On 25 June, the European Commission launched infringement procedures against several Member States including the UK.
Whilst the Council formally adopted the third energy market liberalisation package the European Commission sent letters of formal notice, first stage of the infringement procedure, to 25 Member States, including the UK, for not complying with applicable gas and electricity regulations ( second energy liberalization package adopted in 2003).
The Commission has also sent a "reasoned opinion", the second stage of the infringement procedure, to the UK , because the City of York Council awarded a public works concession contract relating to the residential development of a piece of land known as "Osbaldwick" without carrying out a tendering process. According to the Commission the contract at stake is a public works concession contract which should have been awarded, on the basis of the public procurement Directive. Hence, a concession notice should have been published in the Official Journal of the European Union and a tendering process should have been concluded. Consequently, the Commission believes that the UK has infringed the EU public procurement rules. The Commission pointed out that the UK has accepted that the development agreement should have been tendered out in accordance with EU rules. However, the Commission has stressed that the UK has not introduced yet measures to bring the infringement to an end as well as to ensure that the award of future land development agreements will comply with the relevant EU rules. The Commission therefore may refer the issue to the ECJ if the UK does not “satisfactorily” reply within two months.
Moreover, the Commission sent a “reasoned opinion” to the UK requesting the UK to change its legislation governing the VAT exemption for transactions related to aircraft. The Commission stressed that under Article 148 of the VAT Directive certain supplies of goods and services related to aircraft are exempted from VAT providing that the aircraft is "used by an airline operating for reward chiefly on international routes." According to the Commission the UK has not correctly applied Article 148 since it applies exemptions based on different criteria, weight and design of the planes, rather than if they are operating commercial international routes. Consequently, the Commission has requested the UK to change its legislation.
The Commission also requested the UK, in the form of “reasoned opinion”, to communicate measures implementing the Commission Directive 2005/81/EC amending the Directive on the transparency of financial relations between Member States and public undertakings. Member States were required to transpose the Directive into national law by 19 December 2006. According to the Commission the UK has failed to inform the Commission of the entry into force of the necessary measures “to ensure that companies receiving state compensation for the discharge of a public service while exercising commercial activities keep separate accounts, as required by the financial transparency Directive.”
The Commission has also sent a “reasoned opinion” to the UK over its failure to notify national implementing measures as required by the Commission Directive 2008/109/EC amending Annex IV to Council Directive 2000/29/EC on protective measures against the introduction into the Community of organisms harmful to plants or plant products and against their spread within the Community.
The UK has now two months to amend its national rules in order to comply with the “reasoned opinion” and to notify to the Commission the measures it has taken to implement the Directives, failing this, the Commission may lodge cases against the UK with the European Court of Justice.
