91998E3772

WRITTEN QUESTION P-3772/98

by Jean-Antoine Giansily (UPE) to the Commission

(4 December 1998)

Subject: Complaints by undertakings about the single market

Although the single market has been in place for the past six years, European undertakings, whose activities should have been made easier, are still confronted with the constraint of additional expenses incurred in bringing their products or services into line with the various national specifications and of test and approval or even authorisation procedures.

Does the Commission consider it acceptable for such objective obstacles to the development of the business community's commercial operations still to be in place today, and can it explain what it is doing about the Member States at which the complaints of economic operators about barriers to free movement are aimed?

Does the Commission have the necessary means and authority to force a Member State that infringes the legal provisions of the unified single market to abide strictly by the rules?

Answer given by Mr Monti on behalf of the Commission

(14 January 1999)

The Commission, in its role as guardian of the Treaties, attends to the application of the provisions concerning the free movement of goods and the freedom to provide services, as interpreted by the Court of Justice. These provisions do, moreover, have direct effect and can therefore be invoked by private individuals before domestic courts.

The vast majority of obstacles to the completion of the internal market have been removed, either through harmonisation or by application of the principle of mutual recognition. In addition, the Community possesses an instrument aimed at preventing the appearance of new barriers to trade, in the form of Directive 98/34/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 June 1998 laying down a procedure for the provision of information in the field of technical standards and regulations(1), which codifies the notification procedure laid down by Council Directive 83/189/EEC(2) in the field of technical standards and regulations.

The Commission is, nevertheless, aware that difficulties do still remain in a number of harmonised and unharmonised sectors. In this connection, and as part of its "Action plan for the single market", the Commission intends to adopt a communication in 1999 which will propose specific actions to remedy the problems.

All complaints from economic operators regarding obstacles to free movement are, at any rate, carefully examined by the Commission. If it considers that the facts or regulations exposed therein might constitute an infringement of Community law, the Commission can open an infringement procedure against the Member State concerned, which may, if necessary, lead to an action being brought before the Court of Justice. The Commission can also open such a procedure on its own initiative if, and by whatever means, it identifies an infringement of Community provisions.

(1) OJ L 204, 21.7.1998.

(2) OJ L 109, 26.4.1983.