CELEX: 62008CN0011
Language: en
Date: 2008-01-10 00:00:00
Title: Case C-11/08: Action brought on 10 January 2008 — Commission of the European Communities v Republic of Malta

23.2.2008   
            
            
               EN
            
            
               Official Journal of the European Union
            
            
               C 51/37
            
         Action brought on 10 January 2008 — Commission of the European Communities v Republic of Malta
   (Case C-11/08)
   (2008/C 51/62)
   Language of the case: English
   Parties
   
      Applicant: Commission of the European Communities (represented by: K. Simonsson, Agent)
   
      Defendant: Republic of Malta
   The applicant claims that the Court should:
   
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               declare that, by providing in its national law that inspectors who do not fulfil the criteria in Annex VII of Council Directive 95/21/EC of 19 June 1995 on port State control of shipping (1) are accepted if they are employed by the competent authority for port State control on 1 May 2004, the Republic of Malta has failed to fulfil its obligations under Article 12(1) and Annex VII of the Directive;
            
         
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               order Republic of Malta to pay the costs.
            
         Pleas in law and main arguments
   Article 12(1) of the directive provides, as a main rule, that inspections shall be carried out only by inspectors who fulfil the qualification criteria set out in Annex VII thereof. Paragraph 5 of Annex VII provides, as an exception to this main rule, that inspectors who do not fulfil the criteria in paragraphs 1-4 thereof are accepted if they are employed by the competent authority of a Member State for port State control at the date of adoption of the directive, in other words, on 19 June 1995.
   The Act of Accession does not provide for any transitional measures relating to the application of the directive in respect of Malta. In accordance with article 2 of the Act of Accession the provisions of the directive are binding upon Malta from the date of accession.
   It is the Commission's view that the Merchant Shipping (Port State Control) Regulations, 2004 (the ‘Regulations’), adopted by Malta to implement the directive, are incompatible with the directive, read in conjunction with the Act of Accession, in so far as they provide that inspectors who do not fulfil the criteria in paragraphs 1-4 of Annex VII of the directive are accepted if they have been employed by the competent authority for port State control between 19 June 1995 and the date of entry into force of the Regulations — in other words, 1 May 2004.
   
      (1)  OJ L 157, p. 1.