Search Results for: european union

BY KEITH NUTHALL
THE EUROPEAN Commission’s deadline of evaluating by July 2003 the safety of the 800-plus active substances used in EU pesticides will be missed, with Brussels asking ministers and MEPs to extend the completion date to 2008.

Health and consumer affairs Commissioner David Byrne has admitted that when the EU agreed Directive 91/414 on the authorisation, use and control of plant protection products – insecticides, fungicides, herbicides etc.…

BY ALAN OSBORN
THE EUROPEAN Commission has opened consultations on how the EU’s detergents legislation can be tightened. In particular it seeks better ways to control the biodegradability of surfactants, (materials reducing surface tension), which can create foam in water supplies, and wants mandatory information for consumers on the content of detergent and cleaning products.…

Keith Nuthall
THE EUROPEAN Court of Justice has dismissed a claim by Portugal that its system of landing fee discounts for some domestic flights is justified under EU law. In one of the last legal disputes on this issue, judges ruled that the fees for Lisbon, Oporto and Faro airports illegally discriminated against foreign carriers and so broke EU fair trade regulations.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
THE EUROPEAN Commission has finally given EU Member States the green light to help their electricity producers meet expensive ‘stranded costs’ that were incurred before the power market was liberalised in the late 1990’s, although Eurelectric has attacked Brussels for acting too slowly.…

Keith Nuthall
FRANCE has been formally requested by the European Commission to scrap safety regulations that force pilots of small aircraft on flights from other EU countries to land at an airport with a customs office or give at least 24 hours notice before take-off.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
THE EUROPEAN Commission has announced that it is taking Ireland, Italy and Greece to the European Court of Justice, for failing to abide by EU directives on the transport of dangerous goods. Ireland has already been censured by the court for ignoring EU rules regarding their road transport rules and the Commission’s action could lead to Dublin being ordered to pay massive fines.…

BY ALAN OSBORN
BRITISH hauliers could face new obstacles at trans-alpine crossings in Austria, if a decision by the transport committee of the European Parliament to reject proposals for increasing the number of trips across the Alps is backed by the full assembly.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
IRELAND is being threatened with legal action by the European Commission over its alleged failure to extend the EU product liability directive to primary agricultural foodstuffs, such as meat and game. Ireland had until last December to changes its law, to allow Irish food manufacturers, processors and caterers to pass on liability for defective products to farmers, where the blame is clear.…

Keith Nuthall
THE EUROPEAN Commission has failed in its bid to force the French government to abandon its tough line over the right of driving instructors to deduct tax VAT for vehicles bought for their jobs; Paris insists that they can claim a rebate, only where automobiles are used “exclusively” for teaching.…

Keith Nuthall
AUSTRIA and Ireland have been warned by the European Commission that they could face action in the European Court of Justice for failure to introduce legislation covering roadworthiness tests for diesel motor vehicles.

The EU directive concerned is 1999/52/EC, which concerns emissions from diesel engine vehicles and in particular with “vehicle preconditioning with a view to avoiding damage to the engine,” said the Commission.…