Subsets and Splits
No community queries yet
The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.