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59. In that regard, effective judicial review, which must be able to cover the legality of the reasons for the contested decision, presupposes in general, that the court to which the matter is referred may require the competent authority to notify its reasons. However where it is more particularly a question of securing the effective protection of a right conferred by Community law, interested parties must also be able to defend that right under the best possible conditions and have the possibility of deciding, with a full knowledge of the relevant facts, whether there is any point in applying to the courts. Consequently, in such circumstances, the competent national authority is under a duty to inform them of the reasons on which its refusal is based, either in the decision itself or in a subsequent communication made at their request (see Case 222/86 Heylens and Others [1987] ECR 4097, paragraph 15).

12 Such a direct link must also exist between the supply of goods and the consideration received within the meaning of Article 11 A 1 ( a ) of the Sixth Directive .

21. The measures which the Member States are required to take for the implementation of Article 7(3) of Directive 76/768 must however be consistent with the principle of proportionality (see, to that effect, Unilever , paragraph 27; Estée Lauder , paragraph 26, and Linhart and Biffl , paragraph 26).

49. That conclusion is, moreover, endorsed by the explanatory memorandum to the proposal for the Sixth Directive ( Bulletin of the European Communities , supplement 11/73, p. 13) in which the Commission observes that ‘when payments on account are received prior to the chargeable event, receipt of these amounts gives rise to a charge to tax, since the parties to the transaction in this way demonstrate their intention that all the financial consequences of the chargeable event should arise in advance’.

18 It has been consistently held that all rules enacted by Member States which are capable of hindering, directly or indirectly, actually or potentially, intra-Community trade are to be considered as measures having an effect equivalent to quantitative restrictions (judgment in Case 8/74 Procureur du Roi v Dassonville [1974] ECR 837, paragraph 5).

56. Where the substance or object in question is a production residue, that is to say, a product which is not itself wanted for subsequent use and which the holder cannot reuse on economically advantageous terms without prior processing, it must be regarded as a burden which the holder ‘discards’ (see Palin Granit , paragraphs 32 to 37, and Van de Walle , paragraph 46).

21 In exercising its powers under Articles 155 and 169 of the Treaty, the Commission does not have to show that there is a specific interest in bringing an action. Article 169 is not intended to protect the Commission' s own rights. The Commission' s function, in the general interest of the Community, is to ensure that the Member States give effect to the Treaty and the provisions adopted by the institutions thereunder and to obtain a declaration of any failure to fulfil the obligations deriving therefrom with a view to bringing it to an end (Case 167/73 Commission v France [1974] ECR 359, paragraph 15, and Case C-422/92 Commission v Germany [1995] ECR I-1097, paragraph 16).

125. Such a line of reasoning suggests that La Poste split from Postadex for no consideration, as though the activity transferred had been privatised without any remuneration.

21. Selon une jurisprudence constante, la Cour est compétente pour statuer sur les demandes de décision préjudicielle portant sur des dispositions du droit de l’Union dans des situations dans lesquelles les faits au principal se situent en dehors du champ d’application du droit de l’Union, mais dans lesquelles le droit national renvoie au contenu desdites dispositions du droit de l’Union pour déterminer les règles applicables à une situation purement interne de l’État membre concerné (voir, notamment, arrêts du 16 mars 2006, Poseidon Chartering, C‑3/04, Rec. p. I‑2505, point 15; du 11 décembre 2007, ETI e.a., C‑280/06, Rec. p. I‑10893, points 22 et 26; du 2 mars 2010, Salahadin Abdulla e.a., C‑175/08, C‑176/08, C‑178/08 et C‑179/08, Rec. p. I‑1493, point 48; Cicala, précité, point 17, ainsi que du 18 octobre 2012, Nolan, C‑583/10, point 45).

20 In order to ascertain the actual money equivalent accruing to Argos when it takes a voucher in payment, regard must be had only to the transaction which is relevant in that regard, namely the initial transaction comprising the sale of the voucher, at a discount or otherwise. In view of the nature of that transaction, the actual money equivalent which the voucher represents for Argos, when the latter accepts it in payment, is the sum of money which it received upon the sale of the voucher, namely its face value less any discount allowed.

177. Lastly, according to well established case-law, it is not for this Court, when ruling on questions of law in the context of an appeal, to substitute, on grounds of fairness, its own assessment for that of the General Court exercising its unlimited jurisdiction to rule on the amount of fines imposed on undertakings for infringements by those undertakings of European Union law. Accordingly, only inasmuch as the Court of Justice considers that the level of the penalty is not merely inappropriate, but also excessive to the point of being disproportionate, would it have to find that the General Court erred in law, on account of the inappropriateness of the amount of a fine (Case C‑70/12 P Quinn Barlo and Others v Commission [2013] ECR, paragraph 57).

28. It is clear from the order for reference that Catherine has both sickness insurance and sufficient resources, provided by her mother, for her not to become a burden on the social assistance system of the host Member State.

19. Thus, an interpretation, by the Court, of provisions of EU law in purely internal situations is warranted on the ground that they have been made applicable by national law directly and unconditionally (see, to that effect, Case C‑346/93 Kleinwort Benson [1995] ECR I‑615, paragraph 16, and Case C‑280/06 ETI and Others [2007] ECR I‑10893, paragraph 25), in order to ensure that internal situations and situations governed by EU law are treated in the same way (see, to that effect, Poseidon Chartering , paragraph 17, and Case C‑217/05 Confederación Española de Empresarios de Estaciones de Servicio [2006] ECR I‑11987, paragraph 22).

64. In paragraph 59 of Savas , the Court held that, unlike nationals of Member States, Turkish workers are not entitled to move freely within the Community but benefit only from certain rights in the host Member State whose territory they have lawfully entered and where they have been in legal employment for a specific period.

48. As to the concept of social advantage, referred to in Article 7(2) of Regulation No 1612/68, this term covers all the advantages which, whether or not linked to a contract of employment, are generally granted to national workers primarily because of their status as workers or by virtue of the mere fact of their ordinary residence on the national territory, and the extension of which to migrant workers therefore seems likely to facilitate their mobility within the Community (Case 249/83 Hoeckx [1985] ECR 973, paragraph 20, and Case C‑85/96 Martínez Sala [1998] ECR I‑2691, paragraph 25).

69. In the province of Upper Austria, the relevant assessment is made on the basis of the answers given by practitioners practising in the catchment area of the independent outpatient dental clinic intended to be set up, even though they are potential direct competitors of that clinic. Such a method is liable to affect the objectivity and impartiality of the treatment of the application for authorisation.

24. That last condition enables the proprietor to check that the repackaging is not carried out in such a way as directly or indirectly to affect the original condition of the product and that the presentation after repackaging is not likely to damage the reputation of the trade mark ( Bristol-Myers Squibb and Others , paragraph 78, and Boehringer Ingelheim and Others , paragraph 20).

31 It follows that, in applying national law, national courts called upon to interpret that law are required to consider the whole body of rules of law and to apply methods of interpretation that are recognised by those rules in order to interpret it, so far as possible, in the light of the wording and the purpose of the directive concerned in order to achieve the result sought by the directive and consequently comply with the third paragraph of Article 288 TFEU (see, inter alia, judgments in Pfeiffer and Others, C‑397/01 to C‑403/01, EU:C:2004:584, paragraphs 113 and 114, and Kücükdeveci, C‑555/07, EU:C:2010:21, paragraph 48).

39. Furthermore, the Court came to the same conclusion with regard to public procurement contracts. In Case C-300/07 Hans & Christophorus Oymanns [2009] ECR I-0000, paragraph 64, the Court held that the concept of ‘public supply contracts’ referred to in the first paragraph of Article 1(2)(c) of Directive 2004/18/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 March 2004 on the coordination of procedures for the award of public works contracts, public supply contracts and public service contracts (OJ 2004 L 134, p. 114) covers the purchase of products, irrespective of whether the product under consideration is supplied to consumers ready-made or after being manufactured in accordance with consumers’ requirements. In paragraph 66 of that judgment, the Court held that, where the goods supplied are individually manufactured and tailored to the needs of each customer, the manufacture of those goods is part of the supply of the goods at issue.

64. It must also be stated that, in accordance with the definition of the concept of ‘public supply contracts’ contained in the first indent of Article 1(2)(c) of Directive 2004/18, that concept covers transactions such as, for example, the purchase or rental of ‘products’, without being more specific and without making a distinction according to whether the product in question was manufactured in a standardised manner or in an individualised manner, that is to say, in accordance with the actual preferences and needs of the customer. Consequently, the concept of ‘product’ to which that provision makes general reference also includes the manufacturing process, irrespective of whether the product under consideration is supplied to consumers ready-made or after being manufactured in accordance with consumers’ requirements.

25. Admittedly, the Court may, of its own motion, on a proposal from the Advocate General, or at the request of the parties, order the reopening of the oral procedure in accordance with Article 61 of the Rules of Procedure if it considers that it lacks sufficient information, or that the case must be dealt with on the basis of an argument which has not been debated between the parties (see, inter alia, Case C‑209/01 Schilling and Fleck-Schilling [2003] ECR I-13389, paragraph 19, and Case C-30/02 Recheio – Cash & Carry [2004] ECR I-6051, paragraph 12).

28. In the main proceedings, the provisions of the CGI at issue aim to treat, as far as possible, a group constituted by a parent company with its subsidiaries and its sub-subsidiaries in the same way as an undertaking with a number of permanent establishments, by allowing the results of each company to be consolidated.

41 The Court's case-law shows that, for a person to be directly concerned by a Community measure, the latter must directly affect the legal situation of the individual and leave no discretion to the addressees of that measure who are entrusted with the task of implementing it, such implementation being purely automatic and resulting from Community rules without the application of other intermediate rules (see to that effect, in particular, International Fruit Company, cited above, paragraphs 23 to 29, Case 92/78 Simmenthal v Commission [1979] ECR 777, paragraphs 25 and 26, Case 113/77 NTN Toyo Bearing Company and Others v Council [1979] ECR 1185, paragraphs 11 and 12, Case 118/77 ISO v Council [1979] ECR 1277, paragraph 26, Case 119/77 Nippon Seiko and Others v Council and Commission [1979] ECR 1303, paragraph 14, Case 120/77 Koyo Seiko and Others v Council and Commission [1979] ECR 1337, paragraph 25, Case 121/77 Nachi Fujikoshi and Others v Council [1979] ECR 1363, paragraph 11, Joined Cases 87/77, 130/77, 22/83, 9/84 and 10/84 Salerno and Others v Commission and Council [1985] ECR 2523, paragraph 31, Case 333/85 Mannesmann-Röhrenwerke and Benteler v Council [1987] ECR 1381, paragraph 14, Case 55/86 Arposol v Council [1988] ECR 13, paragraphs 11 to 13, Case 207/86 Apesco v Commission [1988] ECR 2151, paragraph 12, and Case C-152/88 Sofrimport v Commission [1990] ECR I-2477, paragraph 9).

27. The concept of ‘objective reasons’ for the purposes of clause 5(1)(a) of the FTW Framework Agreement must, as the Court has already held, be understood as referring to precise and concrete circumstances characterising a given activity, which are therefore capable, in that particular context, of justifying the use of successive fixed-term employment contracts. Those circumstances may result, in particular, from the specific nature of the tasks for the performance of which such contracts have been concluded and from the inherent characteristics of those tasks or, as the case may be, from pursuit of a legitimate social-policy objective of a Member State ( Angelidaki and Others , paragraph 96 and case-law cited).

13 In that respect it should be observed that the application to products from other Member States of national provisions restricting or prohibiting certain selling arrangements is not such as to hinder directly or indirectly, actually or potentially, trade between Member States within the meaning of the Dassonville judgment, cited above, so long as those provisions apply to all relevant traders operating within the national territory and so long as they affect in the same manner, in law and in fact, the marketing of domestic products and of those from other Member States. Provided that those conditions are fulfilled, the application of such rules to the sale of products from another Member State meeting the requirements laid down by that State is not by nature such as to prevent their access to the market or to impede access any more than it impedes the access of domestic products. Such rules therefore fall outside the scope of Article 30 of the Treaty (see, in particular, the judgments in Keck and Mithouard, cited above, paragraphs 16 and 17, in Case C-292/92 Huenermund and Others [1993] ECR I-6787, paragraph 21, and in Case C-412/93 Société d' Importation Édouard Leclerc-Siplec [1995] ECR I-0000, paragraph 21).

