Brussels, 19/01/2004 (Agence Europe) - On Tuesday, the Ecofin Council is expected to formally adopt without debate the new version of the Merger Regulation. Regulation 1/2003, amending Treaty articles 81 and 82, will come into force on 1 May 2004, replacing the old Regulation (17/62). The new rules foresee a softening of the timetable and the option of companies benefiting from a one stop shop compared with the previous situation where mergers had to be considered by the relevant national authorities of at least three Member States before being considered by the Commission. Commission spokesperson Amelia Torres said that the new legislation would come into force at the same time as ten new Member States joined the EU and she highlighted the obligation for all the acceding countries to abide by the EU's rules and abandon their national prerogatives with regard to assessing planned mergers.