A few weeks after the European Commission communication, the Council of the EU it's getting to grips with the “services” package and has already held three “competitiveness and growth” workgroup level meetings. The most recent session took place on Thursday 2 February.
During these three sessions (25 January, 1 and 2 February), the Maltese Presidency of the Council was able to outline its work calendar and the member states their respective positions. They discussed the general nature of the package and, more specifically, the draft directive on controlling the proportionality of national rules applicable to professional services and the regulation on the electronic “services” card – a dossier that looks like it is going to prove particularly difficult (see EUROPE 11705).
During the first workgroup meeting, the Maltese Presidency said that it wanted to obtain a common position by the end of its mandate on the proposal for improving notification of draft national laws on services. According to one diplomatic source, there really is a lot of work to be done on the electronic card.
Member states expressed their respective positions, which are no different to those put forward during the Competitiveness Council on 28 November (see EUROPE 11677). The member states particularly satisfied with the level of ambition displayed by the Commission are Denmark, the Netherlands, Finland, Ireland, United Kingdom and Lithuania. Poland says that it is also very satisfied. Italy and Portugal welcomed the Commission proposals but expressed their concerns about the impact of the electronic card on the national authorities.
Germany and France expressed their fears about the electronic card and saw it as a return to “the country of origin principle” through the backdoor. Luxembourg and Latvia were clearly against it and were particularly opposed to the electronic card. They believe this new mechanism will simply complicate the work of businesses and the national authorities. They also see it as a symptom of internal market dysfunctions.
During the two most recent meetings, the question of respect for subsidiarity was at the heart of the exchanges with the Commission. The latter attempted to alleviate some of the anguish expressed by the member states. On the proportionality test, the Commission provided assurances that it was not binding for the member states. As for the electronic card, the Commission also pointed out that it was voluntary for businesses.
During the next Competitiveness Council planned for 20 February, the Commission will present its different initiatives to the ministers. The presentation is expected to be made by the Commissioner for the Internal Market and Industry, Elżbieta Bieńkowska. (Original version in French by Pascal Hansens)