16 By contrast, contrary to what has previously been decided, the application to products from other Member States of national provisions restricting or prohibiting certain selling arrangements is not such as to hinder directly or indirectly, actually or potentially, trade between Member States within the meaning of the Dassonville judgment (Case 8/74 [1974] ECR 837), so long as those provisions apply to all relevant traders operating within the national territory and so long as they affect in the same manner, in law and in fact, the marketing of domestic products and of those from other Member States.

46. Moreover, when applying Council Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71 of 14 June 1971 on the application of social security schemes to employed persons and their families moving within the Community (OJ 1971 L 149, p. 2), those Member States which have established a system providing benefits in kind, or even a national health service, must provide mechanisms for ex post facto reimbursement in respect of care provided in a Member State other than the competent State ( Müller‑Fauré and van Riet , paragraph 105). In that regard, nothing precludes a competent Member State with a benefits in kind system from fixing the amounts of reimbursement which patients who have received care in another Member State can claim, provided that those amounts are based on objective, non‑discriminatory and transparent criteria ( Müller‑Fauré and van Riet , paragraph 107).

105. First, when applying Regulation No 1408/71, those Member States which have established a system providing benefits in kind, or even a national health service, must provide mechanisms for ex post facto reimbursement in respect of care provided in a Member State other than the competent State. That is the case, for example, where it has not been possible to complete the formalities during the relevant person's stay in that State (see Article 34 of Regulation (EEC) No 574/72 of the Council of 21 March 1972 fixing the procedure for implementing Regulation No 1408/71) or where the competent State has authorised access to treatment abroad in accordance with Article 22(1)(c) of Regulation No 1408/71.

32. According to the case-law of the Court, it follows from the wording of that provision that the notion of supply of goods does not refer to the transfer of ownership in accordance with the procedures prescribed by the applicable national law but covers any transfer of tangible property by one party which empowers the other party actually to dispose of it as if he were the owner of the property. The purpose of the Sixth Directive might be jeopardised if the requirements for there to be a supply of goods, which is one of the three taxable transactions, were to differ according to the civil law of the Member State concerned (see, to that effect, Case C‑320/88 Shipping and Forwarding Enterprise Safe [1990] ECR I‑285, paragraphs 7 and 8; Case C‑291/92 Armbrecht [1995] ECR I‑2775, paragraphs 13 and 14; Case C‑185/01 Auto Lease Holland [2003] ECR I‑1317, paragraphs 32 and 33; and Case C‑25/03 HE [2005] ECR I‑3123, paragraph 64).

7 It is clear from the wording of this provision that "supply of goods" does not refer to the transfer of ownership in accordance with the procedures prescribed by the applicable national law but covers any transfer of tangible property by one party which empowers the other party actually to dispose of it as if he were the owner of the property .

53. Article 35(1) EU, in that it does not enable national courts to refer a question to the Court for a preliminary ruling on a common position but only a question concerning the acts listed in that provision, treats as acts capable of being the subject of such a reference for a preliminary ruling all measures adopted by the Council and intended to produce legal effects in relation to third parties. Given that the procedure enabling the Court to give preliminary rulings is designed to guarantee observance of the law in the interpretation and application of the Treaty, it would run counter to that objective to interpret Article 35(1) EU narrowly. The right to make a reference to the Court for a preliminary ruling must therefore exist in respect of all measures adopted by the Council, whatever their nature or form, which are intended to have legal effects in relation to third parties (see, by analogy, Case 22/70 Commission v Council (ERTA) [1971] ECR 263, paragraphs 38 to 42, and Case C-57/95 France v Commission [1997] ECR I‑1627, paragraph 7 et seq.).

17 As for the models whose normal value was constructed, Brother contends that the administrative, general and other expenses should have been calculated on the assumption that the product was to be exported .

47. In paragraph 31 of the judgment in Rockfon (C‑449/93, EU:C:1995:420), the Court observed, referring to paragraph 15 of the judgment in Botzen and Others (186/83, EU:C:1985:58), that an employment relationship is essentially characterised by the link existing between the worker and the part of the undertaking or business to which he is assigned to carry out his duties. The Court therefore decided, in paragraph 32 of the judgment in Rockfon (C‑449/93, EU:C:1995:420), that the term ‘establishment’ in Article 1(1)(a) of Directive 98/59 must be interpreted as designating, depending on the circumstances, the unit to which the workers made redundant are assigned to carry out their duties. It is not essential in order for there to be an ‘establishment’ that the unit in question is endowed with a management that can independently effect collective redundancies.

13 In this connection, it should be stated that the name proposed by the French Government, namely "deep-frozen fermented milk", is less familiar to consumers than "deep-frozen yoghurt" and that the decisive criterion for prohibiting the name "yoghurt", namely deep-freezing, relates to a method of preservation which is particularly important in the case of this type of product when it is imported .

28. According to settled case-law, a person who acquires goods for the purposes of an economic activity within the meaning of Article 4 does so as a taxable person (Case C‑97/90 Lennartz [1991] ECR I‑3795, paragraph 14; Joined Cases C‑110/98 to C‑147/98 Gabalfrisa and Others [2000] ECR I‑1577, paragraph 47; and Case C‑400/98 Breitsohl [2000] ECR I‑4321, paragraph 34), even if the goods are not used immediately for such economic activities (see, to that effect, Case 268/83 Rompelman [1985] ECR 655, paragraph 22). Contrary to what the German Government argues, the validity of those findings is in no way limited by the identity of the person whose economic activity is in question.

23 Such a difference in treatment is not justified by the need to preserve the cohesion of a tax system nor by the effectiveness of fiscal supervision, which, in the judgments in, respectively, Bachmann (Case C-204/90 [1992] ECR I-249) and Futura Participations and Singer (Case C-250/95 [1997] ECR I-2471), mentioned by the referring court, have been recognised as capable of justifying the regulations and thus restricting the fundamental freedoms guaranteed by the Treaty.

36. According to the settled case-law of the Court, although direct taxation falls within their competence, the Member States must none the less exercise that competence consistently with EU law (see, inter alia, Case C-374/04 Test Claimants in Class IV of the ACT Group Litigation [2006] ECR I-11673, paragraph 36; Case C-379/05 Amurta [2007] ECR I-9569, paragraph 16; Case C-540/07 Commission v Italy [2009] ECR I-10983, paragraph 28; and Case C-487/08 Commission v Spain [2010] ECR I-4843, paragraph 37, and Case C-284/09 Commission v Germany [2011] ECR I-9879, paragraph 44).

27 Plain paper photocopiers produced by Mita are sold through Mita Europe, which handles customers' orders, sends them the invoices and receives the relevant payments . However, the price paid by purchasers to Mita Europe is not the same as the price invoiced by Mita Japan to Mita Europe .

37 Moreover, it is undisputed that it is for each Member State to assess whether, in the context of the legitimate aims which it pursues, it is necessary wholly or partially to prohibit activities concerning the organisation of games of chance, or only to restrict them and to lay down more or less strict supervisory rules for that purpose, the need for and the proportionality of the measures thus adopted having to be assessed solely in relation to the objectives pursued and the level of protection which the national authorities concerned seek to ensure (see, to that effect, judgment of 8 September 2010, Carmen Media Group, C‑46/08, EU:C:2010:505, paragraph 46 and the case-law cited).

93. However, that argument cannot be upheld.

50. It follows from a combined reading of those two provisions that the place or region referred to in Article 2(3) must be defined as a geographical environment with specific natural and human factors and which is capable of giving an agricultural product or foodstuff its specific characteristics. The area of origin referred to must, therefore, present homogenous natural factors which distinguish it from the areas adjoining it (see, to that effect, Case 12/74 Commission v Germany [1975] ECR 181, paragraph 8).

8 THE GERMAN LEGISLATION ON VINE PRODUCTS PROVIDES THAT THE APPELLATIONS 'SEKT' AND 'WEINBRAND' SHALL DESCRIBE PRODUCTS ORIGINATING IN THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF GERMANY OR COMING FROM OTHER COUNTRIES THROUGHOUT THE WHOLE OF WHICH GERMAN IS AN OFFICIAL LANGUAGE . AN AREA OF ORIGIN WHICH IS DEFINED ON THE BASIS EITHER OF THE EXTENT OF NATIONAL TERRITORY OR A LINGUISTIC CRITERION CANNOT CONSTITUTE A GEOGRAPHICAL AREA WITHIN THE MEANING REFERRED TO ABOVE, CAPABLE OF JUSTIFYING AN INDICATION OF ORIGIN, PARTICULARLY AS THE PRODUCTS IN QUESTION MAY BE PRODUCED FROM GRAPES OF INDETERMINATE ORIGIN . IN THIS INSTANCE, IT IS NOT DISPUTED THAT THE AREA OF ORIGIN REFERRED TO BY THE LEGISLATION ON VINE PRODUCTS DOES NOT SHOW HOMOGENEOUS NATURAL FEATURES WHICH DISTINGUISH IT IN CONTRAST TO ADJACENT AREAS, AS THE NATURAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE BASIC PRODUCTS USED IN THE MANUFACTURE OF THE PRODUCTS IN QUESTION DO NOT NECESSARILY CORRESPOND TO THE LINE OF THE NATIONAL FRONTIER . THE GERMAN GOVERNMENT MAINTAINS, HOWEVER, THAT THE PRODUCTS COVERED BY THE APPELLATIONS 'SEKT' AND 'WEINBRAND' ARE CLEARLY DISTINGUISHED FROM ALL OTHER PRODUCTS AS A RESULT OF THE PARTICULAR METHOD OF MANUFACTURE USED IN GERMANY WHICH CONFERS ON THEM A TYPICAL FLAVOUR, WHICH IS MOREOVER BROUGHT OUT IN 'PRAEDIKATSSEKT' BY THE REQUIRED MINIMUM CONTENT OF GERMAN GRAPES .

28. As the Court has already held, the system of administrative cooperation established by a protocol stating, in an annex to an agreement between the European Union and a non-member State, the rules concerning the origin of goods is based on mutual trust between the authorities of the importing Member States and those of the exporting State (Joined Cases C‑23/04 to C‑25/04 Sfakianakis [2006] ECR I-1265, paragraph 21, and Case C‑442/08 Commission v Germany [2010] ECR 1-0000, paragraph 70).

21. As pointed out by the Advocate General in point 31 of his Opinion, the system of administrative cooperation provided for in the Protocol is based on a division of responsibilities together with mutual trust between the authorities of the Member State concerned and those of the Republic of Hungary.

40. The prevention of tax evasion, avoidance and abuse is an objective recognised and encouraged by Directive 2006/112. In that connection, the Court has held that European Union law cannot be relied on by individuals for abusive or fraudulent ends. It is therefore for the national courts and judicial authorities to refuse the right of deduction if it is shown, in the light of objective factors, that that right is being relied on for fraudulent or abusive ends (to that effect, Case C‑285/11 Bonik [2012] ECR, paragraphs 35 to 37).

16 It is therefore the task of the Court to ensure that acts which, according to the Council, fall within the scope of Article K.3(2) of the Treaty on European Union do not encroach upon the powers conferred by the EC Treaty on the Community.

19 As regards the latter principle, the Court has held that it is compatible with Community law to lay down reasonable limitation periods for bringing proceedings in the interests of legal certainty which protects both the taxpayer and the administration concerned (see Rewe, paragraph 5, Comet, paragraphs 17 and 18, and Denkavit Italiana, paragraph 23, all cited above; see also Case C-261/95 Palmisani v INPS [1997] ECR I-4025, paragraph 28, and Case C-90/94 Haahr Petroleum v benrå Havn and Others [1997] ECR I-4085, paragraph 48). Such time-limits are not liable to render virtually impossible or excessively difficult the exercise of rights conferred by Community law. In that regard, a time-limit of three years under national law, reckoned from the date of the contested payments, appears reasonable (see the judgment of today's date in Case C-231/96 Edis v Ministero delle Finanze [1998] ECR I-4951, paragraph 35).

50 It must be added that the considerations relating to transfers, set out below, are also applicable to transactions concerning payments in so far as the factual circumstances and the contractual links are similar. Moreover, no distinction in this regard has been raised by the parties in the proceedings before the Court.

26. In that regard, it should be noted that it is not for the Court, in the context of a reference for a preliminary ruling, to give a ruling on the interpretation of provisions of national law or to decide whether the interpretation given by the national court of those provisions is correct (see, in particular, judgments in Corsten , C‑58/98, EU:C:2000:527, paragraph 24; Dynamic Medien , C‑244/06, EU:C:2008:85, paragraph 19; Angelidaki and Others , C‑378/07 to C‑380/07, EU:C:2009:250, paragraph 48; and Samba Diouf , C‑69/10, EU:C:2011:524, paragraph 59).

