01/02/2002 (Agence Europe) - As we pointed out earlier, the European Commission has postponed until next Tuesday its decision on tax exemptions granted to hauliers by France, Italy and the Netherlands (see EUROPE of 30 January, p.13). It decided on this because of the very full agenda of the last College meeting, and also because this very tricky subject requires discussion between the Commissioners, who remain divided over two issues, namely: - Can these exemptions on diesel fuel tax be assimilated to State aid and, if so, should such aid be paid back? There seems to be a majority within the Commission in favour of an intermediary position which would consist, on one hand, of declaring the aid illegal in order to bring this to an end as soon as the decision is adopted. On the other hand, it would consist of not requesting recovery of such aid since the Ecofin Council's decision (February 2001) aimed at extending until 2003 the exemptions to the directive on excise duty created a situation of "legitimate confidence". The Commission is expected to give a firmer verdict on the subject of the specific case of French aid to occasional passenger transport, deciding that such aid considered illegal should be paid back.