Search

(…) During this period (in 2013 and 2014) WTO Members also used the SPS Committee to raise ten new specific trade concerns about measures taken in the EU or a member State [119] and referred to three concerns that had been raised earlier. [120] (…)

[119] (...) EU renewal of GMO approvals (ID 353); (...) EU withdrawal of equivalence for processed organic products (ID 378); (...)
[120] EU Court of Justice ruling regarding pollen derived from GMOs (ID 327); (...)

To address the problem of uncontrolled transport of waste, Regulation (EC) No. 1013/2006 of 14 June 2006 on shipments of waste lays down procedures for transboundary shipments (i.e. transport) of waste. This Regulation implements into EU law the provisions of the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and Their Disposal , as well as the OECD decision concerning the control of transboundary movement of wastes destined for recovery operations. The Regulation includes a ban on the export of hazardous wastes to non-OECD countries ("Basel ban") as well as a ban on the export of waste for disposal.

Different regimes apply to shipments of wastes for disposal and for recovery, as well as to hazardous and "green-listed" non-hazardous wastes. The shipment of hazardous wastes and wastes destined for disposal is subject to a notification procedure and requires the prior consent of all relevant competent authorities of the countries of dispatch, transit, and destination. However, as a general rule, shipments of "green-listed" waste for recovery within the EU, to OECD and certain non-OECD countries do not require the consent of the authorities.

Despite the Regulation, illegal shipments of waste are still a significant problem (some estimates suggest that the overall non-compliance rate with the Regulation could be around 25%). To strengthen member States' inspection systems, this Regulation was amended in 2014 through Regulation (EU) No. 660/2014 of 15 May 2014 which requires EU member States to establish inspection plans, including a minimum set of elements and based on a risk assessment. It also provides enhanced powers to the authorities involved in inspections to decide, on the basis of evidence, whether a carried substance or object is waste and whether a shipment can be considered an illegal shipment of waste. Member States are required to apply the new changes beginning in 2016/17.

At the EU level, support is primarily provided under agriculture and regional policy instruments. According to the Commission, regional policy is an investment policy with the goal of supporting job creation, competitiveness, economic growth, improved quality of life, and sustainable development. (...) In addition, the European Agriculture Guarantee Fund (EAGF) provides for direct payments and market measures related to agriculture (section 4.2), and the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund provides public support to the fishery and aquaculture sector and for the implementation of the integrated maritime policy in Regulation (EU) No. 508/2014 of the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund.

Table 3.10 Changes to EU rules on state aid, 2013 and 2014
General
- Title/reference: Council Regulation (EU) No. 733/2013 amending Regulation (EC) No. 994/98 on the application of Articles 92 and 93 of the Treaty establishing the European Community to certain categories of horizontal State aid
OJ L 204/11, 31 July 2013
- Entry into force: 20/08/2013
- Note:
• Enabling regulation
• New categories exempt from prior notification include innovation, culture, natural disasters, sport, broadband, etc.

Sectoral (including agriculture and fisheries)
- Title/reference: Commission Regulation (EU) No. 702/2014 declaring certain categories of aid in the agricultural and forestry sectors and in rural areas compatible with the internal market in application of Articles 107 and 108 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union
OJ L 193/1, 1 July 2014
- Entry into force: 01/07/2014
- Note:
• Subject to limits, exempts from notification aid for agricultural enterprises, cultural and heritage conservation, repairing damage from natural disasters, research and development, and forestry
• Certain measures are limited for SMEs (e.g. investment aid, start-up aid), certain measures can apply to large undertakings too (e.g. forestry measures, natural disaster measures)
• New categories exempt from prior notification (e.g. certain forestry measures, and natural disaster schemes)
(...)

- Title/reference: Commission Regulation (EU) No. 717/2014 of 27 June 2014 on the application of Articles 107 and 108 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union to de minimis aid in the fishery and aquaculture sector
OJ L 190/45, 28 June 2014
- Entry into force: 01/07/2014
- Note:
• Aid which does not exceed €30,000 to an undertaking over a 3-year period does not have to notified
• De minimis aid cannot be granted, in particular, for the purchase of fishing vessels, for the modernization or replacement of main or ancillary engines of fishing vessels, to operations increasing the fishing capacity of a vessel, to the construction of new fishing vessels or importation of fishing vessels

- Title/reference: Commission Regulation (EU) No. 1388/2014 of 16 December 2014 declaring certain categories of aid to undertakings active in the production, processing and marketing of fishery and aquaculture products compatible with the internal market in application of Articles 107 and 108 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union
OJ L 369/37, 24 December 2014
- Entry into force: 01/01/2015
- Note:
• Subject to limits, exempts from notification aid for the fishery and aquaculture sector which could have been supported by the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF) and which respects the rules of the EMFF
• Only covers aid to SMEs (with the exception of aid to make good the damage caused by natural disasters)

- Title/reference: Communication from the Commission – Guidelines on State aid for environmental protection and energy 2014-2020
OJ C 200/01, 28 June 2014
- Entry into force: 01/07/2014
- Note:
• From 2015-16, pilot phase of competitive bidding procedures for renewable energy
• Foresees switch to feed-in premiums to replace feed-in tariffs for electricity from renewables
• Provisions on support for some energy intensive sectors
• Provisions on improvements for cross border energy infrastructure
• Permits aid to secure adequate electricity generation when there is a real risk of insufficient electricity generation capacit

The Commission regularly publishes the State Aid Scoreboard which is based on annual reports by the member States under Commission Regulation (EC) No. 794/2004. According to the Scorecard, non-crisis-related state aid in 2013 was €63 billion. The biggest categories were environmental protection, regional development, research, and development and innovation, and the agricultural sector. In addition, €42 billion in aid was provided for rail transport (€19 billion for public service obligations and pensions, and €23 billion for infrastructure and other aid) (Table 3.11).

Non-crisis-related state aid in the EU has been declining unsteadily since it peaked in 1997 at €114 billion. The unsteady downward trend has continued in recent years with reductions in aid under most of the principal headings except environment, social support to consumers, and closure aid (Table 3.11).

Table 3.11 Non-crisis-related state aid in the EU, 2008-13
(€ million)
2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013
Agricultural and fisheries
Aid granted to fisheries and aquaculture, reported by DG Maritime and Fisheries Affairs 292 209 135 112 84 70

Horizontal objectives
Compensation for damage caused by natural disasters 13 4 43 113 35 85
Environmental protection incl. energy saving 14,124 15,458 14,723 13,326 14,414 14,912

To date the European Union has not harmonized the vehicle tax regime, however EU law restricts member States' flexibility in applying consumption tax to vehicles. As such, each member State applies its own national transportation taxes, mainly through registration taxes levied on the car purchase, and circulation taxes – levied annually on car ownership. On cars, 19 member States apply registration tax and 21 apply circulation tax. In recent years such tax rates have been more commonly linked to the car's CO2 emissions, utilization of alternative energy fuels and other features promoting environmentally-friendly vehicles. Estonia, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, and Lithuania do not apply vehicle tax on passenger cars. Among the member States, total revenue from vehicle taxation, as a percentage of GDP, ranged between 0.01% and 0.13% in 2012, averaging at around 0.05% in the EU.