CELEX: C1999/100/15
Language: en
Date: 1999-04-10 00:00:00
Title: Case C-34/99: Reference for a preliminary ruling by the House of Lords, by order of that court of 1 February 1999, in the case of Commissioners of Customs and Excise against Primback Ltd

10.4.1999            EN                  Official Journal of the European Communities                                    C 100/9
1. Declares that, by failing to adopt and communicate to            extend to the fields covered by Articles 1 to 5, Article 7,
     the Commission within the prescribed period the laws,          Article 14, Article 16(1) and (3) and Articles 17 to 19.
     regulations and administrative provisions necessary
     to implement Council Directive 91/676/EEC of
     12 December 1991 concerning the protection of                  This view is, it is submitted, wrong in law in that it is:
     waters against pollution caused by nitrates from
     agricultural sources, and in particular by failing to
     comply with the obligation laid down in Article 3(2)           Ð contrary to the Treaty; and
     thereof, the Italian Republic has failed to fulfil its
     obligations under Article 12(1) thereof.
                                                                    Ð inconsistent with the legislative action taken over the
                                                                        years by the Council itself, on proposals from the
2. Orders the Italian Republic to pay the costs.                        Commission.
(1) OJ C 212, 12.7.1997.
                                                                    Reference for a preliminary ruling by the House of Lords,
                                                                    by order of that court of 1 February 1999, in the case of
Action brought on 5 February 1999 by the Commission of              Commissioners of Customs and Excise against Primback
the European Communities against the Council of the                                               Ltd
                       European Union                                                       (Case C-34/99)
                        (Case C-29/99)                                                     (1999/C 100/15)
                       (1999/C 100/14)
                                                                    Reference has been made to the Court of Justice of the
                                                                    European Communities by an order of the House of Lords
An action against the Council of the European Union was
                                                                    of 1 February 1999, which was received at the Court
brought before the Court of Justice of the European
                                                                    Registry on 8 February 1999, for a preliminary ruling in
Communities on 5 February 1999 by the Commission of
                                                                    the case of Commissioners of Customs and Excise against
the European Communities, represented by Thomas F.
                                                                    Primback Ltd, on the following questions:
Cusack and Lena Ström, Legal Advisers, acting as agents,
with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Office of
Carlos Gómez de la Cruz, member of the Legal Service of
the Commission, Centre Wagner.                                      1. Where a retailer offers, at a single price, goods and the
                                                                        option of a period of extendes credit to pay that price
                                                                        Ð the credit to be provided by a person other than the
                                                                        retailer, and at no additional cost to the customer Ð
The applicant claims that the Court should:                             what is the taxable amount for which the retailer must
                                                                        account in respect of the goods supplied, having
                                                                        regard to Articles 11A(1)(a) and 13B(d)(1) of Council
Ð order that the final paragraph of the Declaration by                  Directive 77/388/EEC (1)? In particular, is the taxable
     the European Atomic Energy Community according to                  amount:
     the provisions of Article 30(4)(iii) of the Convention
     on Nuclear Safety attached to the Council's Decision
     of 7 December 1998 be annulled;                                    (a) the full amount payable by the customer;
                                                                        (b) the full amount payable by the customer, less the
Ð order the Council          to  pay   the  costs   of  these               value of the credit;
     proceedings.
                                                                        (c) (if different from (b) above) the amount actually
Pleas in law and main arguments adduced in support                          received by the retailer; or
                                                                        (d) an amount calculated on some other, and if so
By limiting the terms of the final paragraph of the                         what, basis?
Declaration attached to its Decision of 7 December 1998
in relation to Community competence, the Council seeks
to establish that the competence of the Community in the            2. If the taxable amount is the full amount payable by
fields covered by the Convention on Nuclear Safety is                   the customer, less the value of the credit (see
limited to Article 15 and Article 16(2) and that it does not            question 1(b) above), how is that credit to be valued?
