CELEX: C1997/094/23
Language: en
Date: 1997-03-22 00:00:00
Title: Action brought on 3 February 1997 by the Commission of the European Communities against the Italian Republic (Case C-43/97)

No C 94/ 12           ran                     Official Journal of the European Communities                                   22 . 3 . 97
Action brought on 3 February 1997 by the Commission of                        Member States in respect of the expenditure for 1992
     the European Communities against the Italian Republic                    of the Guarantee Section of the European Agricultural
                          (Case C-43/97)                                      Guidance and Guarantee Fund (EAGGF) and in
                                                                              respect of certain expenditure for 1993 (*) as regards
                            ( 97/C 94/23 )                                    consumption aid for olive oil, and
An action against the Italian Republic was brought before                — order the Commission to pay the costs .
the Court of Justice of the European Communities on
3 February 1997 by the Commission of the European                        Pleas in law and main arguments adduced in support:
Communities, represented by Paolo Stancanelli, of its
Legal Service, acting as Agents, with an address for service             — Infringement of the rules concerning the financing of
in Luxembourg at the office of Carlos Gomez de la Cruz,                       the common agricultural policy and of the rules
Wagner Centre, Kirchberg.                                                     governing the common organization of the market in
                                                                              the oils and fats sector: the Kingdom of Spain states,
The applicant claims that the Court should:                                   with regard to each of the undertakings in respect of
                                                                              which the Commission proposes financial corrections,
1 . declare that, by failing to adopt and bring into force                    the reasons for which it considers that the Commission
       the laws, regulations or administrative provisions                     committed an error when assessing compliance with
       necessary to comply with Council Directive 93/36/EEC                   the Community rules by the undertakings concerned.
       of 14 June 1993 coordinating procedures for the
       award of public supply contracts ( ! ), or in any event           — Breach of the principle of proportionality: in the case
       by failing to notify said provisions to the Commission,                of the two undertakings from which the EAGGF
       the Italian Republic has failed to fulfil its obligations              requires withdrawal of authorization for entitlement to
       under Article 34 ( 1 ) of that Directive;                             consumption aid, the amount cannot be regarded as
                                                                              significant, nor does there exist any intention to
2. order the Italian Republic to pay the costs .                              defraud .
Pleas in law and main arguments adduced in support:                           Also the application of a correction of 100% of the
                                                                              aid in the case of four of the undertakings
Under Article 189 of the EC Treaty, according to which a
                                                                              investigated, and of 10% in the case of the nine
Directive is to be binding, as to the result to be achieved,
                                                                              others, does not correspond to any established
upon each Member State to which it is addressed,
                                                                             criterion and is consequently out of all proportion to
Member States are required to observe the time limits laid
                                                                             the possible infringement committed.
down in directives for their transposition. That time limit
expired on 14 June 1994 without the Italian Republic
                                                                         (') OJ No L 323 , 13 . 12 . 1996 , p. 26 .
having brought into force the necessary provisions in
order to comply with the Directive referred to in the
Commission's application.
( 1 ) OJNoL 199, 9 . 8 . 1993 , p . 1 .
                                                                         Reference for a preliminary ruling made by the Richmond
                                                                         Magistrates Court by order of that court of 3 September
                                                                         1996 in the case of Vehicle Inspectorate against 1 . E.
                                                                             Clarke & Sons ( Coaches ) Limited and 2. D. J. Feme
Action brought on 4 February 1997 by the Kingdom                                                   ( Case C-47/97 )
of Spain against the Commission of the European                                                      ( 97/C 94/25 )
                            Communities
                          ( Case C-45/97)
                                                                         Reference has been made to the Court of Justice of the
                            ( 97/C 94/24 )                               European Communities by an order of the Richmond
                                                                         Magistrates Court, of 3 September 1996, which was
An action against the Commission of the European                         received at the Court Registry on 6 February 1997, for a
Communities was brought before the Court of Justice of                   preliminary ruling in the case of Vehicle Inspectorate
the European Communities on 4 February 1997 by the                       against 1 . E. Clarke & Sons ( Coaches ) Limited and 2 . D. J.
Kingdom of Spain, represented by Rosario Silva de La­                    Feme, on the following questions:
puerta, Abogado del Estado and Head of the Legal
Service, acting as Agent, with an address for service in                 1 . Are groups of passengers carried on a single journey
Luxembourg at the Spanish Embassy, 4—6 boulevard E.                           between an airport and a hotel via, on occasions, a
Servais .                                                                    tourist attraction 'specified categories of passengers'
                                                                              for the purposes of the application of Article 2 ( 1 ) ( 2 )
The applicant claims that the Court should:                                   of Council Regulation 684/92/EEC H ?
— annul          Commission          Decision    96/701 /EC     of       2. If the answer to Question 1 is yes, is Article 2 ( 1 ) ( 2 )
       20 November 1996 amending Decision 96/311 /EC                         to be construed so that the carriage of such passengers
       on the clearance of the accounts presented by the                      on that journey where :