Judgment of the General Court (First Chamber) of 29 March 2017

AgricultureEAGF and EAFRD financingClearance of accountsDisallowance of expenses arising from irregularities in applying EU rulesChallenge by the Member State concernedBurden of proofShared by the Commission and the Member State

(Council Regulation No 73/2009; Commission Regulation No 1122/2009)

(see paras 43-47)

AgricultureEAGF and EAFRD financingIntegrated administration and control system for certain aid schemesReductions and exclusions where rules on cross-compliance not observedNon-application in cases of minor non-complianceCriteria for assessmentNational penalty system systematically regarding lack of documents required under the regulation’s rules on management as cases of minor non-complianceNot permissible

(Council Regulation No 73/2009, Art. 24(2); Commission Regulation No 1122/2009, Art. 71(3))

(see paras 48-51, 59, 60)

EU lawInterpretationMethodsLiteral, systematic and teleological interpretation

(see para. 67)

AgricultureCommon agricultural policyDirect support schemesCommon rulesRequirements on the identification and registration of animalsNon-complianceIrrelevant to the drawing of direct payments by the farmer concerned

(Council Regulations No 21/2004, Arts 3 and 6 to 8, and No 73/2009, Art. 4(1), and Annex II)

(see para. 68)

Actions for annulmentSubject-matterDecision based on several pillars of reasoning, each sufficient to justify the operative partAnnulment of such a decisionConditions

(Arts 263 TFEU and 296 TFEU)

(see para. 70)

Re:

APPLICATION based on Article 263 TFEU seeking the annulment of Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2015/1119 of 22 June 2015 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 2015 L 182, p. 39) to the extent that it concerns expenditure made by the Kingdom of the Netherlands.

Operative part

The Court:

1. Dismisses the action;

2. Orders the Kingdom of the Netherlands to bear its own costs and to pay those incurred by the European Commission;

3. Orders the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland to bear its own costs.