 ---pagebreak--- C 100/10               EN                  Official Journal of the European Communities                                     10.4.1999
3. Is the anwer to question 1 above affected by the fact              liability, Giovanni Bertolotto and Compagnia Assicuratrice
     that:                                                            RAS SpA, having its registered office in Milan, on the
                                                                      following questions:
     (a) the supply of goods to the customer is described as
         being on interest free' credit terms;                       (a) Does the decision of the CNF (1), approved by
                                                                           Ministerial Decree No 585/94, fixing binding tariffs
     (b) the customer signs a loan agreement with a                        for the professional activity of lawyers, come within
         finance house at the time of the sale transaction,                the scope of the prohibition in Article 85(1) of the EC
         the terms of which include:                                       Treaty?
         (i)   a promise by the finance house to pay the                   If the answer to (a) is in the affirmative:
               retailer a sum equal to the loan (which was
               for amount equal to the advertised price of
               the goods);                                            (b) Does the case none the less correspond to one of the
                                                                           situations envisaged in Article 85(3) of the Treaty to
         (ii) a statement that the interest rate applying to               which that prohibition does not apply?
               the loan is 0 %'; and
                                                                      (1) Consiglio Nazionale Forense (National Legal Council).
         (iii) an authorisation by the customer to the
               finance house for it to pay the full amount of
               the loan to the retailer and an agreement by
               the finance house to do so; and
     (c) as a result of a separate agreement between the
         retailer and the finance house (the existence and
         terms of which are not disclosed to the customer),           Reference for a preliminary ruling by the Tribunal de
         the sum received by the retailer is a sum less than          PremieÁre Instance, LieÁge (Seventh Chamber), by judgment
         the full amount of the advertised price for the              of that court of 8 February 1999 in the case of IdeÂal
         goods?                                                                   Tourisme SA against the Belgian State
                                                                                               (Case C-36/99)
(1) Council Directive 77/388/EEC of 17 May 1977 on the                                        (1999/C 100/17)
    harmonisation of the laws of the Member States relating to
    turnover taxes Ð Common system of value added tax:
    uniform basis of assessment (OJ L 145, 13.6.1977, p. 1).
                                                                      Reference has been made to the Court of Justice of the
                                                                      European Communities by judgment of the Tribunal de
                                                                      PremieÁre Instance (Court of First Instance), LieÁge (Seventh
                                                                      Chamber) of 8 February 1999, received at the Court
                                                                      Registry on 10 February 1999, for a preliminary ruling in
                                                                      the case of IdeÂal Tourisme against the Belgian State on the
                                                                      following questions:
Reference for a preliminary ruling by the Pretura
Circondariale di Pinerolo (TO) by order of 13 January                 Does Council Directive 77/388/EEC (1), and in particular
1999 in the criminal proceedings against Manuele                      Article 12(3) and Article 28(3)(b) thereof, permit Member
Arduino, with the intervention of Diego Dessi, plaintiff in           States to introduce, to the detriment of motor-coach
the civil action, and the parties with civil liability,               passenger transport undertakings, discrimination whixh is
Giovanni Bertolotto and Compagnia Assicuratrice RAS                   counter to the principles of equal treatment and non-
           SpA, having its registered office in Milan                 discrimination contained in Community law?
                         (Case C-35/99)
                                                                      Can a VAT regime which favours a given sector of
                        (1999/C 100/16)                               economic activity, such as the one in issue in the present
                                                                      case, constitute State aid within the meaning of Article 92
                                                                      of the Treaty of Rome, even where it does not exclusively
                                                                      protect the interests of national industry?
Reference has been made to the Court of Justice of the
European Communities by order of 13 January 1999 from
the Pretura Circondariale di Pinerolo (TO) (District                  (1) Sixth Council Directive 77/388/EEC of 17 May 1977 on the
Magistrate's Court, Pinerolo (Turin)), which was received                 harmonisation of the laws of the Member States relating to
                                                                          turnover taxes Ð Common system of value added tax:
at the Court Registry on 9 February 1999, for a
                                                                          uniform basis of assessment (OJ L 145, 13.6.1977, p. 1).
preliminary ruling in the criminal proceedings against
Manuele Arduino, with the intervention of Diego Dessi,
plaintiff in the civil action, and the parties with civil