Brussels, 10/01/2013 (Agence Europe) - As EUROPE announced earlier this week, the European Commission is taking a closer look at Deutsche Bahn's cross subsidies. The German authorities are due to report to European Commissioner for Transport Siim Kallas about these this month (see EUROPE 10758). More precisely, this is a preliminary inquiry, conducted in several member states, into accounting separation in the railway sector in accordance with the principles laid down in the first railway package (Directives EC 91/440 and EC 2001/12) that were revised last year. The information for which the Commission has asked the German authorities, in a letter dated November, concerns the transfer of public funds from infrastructure managers - DB Netz - to the transport activities of DB Holding, and the transfer of funds for passenger transport as public service remits. These scenarios are contrary to the above-mentioned directives. At this stage, the Commission says that it gives priority to the dialogue with the offending member states, and thus Germany in this case, in order to resolve the issues. (MD/transl.fl)