Brussels, 16/03/2010 (Agence Europe) - On Tuesday 16 March, the Ecofin Council adopted, without debate, two taxation directives. The first authorises a reversal of liability for the payment of VAT (value-added tax) on greenhouse gas emission allowance trading in order better to tackle carousel-type fraud (see EUROPE 10032). Until 30 June 2015, the person liable for the VAT payment of these services will be the consignee, and not the supplier as provided for in the VAT directive 2006/112/EC. Mobile telephones and integrated circuits will not be covered by this directive, with the Council having to return to this point as quickly as possible. The second directive will improve administrative cooperation in the recovery of taxes (see EUROPE 10059). By extending the scope of the current directive 2008/55/EC, it will make recovery procedures easier through the creation of a central office in each member state. Currently, the overall rate of tax recovery following cross-border requests by member states is only 5%. (M.B./transl.rt)