79. It follows from the foregoing that Article 13 of Decision No 1/80 cannot have as its purpose the protection of the rights of Turkish nationals as regards employment since those rights are already fully covered by Article 6 of that decision.

43. Or, il convient de rappeler qu’il résulte des articles 256, paragraphe 1, second alinéa, TFUE et 58, premier alinéa, du statut de la Cour de justice de l’Union européenne que le Tribunal est seul compétent, d’une part, pour constater les faits, sauf dans le cas où l’inexactitude matérielle de ses constatations résulterait des pièces du dossier qui lui ont été soumises, et, d’autre part, pour apprécier ces faits. Lorsque le Tribunal a constaté ou apprécié les faits, la Cour est compétente pour exercer, en vertu dudit article 256 TFUE, un contrôle sur la qualification juridique de ces faits et les conséquences de droit qui en ont été tirées par le Tribunal (voir arrêts du 6 avril 2006, General Motors/Commission, C‑551/03 P, Rec. p. I‑3173, point 51, et du 29 mars 2011, ThyssenKrupp Nirosta/Commission, C‑352/09 P, non encore publié au Recueil, point 179).

64. Il est de jurisprudence constante qu’une mesure qui est susceptible d’entraver la liberté d’établissement consacrée à l’article 49 TFUE ne saurait être admise que si elle poursuit un objectif légitime compatible avec le traité et est justifiée par des raisons impérieuses d’intérêt général. Encore faut-il, en pareil cas, que son application soit propre à garantir la réalisation de l’objectif ainsi poursuivi et n’aille pas au-delà de ce qui est nécessaire pour atteindre celui-ci (voir, notamment, arrêts de Lasteyrie du Saillant, précité, point 49; du 13 décembre 2005, Marks & Spencer, C‑446/03, Rec. p. I‑10837, point 35, ainsi que du 21 janvier 2010, SGI, C‑311/08, Rec. p. I‑487, point 56).

40 In that regard, it must be noted that, according to the case-law of the Court, in order to assess the condition concerning the performance of the essential part of the activity, the national courts must take into account all the facts of the case, both qualitative and quantitative (see, to that effect, judgment of 11 May 2006, Carbotermo and Consorzio Alisei, C‑340/04, EU:C:2006:308, paragraphs 63 and 64).

71. In the present case, it is apparent from the order for reference that Bulgarian law provides, in point 4c of paragraph 1 of the Supplementary Provisions to the Law on Foreign Nationals that there is shown to be a risk that a third-country national who is the subject of a coercive administrative measure may abscond where, taking account of certain facts, there is reason to believe that the person concerned will attempt to circumvent implementation of the measure ordered. The objective factors which may constitute such a risk are set out in point 4c and include, inter alia, the fact that the person concerned has no identity documents.

58. In this respect, the Court has held that the exercise of the rights conferred by EU law is not made impossible in practice or excessively difficult merely by the fact that a procedure for the judicial review of decisions of the administrative authorities does not allow complete review of those decisions. However, also according to that case-law, any national judicial review procedure must none the less enable the court or tribunal hearing an application for annulment of such a decision to apply effectively the relevant principles and rules of EU law when reviewing the lawfulness of the decision (see, to that effect, judgments in Upjohn , C‑120/97, EU:C:1999:14, paragraphs 30, 35 and 36, and HLH Warenvertrieb and Orthica , C‑211/03, C‑299/03 and C‑316/03 to C‑318/03, EU:C:2005:370, paragraphs 75 to 77). Judicial review that is limited as regards the assessment of certain questions of fact is thus compatible with EU law, on condition that it enables the court or tribunal hearing an application for annulment of such a decision to apply effectively the relevant principles and rules of EU law when reviewing the lawfulness of the decision (see, to that effect, judgment in HLH Warenvertrieb and Orthica , C‑211/03, C‑299/03 and C‑316/03 to C‑318/03, EU:C:2005:370, paragraph 79).

35 Consequently, it must be held that, by precluding by regulation or administrative practice on the grounds of their nationality employed or self-employed workers from other Member States and the members of their families from being attributed large-family status for the purpose of the award of special benefits for such families and from being awarded family allowances, the Hellenic Republic has failed to fulfil its obligations under Articles 48 and 52 of the EC Treaty, Article 7 of Regulation No 1612/68, Article 7 of Regulation No 1251/70, Article 7 of Directive 75/34 and Article 3 of Regulation No 1408/71.

35. The Court has therefore held that it follows from both the EU rules and the case-law that any person or entity which, in the light of the conditions laid down in a contract notice, believes that it is capable of carrying out the contract is eligible to submit a tender or to put itself forward as a candidate, regardless of whether it is governed by public law or private law, whether it is active as a matter of course on the market or only on an occasional basis (see, to that effect, the judgment in CoNISMa , EU:C:2009:807, paragraph 42).

90. Where it is not possible to dissociate such a restriction from the main operation or activity without jeopardising its existence and aims, it is necessary to examine the compatibility of that restriction with Article 81 EC in conjunction with the compatibility of the main operation or activity to which it is ancillary, even though, taken in isolation, such a restriction may appear on the face of it to be covered by the prohibition rule in Article 81(1) EC.

32. In that regard, concerning the concept of ‘services’, it should be pointed out that that concept has not been defined by the EU legislature and that, in order to avoid the existence of varying requirements for registration of trade marks according to national legislation, it is necessary to supply a uniform interpretation of that concept (see, to that effect, judgment in Praktiker Bau- und Heimwerkermärkte C‑418/02 EU:C:2005:425, paragraphs 28 to 33).

37 IT SHOULD BE REMEMBERED THAT , IN DETERMINING THEIR POLICY IN THIS AREA , THE COMPETENT COMMUNITY INSTITUTIONS ENJOY WIDE DISCRETIONARY POWERS REGARDING NOT ONLY ESTABLISHMENT OF THE FACTUAL BASIS OF THEIR ACTION BUT ALSO DEFINITION OF THE OBJECTIVES TO BE PURSUED , WITHIN THE FRAMEWORK OF THE PROVISIONS OF THE TREATY , AND THE CHOICE OF THE APPROPRIATE MEANS OF ACTION .

30. Moreover, it is apparent from the case‑law of the Court that, having regard to the specific features of the procedure laid down in Article 95(4) EC, the principle of the right to be heard does not apply to that procedure ( Denmark v Commission , paragraph 50).

90. It must be held, in that regard, that a reseller who markets second-hand goods under another person’s trade mark, and who is specialised in the sale of those goods, will have difficulty communicating such information to his potential customers without using that mark (see, by analogy, BMW , paragraph 54).

40. That interpretation is also consistent with the wide scope ratione materiae of that directive which has already been acknowledged (see, to that effect, Mediaprint Zeitungs- und Zeitschriftenverlag , paragraph 21).

42. À défaut de consister en une somme d’argent convenue entre les parties, cette valeur, pour être subjective, doit être celle que le bénéficiaire de la prestation de services, qui constitue la contrepartie de la livraison de biens, attribue aux services qu’il entend se procurer et correspondre à la somme qu’il est disposé à dépenser à cette fin (arrêts du 2 juin 1994, Empire Stores, C‑33/93, Rec. p. I‑2329, point 19, et Orfey Balgaria, précité, point 45).

99. The consequences of non-compliance with the obligation under Article 4(1) of Directive 2006/12 are likely, given the very nature of that obligation, to endanger human health and harm the environment, even in a small part of the territory of a Member State (Case C‑365/97 Commission v Italy , paragraph 70), as was also the position in the case which led to the judgment in Case C‑45/91 Commission v Greece .

90. That assessment of the extent of the risk must, in all cases, be carried out with vigilance and care, since what are at issue are issues relating to the integrity of the person and to individual liberties, issues which relate to the fundamental values of the Union.

41 The Court's case-law shows that, for a person to be directly concerned by a Community measure, the latter must directly affect the legal situation of the individual and leave no discretion to the addressees of that measure who are entrusted with the task of implementing it, such implementation being purely automatic and resulting from Community rules without the application of other intermediate rules (see to that effect, in particular, International Fruit Company, cited above, paragraphs 23 to 29, Case 92/78 Simmenthal v Commission [1979] ECR 777, paragraphs 25 and 26, Case 113/77 NTN Toyo Bearing Company and Others v Council [1979] ECR 1185, paragraphs 11 and 12, Case 118/77 ISO v Council [1979] ECR 1277, paragraph 26, Case 119/77 Nippon Seiko and Others v Council and Commission [1979] ECR 1303, paragraph 14, Case 120/77 Koyo Seiko and Others v Council and Commission [1979] ECR 1337, paragraph 25, Case 121/77 Nachi Fujikoshi and Others v Council [1979] ECR 1363, paragraph 11, Joined Cases 87/77, 130/77, 22/83, 9/84 and 10/84 Salerno and Others v Commission and Council [1985] ECR 2523, paragraph 31, Case 333/85 Mannesmann-Röhrenwerke and Benteler v Council [1987] ECR 1381, paragraph 14, Case 55/86 Arposol v Council [1988] ECR 13, paragraphs 11 to 13, Case 207/86 Apesco v Commission [1988] ECR 2151, paragraph 12, and Case C-152/88 Sofrimport v Commission [1990] ECR I-2477, paragraph 9).

17 The answer to the first question must therefore be that, on a proper construction of Article 11A(3)(b) of the Sixth Directive, the terms `rebates' and `price discounts' cannot be applied to reductions covering the whole cost of supplying redemption goods. Questions 2, 3 and 4

50. It may be seen from Article 5(1)(c) and (d) of Regulation No 2988/95 that the total or partial removal of an advantage granted by Community rules, even if the operator has wrongly benefited from only a part of that advantage, constitutes an administrative penalty (see, to that effect, Bonda , paragraph 34). However, the case-law of the Court provides that a penalty, even of a non-criminal nature, cannot be imposed unless it rests on a clear and unambiguous legal basis (see Case C-110/99 Emsland-Stärke [2000] ECR I-11569, paragraph 56; Case C-210/00 Käserei Champignon Hofmeister [2002] ECR I-6453, paragraph 52; and Case C-274/04 ED & F Man Sugar [2006] ECR I-3269, paragraph 15), and cannot, consequently, be imposed on the basis of those provisions alone (see, to that effect, SGS Belgium and Others , paragraph 43). b) Relationship between the sectoral Regulations No 822/87 and No 1059/83 and Regulation No 2988/95

64. In that regard, contrary to the submission of O2 and O2 (UK), the referring court was right to limit its analysis to the context in which the sign similar to the bubbles trade marks was used by H3G, for the purpose of assessing the existence of a likelihood of confusion.

63. In Joined Cases C-397/98 and C-410/98 Metallgesellschaft and Others [2001] ECR I-1727, paragraph 106, the Court indeed held that the exercise of rights conferred on private persons by directly applicable provisions of Community law would be rendered impossible or excessively difficult if their claims for compensation based on Community law were rejected or reduced solely because the persons concerned did not apply for grant of the right which was conferred by Community provisions, and which national law denied them, with a view to challenging the refusal of the Member State by means of the legal remedies provided for that purpose, invoking the primacy and direct effect of Community law. In a case of that kind, it would not have been reasonable to require the injured parties to utilise the legal remedies available to them, since they would in any event have had to make the payment at issue in advance, and even if the national court had held the fact that payment had to be made in advance incompatible with Community law, the persons in question would not have been able to obtain interest on that sum and they would have laid themselves open to the possibility of penalties (see, to this effect, Metallgesellschaft and Others , paragraph 104).

37. Lastly, as a general rule, when exercising its right to ask a tenderer to clarify its tender, the contracting authority must treat tenderers equally and fairly, in such a way that a request for clarification does not appear unduly to have favoured or disadvantaged the tenderer or tenderers to which the request was addressed, once the procedure for selection of tenders has been completed and in the light of its outcome ( SAG ELV Slovensko and Others , paragraph 41).

96 Moreover, since Article 4a of Framework Decision 2002/584 provides for an optional ground for non-execution of the European arrest warrant, and as the cases described in paragraph 1(a) to (d) of that Article were conceived as exceptions to that optional ground for non-recognition, the Court has already held that the executing judicial authority may, even after it has found that those cases do not cover the situation of the person who is the subject of the European Arrest Warrant, take into account other circumstances that enable it to ensure that the surrender of the person concerned does not entail a breach of his rights of defence (see, to that effect, judgment of 24 May 2016, Dworzecki, C‑108/16 PPU, EU:C:2016:346, paragraphs 50 and 51).

