CELEX: C2001/348/26
Language: en
Date: 2001-12-08 00:00:00
Title: Case C-384/01: Action brought on 5 October 2001 against the French Republic by the Commission of the European Communities

C 348/14              EN                     Official Journal of the European Communities                                       8.12.2001
Reference for a preliminary ruling from the Verwaltungs-                      Republic has failed to fulfil its obligations under the Sixth
gerichtshof by order of that court of 13 September 2001                       Council VAT Directive 77/388/EEC (2);
in the case of Dr Gustav Schneider v Bundesminister für
                              Justiz                                    —     Order the Italian Republic to pay the costs.
                         (Case C-380/01)
                                                                        Pleas in law and main arguments
                         (2001/C 348/24)
                                                                        Under Article 11(A)(1)(a) of the Directive, Member States are
                                                                        required to include in the taxable amount not only that which
                                                                        constitutes the consideration paid by the purchaser or to the
Reference has been made to the Court of Justice of the
European Communities by an order of the Verwaltungsge-                  provider of the service, but also the subsidies provided by third
                                                                        parties to the supplier of the goods or the provider of the
richtshof (Administrative Court, Austria) of 13 September
2001, which was received at the Court Registry on 4 October             service, provided that such subsidies are ‘directly linked to the
2001, for a preliminary ruling in the case of Dr Gustav                 price of such supplies’.
Schneider v Bundesminister für Justiz on the following ques-
tion:                                                                   The Commission argues that the assistance paid to the
                                                                        processing undertakings which produce dried fodder consti-
                                                                        tutes part of the price of the good produced by such
Is Article 6 of Council Directive 76/207/EEC on the implemen-           undertakings, thus falling within the category ‘subsidies directly
tation of the principle of equal treatment for men and women            linked to the price of such supplies’ and which must therefore
as regards access to employment, vocational training and                be subject to tax.
promotion, and working conditions (1) to be interpreted as
meaning that the possibility required by that article of pursuing
claims (in the present case, a claim for compensation) by               (1) OJ 1995 L 15, p. 11.
judicial process is not adequately satisfied by the Austrian            (2) OJ 1977 L 145, p. 1.
Verwaltungsgerichtshof (Administrative Court) alone, in view
of that court’s legally limited powers (a court which hears
appeals on points of law only with no fact-finding powers)?
(1) OJ 1976 L 39, p. 40.
                                                                        Action brought on 5 October 2001 against the French
                                                                        Republic by the Commission of the European Communi-
                                                                                                        ties
                                                                                                  (Case C-384/01)
Action brought on 4 October 2001 by the Commission
of the European Communities against the Italian Republic                                          (2001/C 348/26)
                         (Case C-381/01)
                                                                        An action against the French Republic was brought before the
                                                                        Court of Justice of the European Communities on 5 October
                         (2001/C 348/25)
                                                                        2001 by the Commission of the European Communities,
                                                                        represented by E. Traversa and C. Giolito, acting as Agents,
                                                                        with an address for service in Luxembourg.
An action against the Italian Republic was brought before the
Court of Justice of the European Communities on 4 October               The Commission of the European Communities claims that
2001 by the Commission of the European Communities,                     the Court should:
represented by Enrico Traversa, acting as Agent.
