Brussels, 19/10/2010 (Agence Europe) - On Tuesday 18 October, the European Commission discarded its intention to prosecute France because of the controversial expulsion of Roma, Justice Commissioner Viviane Reding said after having obtained guarantees. “The European Commission will now, for the time being, not pursue the infringement procedure against France decided by the college of commissioners on 29 September”, Reding said after a meeting of the college of commissioners in Strasbourg. The Commission had called on the French government to rapidly include in its legislation procedural safeguards set out in the European directive of 2004 on free movement and had set the French government an ultimatum, 15 October, for meeting these concerns, and prepared a letter of formal notice to be sent to France in the event of a non-satisfactory response. “I am glad to say today that France has responded positively, constructively and in time to the Commission's request”, Reding affirmed. The French government has provided draft legislative measures and a credible calendar for putting the procedural safeguards required under the EU's free movement directive into French legislation by early 2011. “The European Commission will closely watch over the full implementation of the commitments made by France”, Reding warned. French President Nicolas Sarkozy said how pleased he was that “reason had triumphed” with the infringement procedure against France being discarded. Although this chapter on free movement is now closed, the Commission is still assessing possible cases of discrimination committed by France against Romanians and Bulgarians belonging to the Roma community. “We remain extremely vigilant on this. We shall give our conclusions in one month on the decrees for expulsion and we shall not hesitate to call for further clarification from France”, Matthew Newman, Reding's spokesman, told EUROPE. (B.C./transl.jl)