29 In choosing the appropriate solution for guaranteeing that the objective of the Directive is attained, the Member States must ensure that infringements of Community law are penalized under conditions, both procedural and substantive, which are analogous to those applicable to infringements of domestic law of a similar nature and importance (Case 68/88 Commission v Greece [1989] ECR 2965, paragraph 24).

31 It is therefore crucial, for the correct operation of the scheme established by Directive 2003/87, for those emissions to be identified which must be taken into account by operators in that regard.

54. However, the detailed national procedural rules governing actions for safeguarding rights which individuals derive from the direct effect of Community law must not be less favourable than those governing similar domestic actions (principle of equivalence) or render virtually impossible or excessively difficult the exercise of the rights conferred by Community law (principle of effectiveness) (see, to that effect, inter alia, Peterbroeck , paragraph 12 and the case‑law cited, and Grundig Italiana , paragraph 33 and the case‑law cited).

49. By contrast, where the material and formal conditions laid down by the Sixth Directive for the creation and exercise of that right are met, it is incompatible with the rules governing the right to deduct under that directive to impose a penalty, in the form of refusing that right to a taxable person who did not know, and could not have known, that the transaction concerned was connected with fraud committed by the supplier, or that another transaction forming part of the chain of supply prior or subsequent to that transaction carried out by the taxable person was vitiated by VAT fraud (see, to that effect, judgments in Optigen and Others , C‑354/03, C‑355/03 and C‑484/03, EU:C:2006:16; paragraphs 51, 52 and 55; Kittel and Recolta Recycling , C‑439/04 and C‑440/04, EU:C:2006:446, paragraphs 44 to 46 and 60; and in Mahagében and Dávid , C‑80/11 and C‑142/11, EU:C:2012:373, paragraphs 44, 45 and 47).

44. It is true that, according to the line of authority devolving from Guimont , the Court’s answer to questions concerning fundamental freedoms of the European Union may, even in a purely internal situation, nevertheless be of use to the referring court, especially if its national law were to require it to allow a national to enjoy the same rights as those which a national of another Member State would derive from EU law in the same situation (see, inter alia, Case C‑393/08 Sbarigia [2010] ECR I‑6337, paragraph 23, and Susisalo and Others , paragraph 20 and the case-law cited).

17. In that regard, it must be pointed out that, in so far as the concession in question may also be of interest to an undertaking located in a Member State other than the Member State of the Comune di Cingia de’ Botti, the award, in the absence of any transparency, of that concession to an undertaking located in the latter Member State amounts to a difference in treatment to the detriment of the undertaking located in the other Member State (see, to that effect, Telaustria and Telefonadress , paragraph 61).

24. Moreover, the Spanish Government explained at the hearing that, in practice, tenderers in public procurement procedures do not generally avail themselves of the possibility of directly initiating an administrative-law action, without having first brought a special appeal of the kind in the main proceedings before the Tribunal Català de Contractes del Sector Públic. Essentially, the administrative courts are thus, as a general rule, involved at second instance, with the result that, in the Autonomous Community of Catalonia, primary responsibility for ensuring that EU public procurement law is observed lies with the referring body.

71. In those circumstances, the refusal to grant to the resident taxpayer the right either to deduct from the basis of assessment in Poland the amount of the compulsory social security contributions paid in another Member State or to reduce the tax payable in Poland by the amount of the compulsory health insurance contributions paid in a Member State other than the Republic of Poland may deter that taxpayer from taking advantage of the freedom of establishment and freedom to provide services under Articles 43 EC and 49 EC, and amounts to a restriction on those freedoms (see, to that effect, in relation to Article 18 EC, Rüffler , paragraphs 72 and 73).

37 According to the settled case-law of the Court of Justice, provisions of EU law must be interpreted and applied uniformly in the light of the versions existing in all the languages of the European Union. Where there is divergence between the various language versions of an EU legislative text, the provision in question must be interpreted by reference to the purpose and general scheme of the rules of which it forms part (judgment of 1 March 2016, Alo and Osso, C‑443/14 and C‑444/14, EU:C:2016:127, paragraph 27).

23. Admittedly, Regulation No 259/68 – which established the Staff Regulations – cannot be treated as an international convention, because it was adopted, not by the Member States acting in accordance with the rules of international law, but by the Council as a European Community institution acting independently (see, to that effect, Case 38/69 Commission v Italy [1970] ECR 47, paragraph 11, and Case 91/79 Commission v Italy [1980] ECR 1099, paragraph 7), in the same way as the EC Treaty on which that regulation is based cannot be treated as an international social security convention. However, it must be recalled that, under the second paragraph of Article 249 EC, that regulation has general application, is binding in its entirety and is directly applicable in all Member States (see Case 137/80 Commission v Belgium [1981] ECR 2393, paragraph 7, and Case 186/85 Commission v Belgium [1987] ECR 2029, paragraph 21). Furthermore, as Ms Gysen submits, the second paragraph of Article 11 of the Staff Regulations itself expressly states that the latter are binding in their entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.

180. The Court has also stated that the appraisal of the facts by the General Court does not constitute, save where the clear sense of the evidence produced before it is distorted, a question of law which is subject, as such, to review by the Court of Justice (Case C‑397/03 P Archer Daniels Midland and Archer Daniels Midland Ingredients v Commission [2006] ECR I‑4429, paragraph 85, and order in EREF v Commission , paragraph 42).

33 It follows that the solution adopted in Barra and Deville, cited above, is not applicable to this case.

49. A project of that kind can have a significant effect on the environment within the meaning of that directive, since it is likely to have lasting effects on, for example, flora and fauna and the composition of soil or even on the landscape and produce significant noise effects, inter alia, so that it must be included in the scope of the Directive. The objective of Directive 85/337 would be seriously undermined if that type of project for the construction of new railway track, even parallel to existing track, could be excluded from the obligation to carry out an assessment of its effects on the environment. Accordingly, a project of that sort cannot be considered a mere modification to an earlier project within the meaning of point 12 of Annex II to the Directive.

52 It is settled case-law that an act of a Community institution is vitiated by misuse of powers if it was adopted with the exclusive or main purpose of achieving an end other than that stated or evading a procedure specifically prescribed by the Treaty for dealing with the circumstances of the case (Case C-84/94 United Kingdom v Council [1996] ECR I-5755, paragraph 69).

47. As regards Article 2(7) of the basic regulation, it must be pointed out at the outset that that provision, following on from recital 7 of that regulation, introduces a special regime laying down detailed rules for the calculation of normal value for imports from non-market economy countries, including Armenia. As regards those imports, Article 2(7)(a) provides that normal value must be determined on the basis of the price or constructed value in a market economy third country, or the price from such a third country to other countries, including the European Union, or where those are not possible, on any other reasonable basis, including the price actually paid or payable in the European Union for the like product, duly adjusted if necessary to include a reasonable profit margin. In addition, Article 2(7)(b) stipulates that in anti-dumping investigations concerning imports from any non-market economy country which is a member of the WTO at the date of the initiation of the investigation, normal value is to be determined in accordance with Article 2(1) to (6), if it is shown that the market economy conditions, set out in Article 2(7)(c), prevail for this producer or producers in respect of the manufacture and sale of the like product concerned.

50. Il y a lieu également de rappeler que, dès lors qu’une législation nationale met sur le même plan, aux fins de l’imposition d’un bien immeuble acquis par donation ou par succession et sis dans l’État membre concerné, d’une part, les bénéficiaires non-résidents ayant acquis ce bien d’une personne non-résidente et, d’autre part, les bénéficiaires non-résidents ou résidents ayant acquis un tel bien d’une personne résidente ainsi que les bénéficiaires résidents ayant acquis ce même bien d’une personne non-résidente, elle ne peut, sans enfreindre les exigences du droit de l’Union, traiter ces bénéficiaires différemment, dans le cadre de cette même imposition, en ce qui concerne l’application d’un abattement sur la base imposable de ce bien immeuble. En traitant de manière identique, sauf en ce qui concerne le montant de l’abattement accordé au bénéficiaire, les donations ou les successions au profit de ces deux catégories de contribuables, le législateur national a, en effet, admis qu’il n’existe entre ces dernières, au regard des modalités et des conditions de la perception des droits sur les donations ou les successions, aucune différence de situation objective de nature à justifier une différence de traitement (voir, en ce sens, arrêts Mattner, EU:C:2010:216, point 38, et Welte, EU:C:2013:662, point 51).

40. Finally, it must be stated that the principles laid down in paragraphs 47 to 52 of Intertanko and Others , according to which the validity of Directive 1999/32 cannot be examined in the light of Annex VI may not be circumvented by relying on the alleged infringement of the principle of cooperation in good faith laid down in the first subparagraph of Article 4(3) TEU.

24. The First Directive, as amplified and supplemented by the Second and Third Directives, thus requires the Member States to ensure that civil liability in respect of the use of vehicles normally based in their territory is covered by insurance, and specifies, inter alia, the types of damage and the third-party victims to be covered by that insurance ( Mendes Ferreira and Delgado Correia Ferreira , paragraph 27, and Carvalho Ferreira Santos , paragraph 27).

73. Such limitations are accordingly possible only if they are provided for by law and if, in observance of the principle of proportionality, they are necessary and genuinely meet objectives of general interest recognised by the European Union.

49. It follows from the case-law that a State incurs liability for breach of a rule of Community law only where, in particular, the rule of law infringed is intended to confer rights on individuals (see Joined Cases C-46/93 and C-48/93 Brasserie du pêcheur and Factortame [1996] ECR I-1029, paragraph 51; Joined Cases C‑178/94, C-179/94 and C-188/94 to C-190/94 Dillenkofer and Others [1996] ECR I-4845, paragraph 21; and Case C‑63/01 Evans [2003] ECR I-0000, paragraph 83).

18. In this respect, the objectives pursued by Article 5 of Regulation No 261/2004, which lays down the obligations owed by an operating air carrier in the event of cancellation of a flight, are clear from recitals 1 and 2 in the preamble to the regulation, according to which action by the Community in the field of air transport should aim, among other things, at ensuring a high level of protection for passengers and take account of the requirements of consumer prote ction in general, inasmuch as cancellation of flights causes serious inconvenience to passengers (see, to that effect, IATA and ELFAA , paragraph 69).

110 In order to rule on the merits of this ground of appeal, put forward in the alternative by the Commission, it must be noted that, on grounds identical to those set out in paragraphs 74 to 76 of the present judgment, the line of argument which that institution seeks to draw from the judgments of 27 January 1988, Denmark v Commission (349/85, EU:C:1988:34, paragraph 19), of 6 October 1993,Italy v Commission (C‑55/91, EU:C:1993:832, paragraph 69), of 4 July 1996, Greece v Commission (C‑50/94, EU:C:1996:266, paragraph 6), and of 22 April 1999, Netherlands v Commission (C‑28/94, EU:C:1999:191, paragraph 51), is irrelevant.

30. As is apparent from the first paragraph in the preamble to the Framework Agreement, from paragraphs 4 and 5 of its general considerations and from clause 1.1 thereof, the Framework Agreement constitutes an undertaking by the two sides of industry to introduce, through minimum requirements, measures to offer both men and women an opportunity to reconcile their work responsibilities with family obligations (see, to that effect, Meerts , paragraph 35; Case C‑149/10 Chatzi [2010] ECR I‑8489, paragraph 56; and Case C‑7/12 Riežniece [2013] ECR, paragraph 31).

31 In addition, the Court has ruled, first, that it is clear from its preamble that the Framework Agreement relates to the ‘employment conditions of part-time workers, recognising that matters concerning statutory social security are for decision by the Member States’ (judgment of 14 April 2015, Cachaldora Fernández, C‑527/13, EU:C:2015:215, paragraph 36).

54 In that connection, it must be recalled that, according to the case-law of the Court, the principle of equal treatment of which Article 48(2) is one embodiment prohibits not only overt discrimination based on nationality but all covert forms of discrimination which, by applying other distinguishing criteria, in fact achieve the same result (see, in particular, Case 33/88 Allué and Another v Università degli Studi di Venezia [1989] ECR 1591 (hereinafter `Allué I'), paragraph 11).

39. It is only when the grounds for exclusion concerned do not relate to the professional qualities of economic operators, and, therefore, do not fall within that exhaustive list that it is possible to consider whether those grounds may be permissible under the principles or other rules of EU public procurement law (see, to this effect, Fabricom , paragraphs 25 to 36; Michaniki , paragraphs 44 to 69; and Case C-538/07 Assitur [2009] ECR I-4219, paragraphs 21 to 33).

