Brussels, 28/02/2002 (Agence Europe) - The European Commission has authorised state aid for sports cableway installations in Italy and Austria on the grounds that since the aid is for sports installations supporting a purely local capacity, it does not affect cross-border trade and will not attract non-resident users. The Commission took advantage of this opportunity to clarify the EU legislation governing aid for winter sports, deciding to interpret the competition rules more strictly in the future since services connected with winter sports are subject to increasing cross-border competition that therefore impact on trade between Member States and also because the sector was often granted state aid in the past. The Commission is, however, considering a five year transition period (from 1 January 2002 until 31 December 2006) during which higher aid intensities would temporarily be accepted for state aid for cableway installations. From 2007 onwards, aid not eligible for any of the derogations provided for by the Treaty or the various existing exemption regulations and frameworks will be declared incompatible, but considerations on the absence of aid for local installations will continue to apply.