Brussels, 14/09/2010 (Agence Europe) - On Monday 13 September, European Parliament and Council representatives reached political agreement in principle on the legislative proposal which seeks to amend Directive 2000/35/EC that governs delays in payment by public authorities and companies, a flagship measure of the European “Small Business Act” action plan (see EUROPE 10191). “Small and medium-sized enterprises will no longer be faced with liquidity problems resulting from delays in payment for goods sold or services provided to public authorities or companies,” said EP rapporteur Barbara Weiler (S&D, Germany). For awarding authorities and business-to-business transactions, bills will have to be paid within 30 days, with some exemptions authorised for the health sector. The new rules will become applicable two years after the formal adoption of the directive. The political agreement has still to be formally confirmed by the Council and the EP. The Belgian Presidency will, this week, report to the Council, and the European Parliament is likely to put the compromise text to the first reading vote at the second plenary session in October.
The political agreements allows for payment by public authorities beyond the 30 days if: - expressly agreed between the debtor and creditor; - justified in the light of the particular nature or features of the contract. At the insistence of the EP, all payments should be made within 60 days. Should they wish, member states may, from the outset, choose a deadline of up to 60 days for the personal healthcare sector (hospitals, nurseries, retirement homes, etc). “The Commission's initial proposal in practice left debtors and creditors to agree on deadlines. But Euro MPs insisted on the 30-day rule setting limited and reasonable exceptions,” Weiler said.
A further point that remained to be settled related to the scale of penalties that could be imposed on debtors failing to meet their obligations. Creditors will be able to demand sums proportionate to the amounts due. A statutory rate of interest equivalent to the national reference interest rate plus 8% will be applied. The EP wanted a 9% surcharge; member states, such as Italy and Portugal, preferred 7%. A fixed sum of €40 may be granted as compensation for any costs incurred in recovery of the amount due. (M.B./transl.rt)