39. For the sake of completeness, it must be noted that, as recitals 3, 21 and 24 in the preamble to Regulation No 1782/2003 make clear, environmental protection forms part of the objectives of the single payment scheme. The Court has also held that environmental protection, one of the essential objectives of the European Union, must be regarded as forming part of the common agricultural policy (Case C-428/07 Horvath [2009] ECR I-6355, paragraph 29). Moreover, Article 2 point (1) of Regulation No 796/2004 expressly provides that arable land, and consequently agricultural areas pursuant to Article 2(a) of Regulation No 795/2004, is land maintained in good agricultural and environmental condition within the meaning of Article 5 of Regulation No 1782/2003.

36. The Montreal Convention, signed by the Community on 9 December 1999 on the basis of Article 300(2) EC, was approved by Council decision of 5 April 2001 and entered into force, so far as concerns the Community, on 28 June 2004. Therefore from that last date the provisions of that Convention have, in accordance with settled case-law, been an integral part of the Community legal order (Case 181/73 Haegeman [1974] ECR 449, paragraph 5, and Case 12/86 Demirel [1987] ECR 3719, paragraph 7). It was after that date that, by decision of 14 July 2004, the High Court of Justice made the present order for reference in the judicial review proceedings before it.

45. In that regard, a requested person is considered to have been finally judged in respect of the same acts within the meaning of Article 3(2) of the Framework Decision where, following criminal proceedings, further prosecution is definitively barred (see, by analogy, Joined Cases C-187/01 and C-385/01 Gözütok and Brügge [2003] ECR I-1345, paragraph 30, and Case C-491/07 Turanský [2008] ECR I‑11039, paragraph 32) or where the judicial authorities of a Member State have adopted a decision by which the accused is finally acquitted in respect of the alleged acts (see, by analogy, Van Straaten , paragraph 61, and Turanský , paragraph 33).

57 As regards the Commission in particular, it is stated in Article 17(1) TEU that the Commission ‘shall promote the general interest of the Union’ and ‘shall oversee the application of Union law’ (judgment of 27 November 2012, Pringle, C‑370/12, EU:C:2012:756, paragraph 163).

16 The French, German and Greek Governments, and the United Kingdom, on the other hand, base their reasoning on the public character of Eurocontrol' s activities, in denying that the latter is an undertaking within the meaning of the Treaty rules of competition. They are supported, in particular, by the judgments of the Court on the interpretation of the Convention of 27 September 1968 on Jurisdiction and the Enforcement of Judgments in Civil and Commercial Matters, from which it is apparent that Eurocontrol must be regarded as a public authority acting in the exercise of its powers (judgments in Case 29/76 LTU v Eurocontrol [1976] ECR 1541, and in Joined Cases 9/77 and 10/77 Bavaria Fluggesellschaft and Germanair v Eurocontrol [1977] ECR 1517). More particularly, they argue that air navigation control is a supervisory activity intended to ensure public safety. The collection of route charges, for its part, is an activity carried on on behalf of the Contracting States, the charges merely constituting the consideration for the air navigation services provided by those States.

59 As a preliminary point, the Court notes that a national measure in a sphere which has been the subject of full harmonisation at EU level must be assessed in the light of the provisions of the harmonising measure and not those of the Treaty (judgment of 30 April 2014 in UPC DTH, C‑475/12, EU:C:2014:285, paragraph 63 and the case-law cited).

62. Furthermore, the Courts must carry out the review of legality incumbent upon them on the basis of the evidence adduced by the applicant in support of the pleas in law put forward. In carrying out such a review, the Courts cannot use the Commission’s margin of discretion – either as regards the choice of factors taken into account in the application of the criteria mentioned in the Guidelines or as regards the assessment of those factors – as a basis for dispensing with the conduct of an in-depth review of the law and of the facts.

20. Firstly, it is appropriate to recall that Regulation No 2988/95 introduces, in accordance with Article 1 thereof, ‘general rules … relating to homogenous checks and to administrative measures and penalties concerning irregularities with regard to [EU] law’ and, as is apparent from the third recital in the preamble to that regulation, in order to ‘[counter] acts detrimental to the [EU’s] financial interests … in all areas’ (see judgments in Handlbauer , C‑278/02, EU:C:2004:388, paragraph 31 ; Josef Vosding Schlacht-, Kühl- und Zerlegebetrieb and Others , C‑278/07 to C‑280/07, EU:C:2009:38, paragraph 20; and Pfeifer & Langen , C‑564/10, EU:C:2012:190, paragraph 36).

25 This argument cannot be accepted.

97. Moreover, contrary to what Accor maintains, the fact that the tax authorities can have recourse to the mechanism of mutual assistance under Council Directive 77/799/EEC of 19 December 1977 concerning mutual assistance by the competent authorities of the Member States in the field of direct and indirect taxation (OJ L 336, p. 15), as amended by Council Directive 92/12/EEC of 25 February 1992 (OJ L 76, p. 1), (‘Directive 77/799’), does not mean that they are required to absolve the parent company receiving dividends from proving to those authorities the tax paid by the distributing company in another Member State (see Haribo Lakritzen Hans Riegel and Österreichische Salinen , paragraph 100, and Meilicke and Others , paragraph 50).

81. As regards judicial review of the conditions for implementing this principle, bearing in mind the wide discretion enjoyed by the European Union legislature in matters concerning the common agricultural policy, including fisheries, the legality of a measure adopted in that field can be affected only if the measure is manifestly inappropriate having regard to the objective which the competent institution is seeking to pursue (see, to that effect, Unitymark and North Sea Fishermen’s Organisation , paragraph 57 and the case-law cited).

85 So, in considering whether Article 100a was the proper legal basis, the Court must verify whether the measure whose validity is at issue in fact pursues the objectives stated by the Community legislature (see, in particular, Spain v Council, cited above, paragraphs 25 to 41, and Case C-233/94 Germany v Parliament and Council [1997] ECR I-2405, paragraphs 10 to 21).

80. As the Court has already held, the worker must be regarded as the weaker party in the employment relationship, and it is therefore necessary to prevent the employer being in a position to impose on him a restriction of his rights (see, to that effect, Pfeiffer and Others , paragraph 82).

S’agissant de l’obligation d’indiquer le «but de la demande», celle-ci signifie que la Commission doit indiquer l’objet de son enquête dans sa demande, et donc identifier l’infraction alléguée aux règles de concurrence (voir, en ce sens, arrêt SEP/Commission, C‑36/92 P, EU:C:1994:205, point 21).

54 The Court held that such a residence condition was appropriate for attaining the objective of promoting higher education and of significantly increasing the proportion of Luxembourg residents who hold a higher education degree, but that it was too exclusive in nature (judgment of 20 June 2013, Giersch and Others, C‑20/12, EU:C:2013:411, paragraph 76). The existence of a reasonable probability that the recipients of the aid will return to settle in Luxembourg and make themselves available to the labour market of that Member State, in order to contribute to its economic development, could be established on the basis of elements other than such a condition (judgment of 20 June 2013, Giersch and Others, C‑20/12, EU:C:2013:411, paragraph 77).

48 An undertaking which has participated in a single and complex infringement of that kind by its own conduct, which fell within the definition of an agreement or concerted practice having an anticompetitive object within the meaning of Article 101(1) TFEU and was intended to help bring about the infringement as a whole, may thus be responsible also in respect of the conduct of other undertakings in the context of the same infringement throughout the period of its participation in the infringement. That is the position where it is shown that the undertaking intended, through its own conduct, to contribute to the common objectives pursued by all the participants and that it was aware of the offending conduct planned or put into effect by other undertakings in pursuit of the same objectives or that it could reasonably have foreseen it and was prepared to take the risk (see, to that effect, judgment of 24 June 2015, Fresh Del Monte Produce v Commission and Commission v Fresh Del Monte Produce, C‑293/13 P and C‑294/13 P, EU:C:2015:416, paragraph 157 and the case-law cited).

20. Cette disposition poursuit l’objectif de favoriser certaines activités d’intérêt général, à savoir des services ayant un lien étroit avec la pratique du sport ou de l’éducation physique qui sont fournis par des organismes sans but lucratif aux pe rsonnes pratiquant le sport ou l’éducation physique. Ainsi, ladite disposition vise à promouvoir une telle pratique par de larges couches de la population (voir arrêt Město Žamberk, précité, point 23).

46. It is, in this connection, settled case-law that the exercise of an exclusive right linked to an intellectual-property right — in the case in the main proceedings, namely the right to bring an action for infringement — forms part of the rights of the proprietor of an intellectual-property right, with the result that the exercise of such a right, even if it is the act of an undertaking holding a dominant position, cannot in itself constitute an abuse of a dominant position (see, to that effect, judgments in Volvo , 238/87, EU:C:1988:477, paragraph 8; RTE and ITP v Commission , C‑241/91 P and C‑242/91 P, EU:C:1995:98, paragraph 49; and IMS Health , C‑418/01, EU:C:2004:257, paragraph 34).

9 HOWEVER , CAPITAL MOVEMENTS ARE ALSO CLOSELY CONNECTED WITH THE ECONOMIC AND MONETARY POLICY OF THE MEMBER STATES . AT PRESENT , IT CANNOT BE DENIED THAT COMPLETE FREEDOM OF MOVEMENT OF CAPITAL MAY UNDERMINE THE ECONOMIC POLICY OF ONE OF THE MEMBER STATES OR CREATE AN IMBALANCE IN ITS BALANCE OF PAYMENTS , THEREBY IMPAIRING THE PROPER FUNCTIONIMG OF THE COMMON MARKET .

56. Moreover, it follows from the Court’s case-law, first, that failure to comply with the procedural rules relating to the adoption of an act adversely affecting an individual, such as a failure by the Commission to take the contested decision within the time-limit defined by the EU legislature, constitutes an infringement of essential procedural requirements (see judgments in United Kingdom v Council , 68/86, EU:C:1988:85, paragraphs 48 and 49; Spain v Commission , C‑192/13 P, EU:C:2014:2156, paragraph 103; and Spain v Commission , C‑197/13 P, EU:C:2014:2157, paragraph 103), and, secondly, that if the Court of the European Union finds, on examining the act at issue, that it was not regularly adopted, it must draw the necessary conclusions from the infringement of an essential procedural requirement and, consequently, annul the act vitiated by that defect (see judgments in Commission v ICI , C‑286/95 P, EU:C:2000:188, paragraph 51; Commission v Solvay , C‑287/95 P and C‑288/95 P, EU:C:2000:189, paragraph 55; Spain v Commission , C‑192/13 P, EU:C:2014:2156, paragraph 103; and Spain v Commission , C‑197/13 P, EU:C:2014:2157, paragraph 103).

20 THE ANSWER TO THE FIRST QUESTION MUST THEREFORE BE THAT THE NATIONAL COURTS HAVE NO JURISDICTION THEMSELVES TO DECLARE THAT ACTS OF COMMUNITY INSTITUTIONS ARE INVALID . THE SECOND QUESTION

33. Although, as PR Aviation states, Article 1(2) of Directive 96/9 confers a wide scope on that concept, unencumbered by considerations of a formal, technical or material nature (see to that effect judgment in Fixtures Marketing , C‑444/02, EU:C:2004:697, paragraphs 20 to 32), the fact remains that the definition in that provision applies, according to the wording of that article, ‘for the purposes of this Directive’.

31. That second condition makes it possible to distinguish a database within the meaning of the directive, characterised by a means of retrieving each of its constituent materials, from a collection of materials providing information without any means of processing the individual materials which make it up.

32 First of all, it should be noted that whilst, as Article 6(3) TEU confirms, fundamental rights recognised by the ECHR constitute general principles of EU law and whilst Article 52(3) of the Charter provides that the rights contained in the Charter which correspond to rights guaranteed by the ECHR are to have the same meaning and scope as those laid down by that convention, the latter does not constitute, as long as the European Union has not acceded to it, a legal instrument which has been formally incorporated into EU law (judgments of 26 February 2013, Åkerberg Fransson, C‑617/10, EU:C:2013:105, paragraph 44, and of 5 April 2017, Orsi and Baldetti, C‑217/15 and C‑350/15, EU:C:2017:264, paragraph 15 and the case-law cited). Therefore, the examination of the validity of the first subparagraph of Article 8(3)(a) and (b) of Directive 2013/33 must be undertaken solely in the light of the fundamental rights guaranteed by the Charter (see, to that effect, judgments of 15 February 2016, N., C‑601/15 PPU, EU:C:2016:84, paragraph 46 and the case-law cited, and of 28 July 2016, Council of Ministers, C‑543/14, EU:C:2016:605, paragraph 23).

