CELEX: C2001/317/42
Language: en
Date: 2001-11-10 00:00:00
Title: Case C-377/01: Action brought on 28 September 2001 by the Commission of the European Communities against the Kingdom of Belgium

C 317/22               EN                     Official Journal of the European Communities                                    10.11.2001
Pleas in law and main arguments                                          Action brought on 28 September 2001 by the Com-
                                                                         mission of the European Communities against the
                                                                                               Kingdom of Belgium
Article 249 EC under which a directive shall be binding as to
the result to be achieved, upon each Member State, carries by
implication an obligation on the Member States to observe the                                     (Case C-377/01)
period for compliance laid down in the directive. That period
expired on 14 May 2000 without the United Kingdom having
enacted the provisions necessary to comply with the directive
                                                                                                  (2001/C 317/42)
referred to in the conclusions of the Commission.
(1) OJ L 123, 24.4.1998, p. 1-63.                                        An action against the Kingdom of Belgium was brought
                                                                         before the Court of Justice of the European Communities on
                                                                         28 September 2001 by the Commission of the European
                                                                         Communities, represented by G. Valero Jordana and J. Adda,
                                                                         acting as Agents, with an address for service in Luxembourg.
Action brought on 28 September 2001 by the Com-
                                                                         The Commission claims that the Court should declare that:
   mission of the European Communities against Ireland
                          (Case C-376/01)                                —    by virtue of the failure of the competent Belgian auth-
                                                                              orities, whichever they may be, to adopt the measures
                          (2001/C 317/41)                                     necessary to ensure the transposition of Articles 5(c) and
                                                                              (e) and 6(1) of Directive 79/409/EEC (1) with regard to
                                                                              so-called ‘non-indigenous’ species covered by Directive
An action against Ireland was brought before the Court of                     79/409/EEC, where the transactions governed by the
Justice of the European Communities on 28 September 2001                      above mentioned provisions of the directive are not
by the Commission of the European Communities, represented                    import, export or transit, or if those measures have be on
by Richard Wainwright, acting as agent, with an address for                   adopted, by virtue of their failure to communicate them
service in Luxembourg.                                                        to the Commission, and
The Applicant requests that the Court should:                                 —     by virtue of the Federal State’s failure to adopt the
                                                                                    provisions necessary to ensure the transposition of
—     declare that by failing to adopt the laws, regulations or                     Articles 5(c) and (e) and 6(1) of Directive
      administrative provisions necessary before 14 May 2000                        79/409/EEC with regard to the import, export and
      to comply with European Parliament and Council Direc-                         transit of so-called ‘non-indigenous’ species covered
      tive 98/8/EC of 16 February 1998 concerning the placing                       by Directive 79/409/EEC, where they are one of the
      of biocidal products on the market (1), or in any event by                    transactions governed by those provisions of the
      failing to communicate them to the Commission, Ireland                        directive, namely the: keeping of birds and eggs, and
      has failed to fulfil its obligations under that Directive;                    the sale, transport for sale, keeping for sale and the
                                                                                    offering for sale of live or dead birds and of any
—     order Ireland to pay the costs.                                               readily recognisable parts or derivatives of such
                                                                                    birds, or, if those measures had been adopted, by
                                                                                    virtue of its failure to communicate them to the
                                                                                    Commission,
Pleas in law and main arguments
                                                                              —     the Kingdom of Belgium has failed to fulfil its
Article 249 EC under which a directive shall be binding as to                       obligations under Council Directive 79/409/EEC of
the result to be achieved, upon each Member State, carries by                       2 April 1979 on the conservation of wild birds, and
implication an obligation on the Member States to observe the                       in particular Articles 5(c) and (e) and 6(1) thereof,
period for compliance laid down in the directive. That period                       inasmuch as those provisions have not been adopted
expired on 14 May 2000 without Ireland having enacted the                           by the competent Belgian authorities, or its obli-
provisions necessary to comply with the directive referred to                       gations under Article 18, inasmuch as those pro-
in the conclusions of the Commission.                                               visions, even if adopted, have not been communi-
                                                                                    cated to the Commission by the competent Belgian
                                                                                    authorities;
(1) OJ L 123, 24.4.1998, p. 1-63.
                                                                         —    order the Kingdom of Belgium to pay the costs
 ---pagebreak--- 10.11.2001              EN                    Official Journal of the European Communities                                       C 317/23
Pleas in law and main arguments                                          The applicant claims that the Court should
                                                                         1.    Declare that, by failing to adopt and bring into force
The Commission submits that the provisions of Articles 5(c)                    within the prescribed period the laws, regulations and
and (e) and 6(1) of the directive apply equally to live or dead                administrative provisions necessary to comply with
birds and to readily recognisable parts or derivatives of birds                Directive 98/7/EC of the European Parliament and of
and to their eggs which a person keeps on the territory of the                 the Council of 16 February 1998 amending Directive
legislating Member State and which have been killed, captured                  87/102/EEC for the approximation of the laws, regu-
or otherwise acquired, or of which that person has obtained                    lations and administrative provisions of the Member
possession by any other means in a Member State other than                     States concerning consumer credit (1), or, in any event, by
the legislating Member State, subject to Articles 1 and 9 as                   failing to communicate such provisions to the Com-
regards the prohibition on keeping refered to in Article 5(c)                  mission, the Kingdom of Spain has failed to fulfil its
and (e), and subject to Article 6(2) as regards the acts referred              obligations under Article 2(1) of that directive;
to in Article 6(1) of the directive. Consequently, Articles 5(c)         2.    Order the Kingdom of Spain to pay the costs.
and (e) and 6(1) of the directive apply to species and subspecies
of birds naturally occurring in the wild state in the European
territory of the Member States to which the Treaty applies,              Pleas in law and main arguments
even though not naturally occurring in the wild state in
Belgium, and also to subspecies of birds naturally occurring in          According to Article 2(1) of the directive, the Kingdom of
the wild state only outside the European territory of the                Spain was to have brought into force the provisions necessary
Member States where the species to which they belong or                  to comply with it no later than 21 April 2001 and inform the
other subspecies of that species occur naturally in the wild             Commission immediately thereof.
state in the territory in question.
                                                                         (1) OJ 1998 L 101, p. 17.
The period for transposing the directive expired on 16 April
1981.
(1) Council Directive 79/409/EEC of 2 April 1979 on the conser-                 Removal from the register of Case C-412/00 (1)
    vation of wild birds (OJ L 103 of 25.04.1979, p. 1).
                                                                                                 (2001/C 317/44)
                                                                         By order of the President of the Court of Justice of the
                                                                         European Communities has ordered the removal from the
                                                                         register of Case C-412/00: Commission of the European
                                                                         Communities v Portuguese Republic.
Action brought on 8 October 2001 by the Commission                       (1) OJ C 28 of 27.1.2001.
of the European Communities against the Kingdom of
                                Spain
                          (Case C-386/01)                                       Removal from the register of Case C-414/00 (1)
                                                                                                 (2001/C 317/45)
                          (2001/C 317/43)
                                                                         By order of 10 September 2001 the President of the Fourth
An action against the Kingdom of Spain was brought before                Chamber of the Court of Justice of the European Communities
the Court of Justice of the European Communities on 8 Octo-              has ordered the removal from the register of Case C-414/00:
ber 2001 by the Commission of the European Communities,                  Commission of the European Communities v Portuguese
represented by I. Martı́nez del Peral, acting as Agent, with an          Republic.
address for service in Luxembourg at the office of L. Escobar,
Wagner Centre C 254.                                                     (1) OJ C 28 of 27.1.2001.