CELEX: C2003/044/34
Language: en
Date: 2003-02-22 00:00:00
Title: Case C-10/03: Action brought on 10 January 2003 by Commission of the European Communities against Republic of Finland

22.2.2003               EN                          Official Journal of the European Union                                            C 44/19
Action brought on 10 January 2003 by Commission of                          Action brought on 13 January 2003 by the Commission
   the European Communities against Republic of Finland                     of the European Communities against the Republic of
                                                                                                          Austria
                          (Case C-10/03)
                                                                                                      (Case C-14/03)
                          (2003/C 44/34)
                                                                                                      (2003/C 44/35)
An action against the Republic of Finland was brought
before the Court of Justice of the European Communities on                  An action against the Republic of Austria was brought
10 January 2003 by the Commission of the European                           before the Court of Justice of the European Communities
Communities, represented by C. Tufvesson and M. Huttunen,                   on 13 January 2003 by the Commission of the European
with an address for service in Luxembourg.                                  Communities, represented by J.C. Schieferer, of its Legal
                                                                            Service, and L. Escobar Guerrero, of its Legal Service, with an
                                                                            address for service at Wagner Centre C 254, Luxembourg-
The applicant claims that the Court should:                                 Kirchberg.
(1) declare that, by failing to adopt the laws, regulations and
                                                                            The Commission of the European Communities claims that
       administrative measures required by Directive 1999/42/
                                                                            the Court should:
       EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (1) of
       7 June 1999 establishing a mechanism for the recognition
       of qualifications in respect of the professional activities          (a)   declare that the Republic of Austria has failed to fulfil its
       covered by the Directives on liberalisation and transitional               obligations under Article 5 of Council Directive 92/72/
       measures and supplementing the general systems for the                     EEC on air pollution by ozone (1), in conjunction with
       recognition of qualifications, or at least in failing to notify            Annex I, points 3 and 4, thereto, in that it has laid down:
       those measures to the Commission, the Republic of
       Finland has failed to fulfil its obligations, and                          (1) a population information threshold (early warning
                                                                                        stage) which is 20 µg/m3 higher than that in Annex I,
(2) order the Republic of Finland to pay the costs.                                     point 3, to the Directive,
                                                                                  (2) contrary to Article 5 of the Directive, the require-
                                                                                        ment that the thresholds value be exceeded at two
Pleas in law and main arguments                                                         measuring points at least before the public is
                                                                                        informed, and
According to Article 249 of the EC Treaty, a directive is                         (3) a mean value over three hours instead of over one
binding, as to the result to be achieved, upon each Member                              hour, as laid down in Annex I, points 3 and 4, to
State, but leaves to the national authorities the choice of form                        the Directive
and methods.
                                                                                  and therefore has not fully ensured, in accordance with
                                                                                  the circumstances provided for in the Directive, that the
The Member States must adopt the measures necessary to                            population will be informed or warned when thresholds
incorporate the directive in the national legal system by the                     are exceeded. The Republic of Austria has accordingly
time limit fixed and must notify those measures to the                            failed fully to comply with Directive 92/72/EEC;
Commission without delay.
                                                                            (b)   order the Republic of Austria to pay the costs.
The Commission finds that the Republic of Finland has not yet
adopted those measures, or at least has not notified them to it.
                                                                            Pleas in law and main arguments
It is settled law that the Member States may not plead internal
circumstances or practical problems to justify a failure to                 The Republic of Austria has failed fully to implement in
implement by the date fixed.                                                Austrian law the provisions in Directive 92/72/EEC concerning
                                                                            the level of the threshold for ozone concentrations in the air
                                                                            (Annex I, point 3, to the Directive), the requirement that the
( 1) OJ L 201 of 31 July 1999, p. 77.                                       public be informed when values are exceeded at a single
                                                                            measuring point (Article 5 of the Directive) and the mean
                                                                            values used in setting thresholds (Annex I, points 3 and 4, to
                                                                            the Directive).