63. In that context, Beaudout argues in its observations that there are other provident societies and insurance companies which, prior to the appointment of AG2R by Addendum No 83, offered services which are substantially identical to those provided by that body.

16 As regards the criticism by the national court of the lack of reasons for the rate of import duty adopted, the Court has consistently held that the statement of reasons required by Article 190 of the Treaty must be appropriate to the nature of the measure in question. The reasoning of the institution which adopted the measure must be stated clearly and unequivocally, so as to inform persons concerned of the justification for the measure adopted and to enable the Court to exercise its powers of review. It also follows from that case-law that the statement of reasons for a measure is not required to detail every relevant point of fact and law, as the question whether the statement of reasons satisfies the requirements of Article 190 of the Treaty must be considered with reference not only to its wording but also to its context and the whole body of legal rules governing the matter in question. Consequently, if the contested measure clearly discloses the essential objective pursued by the institution, it would be excessive to require a specific statement of reasons for each of the technical choices made by the institution (see inter alia the judgments in Case 250/84 Eridania Zuccherifici Nazionali v Cassa Conguaglio Zucchero [1986] ECR 117, paragraphs 37 and 38, and, most recently, Case C-478/93 Netherlands v Commission [1995] ECR I-0000, paragraphs 48 and 49).

37. The situation at issue in the main proceedings must be distinguished from that in which articles of precious metal are hallmarked by the producers themselves in the Member State of exportation. That latter situation is likely to result in fraud against which, there being no European Union rules, it is for the Member States, who have a wide discretion, to take the measures they consider appropriate for that purpose (see, to that effect, Houtwipper , paragraphs 20 to 22).

49. It follows that, where, as in the case in the main proceedings, a Member State adopts measures of support for cogeneration and renewable energy sources within a framework such as that laid down, first, by Directive 2004/8, in particular Article 7, and, secondly, by Directive 2001/77, in particular Article 4, and thus implements European Union law, it must observe the principle of equal treatment and non-discrimination laid down in particular in Articles 20 and 21 of the Charter (see, to that effect, Case C‑401/11 Soukupová [2013] ECR I‑0000, paragraph 28).

26. To answer that question, it is necessary to take account of the wording of the provision whose interpretation is sought, as well as the objectives and the scheme of Directive 90/435 (see, to that effect, Joined Cases C‑283/94, C‑291/94 and C‑292/94 Denkavit and Others [1996] ECR I‑5063, paragraphs 24 and 26; Case C‑375/98 Epson Europe [2000] ECR I‑4243, paragraphs 22 and 24; and Case C‑27/07 Banque Fédérative du Crédit Mutel [2008] ECR I‑2067, paragraph 22).

62. However, without it being necessary to take a position on the validity of that last assertion, the Court not having competence to interpret the Member States’ national laws, it must be stated that it is clear from the wording of Article 5(1) of the Sixth Directive that ‘supply of goods’ does not refer to the transfer of ownership in accordance with the procedures prescribed by the applicable national law but covers any transfer of tangible property by one party which empowers the other party actually to dispose of it as if he were the owner of the property (Case C‑320/88 Shipping and Forwarding Enterprise Safe [1990] ECR I‑285, paragraph 7, and Case C‑185/01 Auto Lease Holland [2003] ECR I-1317, paragraph 32).

En effet, ainsi que l’a rappelé le Tribunal aux points 381 et 383 de l’arrêt attaqué, il est de jurisprudence constante de la Cour, d’une part, que, afin de vérifier si une filiale détermine de façon autonome son comportement sur le marché, il convient de prendre en considération l’ensemble des éléments pertinents relatifs aux liens économiques, organisationnels et juridiques qui unissent cette filiale à la société mère, lesquels peuvent varier selon les cas et ne sauraient donc faire l’objet d’une énumération exhaustive. D’autre part, lorsqu’une société mère et sa filiale font partie d’une seule entreprise au sens de l’article 101 TFUE, c’est non pas nécessairement une relation d’instigation relative à l’infraction entre la société mère et la filiale, ni, à plus forte raison, une implication de la première dans ladite infraction, qui habilite la Commission à adresser la décision imposant des amendes à la société mère, mais le fait que les sociétés concernées constituent une seule entreprise, au sens de l’article 101 TFUE (arrêt du 29 septembre 2011, Elf Aquitaine/Commission, C‑521/09 P, EU:C:2011:620, points 58 et 88).

35. In that regard, it is settled case-law that, where a national measure relates to both the free movement of goods and freedom to provide services, the Court will in principle examine it in relation to one only of those two fundamental freedoms if it appears that one of them is entirely secondary in relation to the other and may be considered together with it (see, to that effect, Case C-275/92 Schindler [1994] ECR I-1039, paragraph 22; Case C-390/99 Canal Satélite Digital [2002] ECR I‑607, paragraph 31, and Karner , paragraph 46).

121. Il y a lieu, également, de rappeler que les droits fondamentaux mentionnés par Kala Naft ne sont pas des prérogatives absolues et que leur exercice peut faire l’objet de restrictions justifiées par des objectifs d’intérêt général poursuivis par l’Union (voir arrêt Bank Melli Iran/Conseil, précité, point 113).

62. In that regard, it is appropriate to point out that, in paragraph 32 of its judgment in Lancry and Others , cited above, the Court ruled that a charge proportional to their customs value, levied by a Member State on all goods entering a region within that State, constitutes a charge having equivalent effect to a customs duty on imports not only in so far as it is levied on goods entering that region from other Member States, but also in so far as it is levied on goods entering that region from another part of the same State.

54. It is settled case-law that the term ‘restriction’ within the meaning of Article 49 TFEU covers measures which prohibit or impede the exercise of freedom of establishment or render it less attractive (Case C-518/06 Commission v Italy [2009] ECR I‑3491, paragraph 62).

55. In accordance with settled case‑law, such a restriction is permissible only if it is justified by an overriding reason in the public interest. It is further necessary, in such a case, that the restriction be appropriate for ensuring the attainment of the objective in question and not go beyond what is necessary to attain that objective (see Case C‑371/10 National Grid Indus [2011] ECR I‑12273, paragraph 42, and Case C‑250/08 Commission v Belgium [2011] ECR I‑12341, paragraph 51).

24. Dans ces conditions, il y a lieu de vérifier si, comme le soutient SGL, le Tribunal était tenu de considérer le grief en cause comme un simple développement de l’argumentation présentée dans la requête introductive d’instance.

94. The requirement that an applicant rely on specific circumstances to show that there is an overriding public interest to justify the disclosure of the documents concerned is in accordance with the case-law of the Court of Justice (see, to that effect, Commission v Technische Glaswerke Ilmenau , paragraph 62; Sweden and Others v API and Commission , paragraph 103; Commission v Éditions Odile Jacob , paragraph 126; and Commission v Agrofert Holding , paragraph 68).

42. The Court has held that the imposition of a penalty payment is in principle justified only in so far as the failure to comply with an earlier judgment of the Court continues up to the time of the Court’s examination of the facts (Case C‑369/07 Commission v Greece , paragraph 59 and the case-law cited).

66 It should be added that in any event the Court has held that in the absence of Community rules governing a matter, it is for the domestic legal system of each Member State to designate the courts and tribunals having jurisdiction and to lay down the detailed procedural rules governing actions for safeguarding rights which individuals derive from the direct effect of Community law, it being understood that such rules must not be less favourable than those governing similar domestic actions nor render virtually impossible or excessively difficult the exercise of rights conferred by Community law (see, in particular, Case 33/76 Rewe [1976] ECR 1989, at paragraph 5; Case 45/76 Comet [1976] ECR 2043, at paragraphs 12 to 16, and Case C-312/93 Peterbroeck [1995] ECR I-4599, at paragraph 12).

24 As is clear from recitals 1, 2, 3 and 9 to Directive 2004/25, its objective is to protect the interests of holders of the securities of companies the control of which is acquired by a natural or legal person and it seeks, in that perspective, to guarantee clarity and transparency of the rules in respect of takeover bids.

141. In particular, when aid granted by a Member State strengthens the position of an undertaking compared with other undertakings competing in intra‑Community trade, the latter must be regarded as affected by that aid ( Italy v Commission , cited in paragraph 131 above, paragraph 115, and Unicredito Italiano , paragraph 56, and the case-law there cited).

28 As may be seen from paragraph 13 of the judgment in Van Cant, the question whether national legislation has maintained different pensionable ages for male and female workers is a question of fact which it is for the national court to determine.

56. It ought to be borne in mind that, in accordance with the Court ' s settled case-law, the scope of Article 30 does not include provisions of the Treaty relating to charges having effect equivalent to customs duties (Article 12 of the Treaty and Article 16 of the EC Treaty, repealed by the Treaty of Amsterdam) or relating to discriminatory internal taxation (Article 95 of the Treaty) (see inter alia, to this effect, Case 74/76 Iannelli & Volpi [1977] ECR 557, paragraph 9; Joined Cases C-78/90 to C-83/90 Compagnie Commerciale de l ' Ouest and Others [1992] ECR I-1847), paragraph 20, and Lornoy and Others , paragraph 14).

32. First, the recipient undertaking must actually have public-service obligations to discharge, and the obligations must be clearly defined ( Altmark Trans , paragraph 89).

82. Thus, the Court has held that if a national law merely encourages or makes it easier for undertakings to engage in autonomous anti-competitive conduct, those undertakings remain subject to Articles 81 EC and 82 EC (Joined Cases 40/73 to 48/73, 50/73, 54/73 to 56/73, 111/73, 113/73 and 114/73 Suiker Unie and Others v Commission [1975] ECR 1663, paragraphs 36 to 73, and CIF , paragraph 56).

69. To that end, Regulation No 1049/2001 is intended, as is apparent from recital 4 in its preamble and from Article 1, to give the fullest possible effect to the right of public access to documents of the institutions (see Case C‑266/05 P Sison v Council [2007] ECR I‑1233, paragraph 61; Case C‑64/05 P Sweden v Commission [2007] ECR I‑11389, paragraph 53; Sweden and Turco v Council , paragraph 33; and Case C‑139/07 P Commission v Technische Glaswerke Ilmenau [2010] ECR I‑0000, paragraph 51).

79. In addition, air carriers are not obliged to pay compensation if they can prove that the cancellation or long delay is caused by extraordinary circumstances which could not have been avoided even if all reasonable measures had been taken, that is, circumstances which are beyond the air carrier’s actual control (see Sturgeon and Others , paragraph 67).

92. Il convient également de tenir compte du fait que, outre la présente affaire faisant suite au défaut d’exécution de l’arrêt Commission/Italie (C‑297/08, EU:C:2010:115), la Cour a été saisie de plus de 20 affaires en matière de déchets ayant abouti à une constatation de manquement de cet État membre à ses obligations découlant du droit de l’Union (voir arrêt Commission/Italie, C‑196/13, EU:C:2014:2407, point 115).

77 In the light of the cumulative nature of the conditions governing the non-contractual liability of the European Union, as contemplated in the second paragraph of Article 340 TFEU, the considerations set out in paragraphs 74 to 76 above suffice to dismiss Agriconsulting’s appeal without having to rule on the fourth ground of appeal relating to the examination by the General Court of the loss of profit which it suffered as a result of the rejection of its tender (see, by analogy, judgments of 19 April 2007, Holcim (Deutschland) v Commission, C‑282/05 P, EU:C:2007:226, paragraph 57, and of 14 October 2014, Giordano v Commission, C‑611/12 P, EU:C:2014:2282, paragraph 54).

57. It follows that the applicant has not been able to show that the Court of First Instance erred in law by holding that, in the present case, there was not a sufficiently serious breach of Community law, a breach which alone could have given rise to the non-contractual liability of the Community. In the light of the cumulative nature of the conditions governing that liability, that consideration suffices to dismiss the appeal without having to rule on the third plea in law relating to the existence of a causal link between the conduct of which the Community is accused and the alleged damage. Costs

16. According to settled case-law, Member States may adopt rules for the application of a regulation if they do not obstruct its direct applicability, do not conceal its Community nature and specify that a discretion granted by the regulation is being exercised, and provided that they adhere to the parameters laid down under it (see, to that effect, Case 94/77 Zerbone [1978] ECR 99, paragraph 27).

