Important legal notice

62001C0029

European Court reports 2002 Page I-02503

Opinion of the Advocate-General

3. It is settled case-law of the Court of Justice that the relevant time for determining whether a Member State has failed to fulfil its obligations is the end of the period laid down in the reasoned opinion. That period expired on 27 September 2001 without the measures required by the Commission having been adopted. The Spanish Government in fact stated that it was working on the implementing law and that the national procedure was in progress.

4. It is also settled case-law of the Court of Justice that the Member States may not plead provisions of national law in order to justify the failure to implement a directive by the date required.

5. The obligation under Community law to implement the directive follows, on the one hand, directly from the directive and, on the other, from Article 249(3) EC and Article 10 EC.

Conclusion

7. I therefore propose that the Court of Justice should rule as follows:

(1) By failing to adopt the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with Council Directive 96/61/EEC of 24 September 1996 concerning integrated pollution prevention and control within the prescribed period, the Kingdom of Spain has failed to fulfil its obligations under that directive.

(2) The Kingdom of Spain must pay the costs.