Brussels, 21/02/2001 (Agence Europe) - In a press release published on 19 February, the EU Committee of the American Chamber of Commerce in Brussels expressed its concern about the proposal presented by the European Commission on 27 September last in order to modernise the competition rules in the Union. According to the EU Committee, this proposal would "do more harm than good" in its current state.
The proposal in question covers the implementation of Articles 81 and 82 of the Treaty (agreements and abuse of dominant position) and aims to replace the current system for the administrative approval of agreements centralised in the hands of the Commission by a system in which not only the Commission but also the national authorities and jurisdictions could apply Article 81 (see EUROPE of 28 September, 2000, p.7).
The American Chamber of Commerce considers that the reform envisaged will lead to inconsistent application of the Community competition rules and could result in "renationalisation" of competition rules. Also, noting that the Commission plans to considerably strengthen its powers of investigation and sanction, it considers that such an approach must be accompanied by safeguards for companies in order to preserve their rights. The Chamber of Commerce considers, moreover, that the ability to impose structural solutions on companies is totally disproportionate with the aim of European competition policy. The American Chamber of Commerce therefore calls on the European Commission to review its plans, as, in its view, the September proposals were of a kind that "are a threat to the competitiveness of European industry" and that "would increase the legal uncertainty for companies wishing to invest in Europe (…) as they will risk facing multiple challenges in various jurisdictions with no guarantee of consistent outcomes". Finally, it hopes to be involved in these eventual works of reform with the other parties interested.