Action brought on 16 June 2010 - Spain v Commission
(Case T-263/10)
Language of the case: Spanish
Parties
Applicant: Kingdom of Spain (represented by: N. Díaz Abad, lawyer)
Defendant: European Commission
Form of order sought
Annul the decision of the European Commission of 8 April 2010 declaring the suspension of the interim payment application submitted by the Kingdom of Spain on 17 December 2009 on the grounds stated in Section I of the legal reasoning set out in the originating application;
uphold the claim that the European Commission should pay interest on account of the delay in the actual payment of the interim sums applied for and improperly suspended;
order the Commission to pay the costs.
Pleas in law and main arguments
This action is directed against the decision of the Commission to interrupt the payment deadline of the interim payment application submitted by the Kingdom of Spain on 17 December 2009. That interim payment application, for a total amount of EUR 2 717 227.26, relates to the Operational Programme for Community Assistance from the European Social Fund in the framework of the Regional Competitiveness and Employment Objective for the Autonomous Community of the Balearics (CCI 2007ES052PO005).
In support of its claims the applicant relies on the following pleas in law:
Infringement of Article 91(1)(a) of Council Regulation (EC) No 1083/2006
1 of 11 July 2006 laying down general provisions on the European Regional Development Fund, the European Social Fund and the Cohesion Fund, since the Commission, without any report from a national or Community audit body to suggest the existence of a significant deficiency in the functioning of the management and control systems, and in the absence of any such deficiency, by means of the contested decision interrupted the payment deadline of the interim payment application submitted by the Kingdom of Spain.
Infringement of the control strategy approved by the Commission, in as much as the Commission interrupted the payment deadline for that interim payment on the ground that the absence of systems audits constitutes a significant delay in the implementation of the strategy, when that strategy enabled the Kingdom of Spain to submit those systems audits until 30 June 2010.
Infringement of the principle of legal certainty, since the Commission claims that the Kingdom of Spain failed to produce the systems audits in advance of the timetable agreed with the Commission itself, a requirement which therefore the Spanish authorities could not have foreseen.
Infringement of the principle of protection of legitimate expectations, since the national authorities acted in reliance on auditing timetables which the Commission had approved in the strategy, timetables which were being met, without any indication from the Commission at any time that this represented any deficiency in the management and control system.
Infringement of the principle of proportionality, since the measure adopted by the Commission is disproportionate and contrary to efficient financial management, and there are other less onerous legal instruments capable of attaining the same objective.
Lastly, the Kingdom of Spain claims default interest under Article 87(2) of Regulation 1083/2006, Article 83 of Regulation 1605/2002
2 and Article 106(5) of Commission Regulation 2342/2002.
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