As we go to press, the Transport Ministers of the Member States of the European Union have not yet reached a political agreement (‘general approach’) on the revision of the Directive on road infrastructure charges (1999/62/EC), known as the ‘Eurovignettes’ Directive.
In response to opposition to the text expressed by some Member States (Germany, Luxembourg, Sweden and the Netherlands) during a first round of discussions, Sanna Marin, the Finnish Minister of Transport, who chaired the meeting, decided to postpone the decision on whether to adopt a general approach until later in the evening.
While these four countries do not constitute a blocking minority, uncertainty remained, as Croatia and the United Kingdom did not contribute during the discussion (the former because it is the next country to hold the Presidency of the EU Council and the latter because of Brexit). However, according to information gathered by EUROPE, the United Kingdom could oppose the text. Therefore, if Croatia decided to do the same, the required qualified majority (65% of the Member States representing at least 55% of the population of the European Union) would not be reached.
In addition, some countries that supported the text nevertheless expressed serious reservations. These include Italy, Greece and Cyprus. EUROPE will continue to follow this story. (Original version in French by Damien Genicot)