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EU seeks views on state-aid changes

The European Commission has launched a public consultation on proposed changes to its rules on state aid. 

The draft proposals would allow members of the public to ask the commission to review certain state-aid decisions to establish whether they contravened EU environmental law. 

Proposed changes to the EU’s Best Practice Code (BPC) on state aid would set out the arrangements for the internal-review procedure, covering issues such as who could request a review, which decisions could be subject to the review, and the applicable deadlines.

Aarhus Convention 

This consultation follows up on the 2021 findings of the Aarhus Convention Compliance Committee, which found that the EU was in breach of the Aarhus Convention, because the public could not challenge state-aid decisions if these decisions allegedly breached EU environmental law. 

Interested stakeholders can respond to the consultation until 21 March. 

The commission will also discuss the draft proposals with member states and aims to adopt the amendments in the second quarter of this year. 

“The measures proposed are mindful of the EU’s international obligations under the Aarhus Convention, while taking into account the rules of union law concerning state aid,” said commissioner Teresa Ribera.