                                                                        —     Declare that, by applying a reduced rate of VAT to the
                                                                              fixed part of the prices for gas and electricity supplied by
The applicant claims that the Court should:                                   the public networks, the French Republic has failed to
                                                                              fulfil its obligations under Article 12(3)(a) and (b) of Sixth
—     Declare that, by failing to levy value added tax (VAT) on               Council Directive 77/388/EC of 17 May 1977 on the
      the assistance paid pursuant to Council Regulation (EC)                 harmonisation of the laws of the Member States relating
      No 603/95 of 21 February 1995 on the common                             to turnover taxes — Common system of value added tax:
      organisation of the market in dried fodder (1), the Italian             uniform basis of assessment (1),
 ---pagebreak--- 8.12.2001                EN                    Official Journal of the European Communities                                    C 348/15
—     order the French Republic to pay the costs.                         Reference for a preliminary ruling by the Rechtbank van
                                                                          Eerste Aanleg te Veurne by judgment of 4 May 2001 in
                                                                          criminal proceedings brought against Klaus Hans Fritz
                                                                                      Brügge; civil party: Benedikt Leliaert
                                                                                                 (Case C-385/01)
Pleas in law and main arguments
                                                                                                 (2001/C 348/27)
In this action the Commission is seeking a declaration of a
failure in two respects to comply with the provisions of the
Sixth Directive: first, a failure to comply with the first and            Reference has been made to the Court of Justice of the
third sentences of Article 12(3) (a) thereof, inasmuch as France          European Communities by judgment of 4 May 2001 by the
is applying a reduced rate contrary to that provision and,                Rechtbank van Eerste Aanleg te Veurne (Court of First Instance,
secondly, a failure to comply with Article 12(3) (b) concerning           Veurne), which was received at the Court Registry on 8 October
the procedure for authorisation of application of a reduced               2001, for a preliminary ruling in criminal proceedings brought
rate on supplies of natural gas and electricity.                          against Klaus Hans Fritz Brügge; civil party: Benedikt Leliaert,
                                                                          on the following question:
—     On the consultation procedure (Article 12(3)(b)): as long           Does application of Article 54 of the Schengen Agreement of
      as France had not replied to the request for additional             19 June 1990 allow the Belgian Openbaar Ministerie (Public
      information, the Commission was unable to take a                    Prosecutor’s Department) to require a German national to
      definitive view. In the absence of full information, despite        appear before the Belgian criminal courts and allow those
      a request to that effect, the Commission was entitled to            courts to sentence that national in the case where the German
      take the view that the French authorities had withdrawn             Public Prosecutor’s Department, on the basis of the same facts,
      their request. Consequently, by not forwarding the infor-           has offered that German national the opportunity to make
      mation requested by the Commission in order to enable               payment in an out-of-court settlement, which that national
      it to take a decision under Article 12(32)(b), France has           has accepted?
      failed to fulfil its obligations under that provision.
—     On the substance of the measure (Article 12(3)(a)): if
      the supply agreement is regarded as a specific service
      representing fixed costs as distinct from the actual supply
      of energy, the reduced rate would then have no legal basis
      in Article 12(3)(a) which refers to Annex H and in which            Action brought on 8 October 2001 by the Commission
      the agreement or the supply of energy does not feature.             of the European Communities against the Italian Republic
      Moreover, there is no warrant for that reduced rate in
      Article 12(3)(b) which merely mentions ‘supplies of
                                                                                                 (Case C-388/01)
      natural gas and electricity’. If, on the other hand, the
      agreement to supply is viewed as forming part of the
      actual supply of energy, then France is obliged to apply                                   (2001/C 348/28)
      the same rate to a transaction relating to the same asset
      in accordance with the principle of a single rate under
      Article 12(3)(a). Thus, under Article 12(3)(1b) it is then
      the whole of the transaction (agreement and supply)                 An action against the Italian Republic was brought before the
      which should be subject to the same reduced rate.                   Court of Justice of the European Communities on 8 October
      Consequently, notwithstanding all the distinctions which            2001 by the Commission of the European Communities,
      France has sought to draw between the agreement to                  represented by Marian Patakia and Roberto Amorosi, acting as
      supply and the actual supply of energy, and however                 Agents.
      such agreement maybe described, France cannot but be
      found to have failed to fulfil its obligations under
      Article 12(3)(a) and (b) of the Sixth VAT Directive.                The applicant claims that the Court should:
                                                                          —    Declare that, by maintaining in force discriminatory
                                                                               charges for admission to public museums, monuments,
(1) OJ 1977 L 145, p. 1.                                                       galleries, archaeological digs, parks and gardens in Italy,
                                                                               granted by local or decentralised authorises which only
                                                                               favour Italian nationals or residents within the territory
                                                                               of the administrative authority running the cultural sites
                                                                               in question and who are aged over 60 or 65 years, to the
                                                                               exclusion of tourists who are nationals of other Member