JUDGMENT OF THE COURT (Fifth Chamber)
17 June 2004 (1)

(Failure of a Member State to fulfil its obligations – Directive 2000/52/EC – Transparency of financial relations between Member States and public undertakings – Failure to implement within the prescribed period)

In Case C-99/03,

Commission of the European Communities, represented by J. Flett, acting as Agent, with an address for service in Luxembourg,

applicant,

v

Ireland, represented by D. O'Hagan, acting as Agent, with an address for service in Luxembourg,

defendant,

APPLICATION for a declaration that, by failing to adopt the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with Commission Directive 2000/52/EC of 26 July 2000 amending Directive 80/723/EEC on the transparency of financial relations between Member States and public undertakings (OJ 2000 L 193, p. 75) or, in any event, by failing to notify the Commission of those measures, Ireland has failed to fulfil its obligations under that directive,

THE COURT (Fifth Chamber),

composed of: C. Gulmann, President of the Chamber, S. von Bahr (Rapporteur) and R. Silva de Lapuerta, Judges,

Advocate General: A. Tizzano,
Registrar: R. Grass,

having decided, after hearing the Advocate General, to proceed to judgment without an Opinion,

gives the following

Judgment

1

By application lodged at the Court Registry on 4 March 2003, the Commission of the European Communities brought an action under Article 226 EC for a declaration that, by failing to adopt the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with Commission Directive 2000/52/EC amending Directive 80/723/EEC on the transparency of financial relations between Member States and public undertakings (OJ 2000 L 193, p. 75) or, in any event, by failing to notify the Commission of those measures, Ireland has failed to fulfil its obligations under that directive.

2

Under the first paragraph of Article 2 of Directive 2000/52, the Member States were to adopt the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with that directive by no later than 31 July 2001 and to inform the Commission immediately thereof.

3

In accordance with the procedure provided for in the first paragraph of Article 226 EC, the Commission, having given Ireland the opportunity to submit its observations, sent a reasoned opinion to that Member State by letter of 27 June 2002 requiring it to take the measures necessary to comply with its obligations under Directive 2000/52 within two months of notification of that opinion. Since the Irish authorities failed to send it, in response to that opinion, any information indicating that Directive 2000/52 had been implemented, the Commission decided to bring the present action.

4

In its defence, Ireland merely states that it anticipates that the Directive will have been implemented within three months of the date of that defence.

5

It is sufficient to point out that Ireland does not deny that it has failed to implement Directive 2000/52 within the period prescribed in the reasoned opinion.

6

Accordingly, the action brought by the Commission must be held to be well founded.

7

It must therefore be declared that, by failing to adopt the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with Directive 2000/52, Ireland has failed to fulfil its obligations under the directive.

Costs

8

Under Article 69(2) of the Rules of Procedure, the unsuccessful party is to be ordered to pay the costs if they have been applied for in the successful party’s pleadings. Since the Commission has asked for Ireland to be ordered to pay the costs and the latter has been unsuccessful, it must be ordered to pay the costs.

On those grounds,

THE COURT (Fifth Chamber)

hereby:

1.

Declares that, by failing to adopt the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with Commission Directive 2000/52/EC of 26 July 2000 amending Directive 80/723/EEC on the transparency of financial relations between Member States and public undertakings, Ireland has failed to fulfil its obligations under that directive;

2.

Orders Ireland to pay the costs.

Gulmann	von Bahr	Silva de Lapuerta

Delivered in open court in Luxembourg on 17 June 2004.

R. Grass C. Gulmann

Registrar President of the Fifth Chamber

1 –

Language of the case: English.