Court of Justice of the European Communities (including Court of First Instance Decisions)

JUDGMENT OF THE COURT (First Chamber)

16 January 2003 (1)

(Failure of a Member State to fulfil its obligations - Failure to implement Directive 98/83/EC)

In Case C-63/02,

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

applicant,

v

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, represented by P. Ormond, acting as Agent, and M. Demetriou, Barrister, with an address for service in Luxembourg,

defendant,

APPLICATION for a declaration that, by failing to adopt for Northern Ireland and Wales all the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with Council Directive 98/83/EC of 3 November 1998 on the quality of water intended for human consumption (OJ 1998 L 330, p. 32) or, in any event, by failing to notify such provisions to the Commission, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland has failed to fulfil its obligations under Article 17(1) and (2) of that directive,

THE COURT (First Chamber),

composed of: M. Wathelet, President of the Chamber, P. Jann and A. Rosas (Rapporteur), Judges,

Advocate General: S. Alber,

Registrar: R. Grass,

having regard to the Report of the Judge-Rapporteur,

after hearing the Opinion of the Advocate General at the sitting on 15 October 2002,

gives the following

Judgment

1. By application lodged at the Court Registry on 26 February 2002, the Commission of the European Communities brought an action under Article 226 EC for a declaration that, by failing to adopt for Northern Ireland and Wales all the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with Council Directive 98/83/EC of 3 November 1998 on the quality of water intended for human consumption (OJ 1998 L 330, p. 32; 'the Directive') or, in any event, by failing to notify such provisions to the Commission, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland has failed to fulfil its obligations under Article 17(1) and (2) of the Directive.

   Legal context

2. Article 17(1) of the Directive provides that the Member States are to bring into force the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with the Directive within two years of its entry into force. Article 17(2) provides that they are to communicate to the Commission the texts of the provisions of national law which they adopt in the field covered by the Directive.

3. Article 18 states that the Directive 'shall enter into force on the 20th day following its publication in the Official Journal of the European Communities'. Since the Directive was published on 5 December 1998, it entered into force on 25 December 1998 and the period for implementation expired on 25 December 2000.

   Pre-litigation procedure

4. Since the Commission took the view that the Directive had not been fully implemented within the period prescribed, it initiated the procedure provided for in Article 226 EC. Having given the United Kingdom formal notice to submit its observations, on 18 July 2001 the Commission issued a reasoned opinion stating that the Directive had not been implemented as regards Gibraltar, Wales and Northern Ireland and called on that Member State to take the necessary measures to comply with the reasoned opinion within two months of its notification.

5. By letter of 26 September 2001, the Permanent Representation of the United Kingdom to the European Union forwarded implementing legislation for Gibraltar and stated that it would keep the Commission regularly updated on progress made towards full implementation of the Directive as regards Wales and Northern Ireland.

6. Since the Commission considered that the United Kingdom had not adopted all the measures necessary in order to implement the Directive in respect of Wales and Northern Ireland, it brought the present action.

   The failure to fulfil obligations

7. The Commission states that it has not been informed of adoption of the provisions needed to comply with the Directive for Wales and Northern Ireland. Since it is in possession of no other information enabling it to conclude that the United Kingdom has adopted those provisions, it assumes that the United Kingdom has not adopted them and has thus failed to fulfil its obligations under the Directive.

8. The United Kingdom indicates in respect of Wales that the Water Supply (Water Quality) Regulations 2001 were made on 7 December 2001 and entered into force on 1 January 2002.

9. As to Northern Ireland, it states that implementation of the Directive was delayed by resource constraints. That problem was resolved and public consultation on the draft regulations was completed on schedule. The regulations were to enter into force in September 2002.

10. It must be found with regard to those submissions that the United Kingdom does not deny that, on expiry of the period prescribed in the reasoned opinion, the measures needed to implement the Directive for Northern Ireland and Wales had not yet beenadopted, but states that implementation is proceeding in accordance with the timetable established for that purpose and supplied to the Commission.

11. However, it is settled case-law that the question whether a Member State has failed to fulfil its obligations must be determined by reference to the situation prevailing in the Member State at the end of the period laid down in the reasoned opinion and that the Court cannot take account of any subsequent changes (see, inter alia, Case C-147/00 Commission v France [2001] ECR I-2387, paragraph 26).

12. In the present case, it has been established that no legislation implementing the Directive for Northern Ireland and Wales had been adopted on expiry of the period prescribed in the reasoned opinion.

13. Accordingly, the Commission's action must be considered well founded.

14. It must therefore be held that, by failing to adopt for Northern Ireland and Wales all the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with the Directive, the United Kingdom has failed to fulfil its obligations under Article 17(1) thereof.

    Costs

15. 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 applied for costs and the United Kingdom has been unsuccessful, the latter must be ordered to pay the costs.

On those grounds,

THE COURT (First Chamber)

hereby:

1. Declares that, by failing to adopt for Northern Ireland and Wales all the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with Council Directive 98/83/EC of 3 November 1998 on the quality of water intended for human consumption, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland has failed to fulfil its obligations under Article 17(1) of that directive;

2. Orders the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland to pay the costs.

WatheletJann Rosas

Delivered in open court in Luxembourg on 16 January 2003.

R. Grass M. Wathelet

Registrar President of the First Chamber

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1: Language of the case: English.