Brussels, 17/03/2015 (Agence Europe) - The committee on the single market of the European Parliament has approved (33 votes in favour, one against and four abstentions) an agreement with the Council on mutual assistance between member states and the European Commission on customs and agricultural matters.
The new rules will simplify and speed up the fight against customs fraud. The agreement is to be approved in plenary and by the member states, most likely before the summer.
False declarations of the origin of goods and false descriptions of imported products are estimated to cost nearly €200 million a year in customs revenue, according to an EP press release. (Elodie Lamer)