92. In view of this context, the contested decision could be reasoned in a summary manner (Case 73/74 Papiers Peints and Others v Commission [1975] ECR 1491, paragraph 31, and Case C-156/98 Germany v Commission , paragraph 105).

85 So, in considering whether Article 100a was the proper legal basis, the Court must verify whether the measure whose validity is at issue in fact pursues the objectives stated by the Community legislature (see, in particular, Spain v Council, cited above, paragraphs 25 to 41, and Case C-233/94 Germany v Parliament and Council [1997] ECR I-2405, paragraphs 10 to 21).

36. If the period of detention for the purpose of removal completed before the rules in Directive 2008/115 become applicable were not taken into account for calculating the maximum period of detention, persons in a situation such as that of Mr Kadzoev could be detained for longer than the maximum periods mentioned in Article 15(5) and (6) of that directive.

90. As the Court has already pointed out, ‘negligence’ entails an act or omission by which the party responsible breaches the duty of care which it should have discharged, and could have discharged, in view of its attributes, knowledge and abilities (see, to that effect, Case C‑308/06 Intertanko and Others [2008] ECR I‑0000, paragraph 74 to 77).

22. It is settled case-law that the Court may order the reopening of the oral procedure in accordance with Article 61 of the Rules of Procedure if it considers that it lacks sufficient information or that the case should be examined on the basis of an argument which has not been the subject of debate between the parties (see, inter alia, Case C-284/06 Burda [2008] ECR I‑4571, paragraph 37, and Case C-221/09 AJD Tuna [2011] ECR I‑0000, paragraph 36).

18. It must be added that, according to equally settled case-law, a Member State may not rely on provisions, practices or circumstances in its internal legal order to justify failure to comply with the obligations and time-limits laid down by a directive (see, inter alia , Case C-276/98 Commission v Portugal [2001] ECR I-1699, paragraph 20, and Case C-114/02 Commission v France , cited above, paragraph 11).

68. Ainsi, l’importateur qui s’est placé de manière artificielle dans une situation qui lui permet de bénéficier des restitutions à l’exportation est tenu d’acquitter les droits afférents aux produits concernés, sans préjudice, le cas échéant, des sanctions administratives, civiles ou pénales prévues par la législation nationale.

25. By the terms ‘contract in question’ or, adopting a slightly different formulation used in the case-law, ‘contract at issue’ (see, for example, Joined Cases C‑20/01 and C‑28/01 Commission v Germany [2003] ECR I‑3609, paragraph 33 and case-law cited), the Court is referring to the whole of the project at issue, viewed in its general context and by reference to its fundamental characteristics.

53. It is important, first, to note that the objective of Directive 83/183, in the light of which the question raised must be answered, is, according to the recitals in its preamble, to encourage free movement of persons within the Community. The elimination of obstacles to the importation into one Member State of personal property from another is, from that point of view, particularly necessary for the creation of conditions analogous to those of an internal market (see, by analogy, Case C‑262/99 Louloudakis [2001] ECR I‑5547, paragraph 58).

37 In order to ascertain whether such a worker is duly registered as belonging to the labour force of a Member State for the purposes of that provision of Decision No 1/80, it is necessary, first, to determine, in accordance with settled case-law (Bozkurt, paragraphs 22 and 23, Günaydin, paragraph 29, Ertanir, paragraph 39, and Birden, paragraph 33, all cited above), whether the legal relationship of employment of the person concerned can be located within the territory of a Member State or retains a sufficiently close link with that territory, taking account in particular of the place where the Turkish national was hired, the territory on or from which the paid activity is pursued and the applicable national legislation in the field of labour and social security law.

40. As is clear from the Directive ' s general scheme, transnational informing and consulting of employees are essentially to be ensured by means of a system of negotiations between central management and the employees ' representatives ( Bofrost* , paragraph 29).

34 Article 5(1)(b) of the Directive is designed to apply only if, because of the identity or similarity both of the marks and of the goods or services which they designate, there exists a likelihood of confusion on the part of the public, which includes the likelihood of association between the sign and the trade mark. It follows from that wording that the concept of likelihood of association is not an alternative to that of likelihood of confusion, but serves to define its scope. The very terms of the provision exclude its application where there is no likelihood of confusion on the part of the public (see, as regards Article 4(1)(b) of the Directive, SABEL, paragraph 18). Protection of a registered mark thus depends, in accordance with Article 5(1)(b) of the Directive, on there being a likelihood of confusion (see, as regards Article 4(1)(b) of the Directive, Case C-39/97 Canon Kabushiki Kaisha v MGM [1998] ECR I-5507, paragraph 18).

Zumex soutenant que le pourvoi est irrecevable dans son ensemble au motif que, dans chacun de ses moyens, Eloro se limite à contester l’appréciation des faits et des preuves effectuée par le Tribunal, sans invoquer d’erreur de droit ni une quelconque dénaturation de ces faits ou preuves, il convient de rappeler que, certes, conformément à l’article 256, paragraphe 1, TFUE et à l’article 58, premier alinéa, du statut de la Cour de justice de l’Union européenne, le pourvoi est limité aux questions de droit et que, dès lors, le Tribunal est seul compétent pour constater et apprécier les faits pertinents ainsi que pour apprécier les éléments de preuve, sous réserve du cas de leur dénaturation (voir, en ce sens, arrêt du 2 septembre 2010, Calvin Klein Trademark Trust/OHMI, C‑254/09 P, EU:C:2010:488, point 49 et jurisprudence citée).

51. In that regard, according to settled case-law, in order for national rules to comply with the principle of proportionality, it must be ascertained not only whether the means which they employ are suitable for the purpose of ensuring the attainment of the objectives pursued but also whether those means do not go beyond what is necessary to attain those objectives (see Joined Cases C‑158/04 and C‑159/04 Alfa Vita Vassilopoulos and Carrefour-Marinopoulos [2006] ECR I‑8135, paragraph 22).

22. However, in order for such rules to comply with the principle of proportionality, it must be ascertained not only whether the means which they employ are suitable for the purpose of attaining the desired objectives but also whether those means do not go beyond what is necessary for that purpose (Case C‑463/01 Commission v Germany [2004] ECR I‑11705, paragraph 78, and Case C‑309/02 Radlberger Getränkegesellschaft and S. Spitz [2004] ECR I‑11763, paragraph 79).

35. As regards the second condition, Article 2(1) of Directive 85/337 shows that the essential objective of the directive is to ensure that projects likely to have significant effects on the environment by virtue, inter alia, of their nature, size or location are made subject to an assessment of their effects on the environment before consent is given (see Linster , paragraph 52, and Boxus and Others , paragraph 41).

Il convient de rappeler que l’obligation de motivation prévue à l’article 296 TFUE constitue une formalité substantielle qui doit être distinguée de la question du bien-fondé de la motivation, celui-ci relevant de la légalité au fond de l’acte litigieux (voir arrêt Ipatau/Conseil, C‑535/14 P, EU:C:2015:407, point 37 et jurisprudence citée). En effet, la motivation d’une décision consiste à exprimer formellement les motifs sur lesquels repose cette décision. Si ces motifs sont entachés d’erreurs, celles-ci entachent la légalité au fond de la décision, mais non la motivation de celle-ci, qui peut être suffisante tout en exprimant des motifs erronés (voir arrêt Bertelsmann et Sony Corporation of America/Impala, C‑413/06 P, EU:C:2008:392, point 181). Il s’ensuit que les griefs et les arguments tendant à mettre en cause le bien-fondé d’un acte sont dénués de pertinence dans le cadre d’un moyen visant la violation de l’article 296 TFUE.

18. Or, toute interprétation divergente au niveau national des obligations d’exonération prévues par la directive 2003/96 non seulement porterait atteinte à l’objectif d’harmonisation de la réglementation de l’Union et à la sécurité juridique, mais risquerait d’introduire des inégalités de traitement entre les opérateurs économiques concernés (voir, en ce sens, arrêts du 1 er avril 2004, Deutsche See-Bestattungs-Genossenschaft, C‑389/02, Rec. p. I-3537, point 21, et du 1 er mars 2007, Jan De Nul, C‑391/05, Rec. p. I-1793, point 23).

38. It follows from this that the recovery of the sums at issue should as a rule have been regarded as time-barred by the application of the general four-year limitation period provided for in the first subparagraph of Article 3(1) of Regulation No 2988/95.

33. With regard to objective justification of such a restriction, it is to be borne in mind that the Court has on several occasions held that planning requirements relating, on the one hand, to the object of ensuring sufficient and permanent access to a balanced range of high-quality treatment in the Member State concerned and, on the other, to the wish to control costs and avoid, so far as possible, any waste of financial, technical and human resources may justify the requirement of prior authorisation for financial responsibility on the part of the competent institution for treatment proposed in another Member State (see, to that effect, Case C‑157/99 Smits and Peerbooms [2001] ECR I‑5473, paragraphs 76 to 81; Müller-Fauré and van Riet , paragraphs 76 to 81, and Watts , paragraphs 108 to 110).

52. This finding is also confirmed by the legal framework within which the contested regulation is situated, in particular by the Anglo-Irish Agreement, which forms the basis of the IFI Agreement. While the principal objective of the Anglo-Irish Agreement is the promotion of peace and reconciliation between the two communities in Northern Ireland, the objective pursued by the area of activity within which the IFI Agreement falls is, as is stated in Article 10(a) of the Anglo-Irish Agreement, the promotion of regional economic and social development.

33. The term ‘discard’ must be interpreted in the light not only of the fundamental aim of the directive, which, according to the third recital in the preamble thereto, is ‘the protection of human health and the environment against harmful effects caused by the collection, transport, treatment, storage and tipping of waste’, but also of Article 174(2) EC. The latter provision states that ‘Community policy on the environment shall aim at a high level of protection taking into account the diversity of situations in the various regions of the Community. It shall be based on the precautionary principle and on the principles that preventive action should be taken …’. It follows that the term ‘discard’ – and, accordingly, the concept of ‘waste’, within the meaning of Article 1(a) of the directive – cannot be interpreted restrictively (see, to that effect, inter alia, Joined Cases C‑418/97 and C‑419/97 ARCO Chemie Nederland and Others [2000] ECR I‑4475, paragraphs 36 to 40, and Thames Water Utilities , paragraph 27).

36 In that event, the national court would also have to find that Mediaprint holds a dominant position in a substantial part of the common market, since the case-law indicates that the territory of a Member State over which a dominant position extends is capable of constituting a substantial part of the common market (see, to that effect, Case 322/81 Michelin v Commission [1983] ECR 3461, paragraph 28; Case C-323/93 Centre d'Insémination de la Crespelle [1994] ECR I-5077, paragraph 17).

27. According to the Court’s case-law, where a transaction comprises a bundle of elements and acts, regard must be had to all the circumstances in which the transaction in question takes place in order to determine, first ly, if there are two or more distinct supplies or one single supply and, secondly, whether, in the latter case, that single supply falls within the exemption in question (see, to that effect, Case C-41/04 Levob Verzekeringen and OV Bank [2005] ECR I-9433, paragraph 19; Case C-111/05 Aktiebolaget NN [2007] ECR I-2697, paragraph 21; and Joined Cases C-497/09, C-499/09, C-501/09 and C-502/09 Bog and Others [2011] ECR I-1457, paragraph 52).

24. En deuxième lieu, ainsi que la Commission européenne le fait valoir, il convient de constater que l’objectif poursuivi par la directive 87/344, et en particulier par son article 4, de protéger de manière large les intérêts des assurés (voir, en ce sens, arrêt Eschig, précité, point 45) n’est pas compatible avec une interprétation restrictive de l’article 4, paragraphe 1, sous a), de cette directive, telle que celle proposée par DAS.

23. Legislation which makes the establishment in the host Member State of an economic operator from another Member State subject to the issue of a prior authorisation and allows self-employed activity to be pursued only by certain economic operators who satisfy predetermined requirements, compliance with which is a condition for the issue of that authorisation, constitutes a restriction within the meaning of Article 43 EC. Such legislation deters or even prevents economic operators from other Member States from pursuing their activities in the host Member State through a fixed place of business (see, to this effect, Hartlauer , paragraphs 34, 35 and 38).

54. Thus, with respect to Directive 2000/78, that concept must be understood as referring to the elimination of the various barriers that hinder the full and effective participation of persons with disabilities in professional life on an equal basis with other workers.

