EU: EP Committee debates Larive Report

The European Parliament’s EMAC Committee has held its second and last full debate on the follow-up to the Commission´s Green Paper on Commercial Communications in the Internal Market, before it is due to adopt its position on 8 December. Introducing her report to the Committee, Jessica Larive (ELDR, NL), informed MEPs that whilst progress had been made since the adoption of the Green Paper, more action needed to be taken on the proportionality assessment methodology, the work of the Expert Group, and the Article 169 complaints procedure.

Mrs Larive said that the cultural and social criteria of proportionality needed closer scrutiny and consideration, warning that in its current form, the criteria could be used as an opt-out by MS to flout the single market and mutual recognition principles of the Communication. She said that “the cultural and social criteria would mean a re-nationalisation of commercial communications in the EU”. She raised the legal validity of these criteria and informed MEPs that she planned to put forward amendments which questioned their legality under the Treaty. She also called for strict time limits to be set for the consideration of Article 169 complaints.