Judgment of the General Court (Sixth Chamber) of 24 September 2019 –
France v Commission
(Case T‑507/18)
(EAGF and EAFRD — Expenditure excluded from financing — Expenses incurred by France under the Programme of Options Specifically Relating to Remoteness and Insularity (POSEI) — Inaccurate accounting for certain consignments of bananas (financial years 2013 — 2016) — Flat-rate financial correction)
1. Agriculture — EAGF and EAFRD financing — Clearance of accounts — Disallowance of expenses arising from irregularities in applying EU rules — Challenge by the Member State concerned — Burden of proof — Shared by the Commission and the Member State
(European Parliament and Council Regulations No 228/2013 and No 1308/2013; Commission Regulation No 1333/2011)
(see paras 37, 38, 71)
2. Agriculture — EAGF and EAFRD financing — Principles — Obligations of the Member States — Adoption of monitoring and control measures — Finding of defects in the control system established by a Member State under the Programme of Options Specifically Relating to Remoteness and Insularity — Scope of the obligation
(European Parliament and Council Regulations No 228/2013 and No 1308/2013; Commission Regulations No 1333/2011 and No 180/2014)
(see paras 63, 69, 70, 72, 74)
Re:
| Application under Article 263 TFEU seeking annulment of Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2018/873 of 13 June 2018 excluding from European Union financing certain expenditure incurred by the Member States under the European Agricultural Guarantee Fund (EAGF) and under the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) (OJ 2018 L 152, p. 29) in so far as it applies to the French Republic a financial correction of 5%, amounting to a total sum of EUR 1 945 435.39, as regards the measures entitled ‘Other Direct Aid — POSEI’, on the ground of ‘inaccurate accounting for certain consignments of bananas’ for the financial years 2013 — 2016. |
Operative part
The Court:
2. | | Orders the French Republic to pay the costs. |