Brussels, 20/03/2009 (Agence Europe) - The Commission has opened, continued or closed a series of infringement procedures against several member states in the areas of public procurement, professional qualifications and intellectual property rights.
Public procurement. (1) The European Commission is to send a reasoned opinion to France calling for the amendment of the French Rural Code which, since 2005, has granted the Centre national pour l'aménagement des structures des exploitations agricoles (CNASEA) the exclusive right to provide regional and local authorities with services relating to the management of public aid. This provision requires regional and local authorities to entrust the CNASEA with the management of their financial aid and accompanying measures if they do not wish to manage the aid themselves. The Commission considers that the management of financial aid falls under the public procurement directive so contracts cannot, therefore, be awarded by mutual agreement. (2) Germany will have to shed light on the conclusion of a public works contract for the construction of a public building by the German State of Saxony-Anhalt, without a call for tender. Berlin argues that the main subject of the contract was not the construction of the building but the sale of the land from an investor, who constructed the building. The Commission, however, points out that the value of the work was over €6 million.
It believes this to too large a part to be considered secondary. (3) Italy should explain itself regarding the direct attribution by two Italian communes of an advisory service concession for the management of pharmacies. The Commission challenges the fact that relations between the two communes and the concessionary are of the “in-house” variety that would authorise contracts to be made without competition. (4) The Commission calls on Luxembourg to comply with the Court of Justice's ruling without delay (Case C-272/07) decreeing that the Grand Duchy has not transposed Directive 2004/18/EC on the awarding of traditional public procurement contracts.
Professional qualifications. Spain is to receive a letter of formal notice calling on it to state which measures have been taken to come into line with the Court of Justice ruling (Case C-286/06) on recognition of professional engineering qualifications. The Court held that, by refusing to recognise the professional qualifications of engineers obtained in Italy on the basis of university education and training provided solely in Spain, and by making admission to internal exams for promotion in the civil service subject (in the case of engineers with professional qualifications obtained in another member state) to the academic recognition of those qualifications, Spain has failed to fulfil its obligations under Council Directive 2001/19/EC. Today, Directive 2005/36/EC has repealed Directive 2001/19/EC.
Miscellaneous. (1) The Commission has decided to launch a new procedure against Luxembourg for not having given information on its national measures applying Directive 2004/48/EC on respect of intellectual property rights. This member state was already condemned for its delay in transposing this legislative act (Case C-328/07). (2) Belgium will receive a reasoned opinion because its legislation is said to discriminate against foreign companies forcing them to have their cranes inspected by an approved Belgian body. These controls must take place before the cranes come into service on Belgian territory and then at regular intervals. (3) The Commission closes two infringement proceedings: - Austria has amended its legislation on gambling by extending the protection it affords to casino players to all citizens of the EU and of the European Economic Area; - at the end of January, Belgium amended its legislation prohibiting pharmacists from delivering medicines to an agent acting on behalf of the patients of a community if that community is not located in the same commune as the pharmacy in question or in a nearby municipality. (M.B./transl.rt/jl)