16 In that regard, the Court has already held that it must in principle confine its examination to the matters which the referring court has decided to submit to it in its request for a preliminary ruling. Thus, as regards the application of the relevant national legislation, the Court must proceed on the basis of the situation which the referring court considers to be established (judgment of 8 June 2016,Hünnebeck, C‑479/14, EU:C:2016:412, paragraph 36 and the case-law cited). It is clear from the settled case-law of the Court that questions on the interpretation of EU law referred by a national court in the factual and legislative context which that court is responsible for defining and the accuracy of which is not a matter for the Court to determine, enjoy a presumption of relevance (judgment of 8 December 2016, Eurosaneamientos and Others, C‑532/15 and C‑538/15, EU:C:2016:932, paragraph 28 and the case-law cited).

54. First of all, it is clear that, under the derogation provided for in Article 3(3) of Regulation No 2988/95, Member States retain wide discretion in fixing longer limitation periods which they intend to apply in cases involving an irregularity that is detrimental to the European Union’s financial interests.

67. Such legislation constitutes an obstacle to the freedom to provide services guaranteed by Article 49 EC. That article precludes the application of any national rules which have the effect of making the provision of services between Member States more difficult than the provision of services purely within a Member State (see, for example, Case C-118/96 Safir [1998] ECR I-1897, paragraph 23; Smits and Peerbooms , paragraph 61; Danner , paragraph 29; Case C-334/02 Commission v France [2004] ECR I-2229, paragraph 23; Watts , paragraph 94; and Case C-444/05 Stamatelaki [2007] ECR I-0000, paragraph 25).

27 In such a situation, both of the tenderers have an interest in obtaining a particular contract. On the one hand, the exclusion of one tenderer may lead to the other being awarded the contract directly in the same procedure. On the other, if both tenderers are excluded and a new public procurement procedure is launched, each of those tenderers may participate in the new procedure and thus obtain the contract indirectly.

20. First of all, as regards the alleged failure on the part of the Giudice di Pace di Genova to take account of the entry into force of Decree Law No 223/2006 for the purpose of resolving the dispute in the main proceedings, according to established case‑law, it is not for the Court of Justice to rule on the applicability of provisions of national law which are relevant to the outcome of such proceedings, but the Court must take account, under the division of jurisdiction between the Community Courts and the national courts, of the legislative context, as described in the order for reference, in which the question put to it is set (see, to that effect, Case C 475/99 Ambulanz Glöckner [2001] ECR I-8089, paragraph 10; Case C 153/02 Neri [2003] ECR I-13555, paragraphs 34 and 35; and Case C‑28/04 Tod’s and Tod’s France [2005] ECR I‑5781, paragraph 14).

43 IF, AFTER THE EVENT, THE APPOINTING AUTHORITY FOUND THAT THE CONDITIONS OF ELIGIBILITY REQUIRED IN THE NOTICE OF VACANCY WERE MORE EXACTING THAN THE NEEDS OF THE SERVICE DEMANDED IT WAS ENTITLED TO RE-OPEN THE PROMOTION PROCEDURE AFTER WITHDRAWING THE ORIGINAL NOTICE OF VACANCY AND PUTTING AN AMENDED ONE IN ITS PLACE . THIRD SUBMISSION

103. As the Court has held in its judgment in Joined Cases C‑143/88 and C‑92/89 Zuckerfabrik Süderdithmarschen and Zuckerfabrik Soest [1991] ECR I‑415, paragraph 18 (‘ Zuckerfabrik ’), references for preliminary rulings on the validity of a measure, like actions for annulment, allow the legality of acts of the Community institutions to be reviewed. In the context of actions for annulment, Article 242 EC enables applicants to request enforcement of the contested act to be suspended and empowers the Court to order such suspension. The coherence of the system of interim legal protection therefore requires that national courts should also be able to order suspension of enforcement of a national administrative measure based on a Community regulation, the legality of which is contested (see also Case C‑465/93 Atlanta Fruchthandelsgesellschaft and Others (I) [1995] ECR I‑3761, paragraph 22, and Case C‑68/95 T. Port [1996] ECR I‑6065, paragraph 49; on the Court’s lack of jurisdiction to order interim measures in the context of preliminary-ruling proceedings, see the order of the President of the Court in Case C‑186/01 R Dory [2001] ECR I‑7823, paragraph 13).

15 As regards the services at issue in the main proceedings, it cannot be disputed that the Régie des Postes is entrusted with a service of general economic interest consisting in the obligation to collect, carry and distribute mail on behalf of all users throughout the territory of the Member State concerned, at uniform tariffs and on similar quality conditions, irrespective of the specific situations or the degree of economic profitability of each individual operation.

15 Moreover, as was pointed out at paragraph 52 of the judgment in Case C-287/98 Linster [2000] ECR I-6917, the essential aim of Directive 85/337 is that, before consent is given, projects likely to have significant effects on the environment by virtue, inter alia, of their nature, size or location should be made subject to an assessment with regard to their effects.

58. In addition, it is not necessary that the beneficiary undertaking itself be involved in intra-Community trade. Aid granted by a Member State to an undertaking may help to maintain or increase domestic activity, with the result that undertakings established in other Member States have less chance of penetrating the market of the Member State concerned (see, to that effect, in particular, Case C-310/99 Italy v Commission [2002] ECR I-2289, paragraph 84). Furthermore, the strengthening of an undertaking which, until then, was not involved in intra-Community trade may place that undertaking in a position which enables it to penetrate the market of another Member State.

88. The Member States, however, are responsible for ensuring that those rights are effectively protected in each case ( Impact , paragraph 45 and the case-law cited).

11. The Kingdom of Spain provided the Commission with additional information by letter of 23 July 2010.

50. Il est en effet de jurisprudence constante que la pratique décisionnelle de la Commission ne saurait constituer un cadre juridique pour les amendes infligées en matière de concurrence (voir, en ce sens, arrêt Heineken Nederland et Heineken/Commission, C‑452/11 P, EU:C:2012:829, point 108 et jurisprudence citée), cette affirmation valant, comme l’a relevé le Tribunal au point 189 de l’arrêt attaqué, tant pour la détermination du montant des amendes individuelles que pour l’interprétation par la Commission de ses propres lignes directrices (voir, en ce sens, arrêt Dansk Rørindustri e.a./Commission, C‑189/02 P, C‑202/02 P, C‑205/02 P à C‑208/02 P et C‑213/02 P, EU:C:2005:408, points 227 et 230), qu’il s’agisse donc du niveau général des amendes ou de la méthodologie employée pour leur calcul.

23. In interpreting a provision of Community law it is necessary to consider not only its wording but also the context in which it occurs and the objects of the rules of which it is part (Case C-17/03 VEMW and Others [2005] ECR I-0000, paragraph 41, and the case-law cited).

42 In this connection, it must be noted that the Court has held that every case in which the question arises as to whether a national procedural provision renders the application of EU law impossible or excessively difficult must be analysed by reference to the role of that provision in the procedure, its conduct and its special features, viewed as a whole, before the various national bodies. In that context, it is necessary, inter alia, to take into consideration, where relevant, the protection of the rights of the defence, the principle of legal certainty and the proper conduct of the procedure (see, to that effect, judgment of 11 November 2015, Klausner Holz Niedersachsen, C‑505/14, EU:C:2015:742, paragraph 41 and the case-law cited).

24 Admittedly, as Royscot, Harrison and Domecq submit, Article 11(4) of the Second Directive did not confer on Member States an unlimited discretion to exclude all and any goods and services from the system of the right of deduction and thereby negate the system established by Article 11(1) of that directive.

32. Both the notes which head the chapters of the Common Customs Tariff and the Explanatory Notes to the Nomenclature of the Customs Cooperation Council are important means of ensuring the uniform application of the Tariff and as such may be regarded as useful aids to its interpretation (see Case C‑11/93 Siemens Nixdorf [1994] ECR I‑1945, paragraph 12; Case C‑382/95 Techex [1997] ECR I‑7363, paragraph 12; Case C‑339/98 Peacock [2000] ECR I‑8947, paragraph 10; and Olicom , paragraph 17).

37 IN A CONSISTENT LINE OF DECISION THE COURT HAS STATED THAT , IN SO FAR AS UNCERTAINTIES PERSIST IN THE PRESENT STATE OF SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH , IT IS FOR THE MEMBER STATES , IN THE ABSENCE OF HARMONIZATION , TO DECIDE WHAT DEGREE OF PROTECTION OF HEALTH AND LIFE OF HUMANS THEY INTEND TO ENSURE , HAVING REGARD HOWEVER TO THE REQUIREMENTS OF THE FREE MOVEMENT OF GOODS WITHIN THE COMMUNITY .

30. The national court raises numerous queries, essentially grouped together into three questions, some of which relate to the interpretation of national law. In this regard, it must be borne in mind that the Court has no power, within the framework of Article 267 TFEU, to give preliminary rulings on the interpretation of rules pertaining to national law. The jurisdiction of the Court is confined to considering provisions of EU law only (see, in particular, Case C‑222/04 Cassa di Risparmio di Firenze and Others [2006] ECR I‑289, paragraph 63).

42. En revanche, les prestations octroyées au titre d’un régime de pension, qui est fonction, pour l’essentiel, de l’emploi qu’occupait l’intéressé, se rattachent à la rémunération dont bénéficiait ce dernier et relèvent de l’article 141 CE (voir, notamment, en ce sens, arrêts du 13 mai 1986, Bilka‑Kaufhaus, 170/84, Rec. p. 1607, point 22; Barber, précité, point 28; Beune, précité, point 46; du 10 février 2000, Deutsche Telekom, C‑234/96 et C‑235/96, Rec. p. I‑799, point 32, ainsi que Podesta, précité, point 25).

44 The Court has consistently held that, whilst the principle of the protection of legitimate expectations is one of the fundamental principles of the Community, traders cannot have a legitimate expectation that an existing situation which is capable of being altered by the Community institutions in the exercise of their discretionary power will be maintained (see the judgment in Joined Cases C-258 and C-259/90 Pesquerías de Bermeo y Naviera Laida v Commission [1992] ECR I-2901, paragraph 34). That is true in an area such as the common agricultural policy and the common organization of the markets whose purpose involves constant adjustments to meet changes in the economic situation (see the judgment in Case C-350/88 Delacre and Others v Commission [1990] ECR I-395, paragraph 33).

3 ESTIMANT QUE LE LITIGE SOULEVAIT DES QUESTIONS D' INTERPRETATION DU DROIT COMMUNAUTAIRE, LE TRIBUNALE DI MILANO A SURSIS A STATUER JUSQU' A CE QUE LA COUR SE SOIT PRONONCEE SUR LES QUESTIONS PREJUDICIELLES SUIVANTES : "1 ) UNE IMPOSITION DENOMMEE IMPOT DE CONSOMMATION (' IMPOSTA ERARIALE DI CONSUMO' ) FRAPPANT TANT LES PRODUITS IMPORTES QUE LES PRODUITS NATIONAUX, MAIS QUI, EN FAIT, S' APPLIQUE UNIQUEMENT AUX PRODUITS IMPORTES PARCE QUE, EN RAISON DES CONDITIONS CLIMATIQUES, IL N' EXISTE PAS DE PRODUCTION NATIONALE ( A SAVOIR, EN L' ESPECE, DES BANANES ), CONSTITUE-T-ELLE UNE TAXE D' EFFET EQUIVALANT A UN DROIT DE DOUANE, INTERDITE PAR LES ARTICLES 9 ET 12 DU TRAITE*CEE? 2 ) UNE TELLE IMPOSITION DOIT-ELLE, AU CONTRAIRE, ETRE CONSIDEREE COMME UNE IMPOSITION INTERIEURE AU SENS DE L' ARTICLE 95 DU TRAITE PRECITE DES LORS QUE, D' APRES SA DENOMINATION, ELLE FRAPPE LA CONSOMMATION DU PRODUIT, ET NON L' IMPORTATION, MEME SI ELLE EST MATERIELLEMENT PERCUE LORS DU DEDOUANEMENT ET QU' ELLE FRAPPE UNIQUEMENT LES BANANES, A L' EXCLUSION DE TOUTE AUTRE SORTE DE FRUITS? 3 ) AU CAS OU L' IMPOT EN QUESTION DEVRAIT ETRE CONSIDERE COMME UNE IMPOSITION INTERIEURE, EST-IL CONTRAIRE A L' ALINEA 2 DE L' ARTICLE 95 ET, EN TANT QUE TEL, INTERDIT DANS LA MESURE OU IL VISE A PROTEGER D' AUTRES PRODUCTIONS DE FRUITS, ET NOTAMMENT TOUS LES FRUITS NATIONAUX?