The European Commission gives Spain a slap on the wrist for the concession system for beach bars, considering that it violates community regulations by not following “transparent and impartial” criteria. It also considers that the long 75-year tender is contrary to European regulations, since it grants a “preferential right in favor of the holders.” Thus, it has opened an infringement file for Spain to modify the rules within a period of two months. If you do not take the appropriate measures, the matter may end up in European justice and the imposition of fines.
“Spain provides for the possibility of granting concessions to build permanent premises (such as restaurants or fish farms) in the coastal public domain, simply upon request, followed by a public information period of 20 days. “On the other hand, the Services Directive establishes the explicit obligation to use an impartial and transparent selection procedure,” explains Brussels in a statement in which it notifies the infringement procedures for the month of December, that is, non-compliance with community regulations that do not have been transposed by the member states.
In the case of Spain, one of the warnings has to do with beach bars. Another question raised by the European Commission is the possibility of extending the concessions, which in some cases reaches 75 years. “It represents a preferential right in favor of the holders,” states the statement, which also censures the obstacles for operators from other member states to access these contracts. “National rules unduly restrict the freedom of establishment enshrined in Article 49 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,” says the community government.
The procedure goes, however, beyond the beach bars and affects the concessions of the coastal public domain. Thus, it continues with Brussels’ battle against cases such as that of Ence in the Pontevedra estuary, despite the fact that it received the endorsement of the Supreme Court.
Spain now has a period of two months to respond to the European Commission and take the appropriate measures to align national legislation with the community legislation. From there, the community government will analyze the situation and decide whether to continue with the infringement process, which may involve an appeal to the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU), or whether the standards are met.
Another of the infringement procedures that Spain faces has to do with the directive on tolls and Eurovignettes that the EU agreed on in 2022 and which establishes the rules that should govern the use of road infrastructure. Basically, what they demand of Spain is to change the model so that trucks and other heavy vehicles pay for the distance traveled and not for the time.
What they maintain in the Ministry of Transport is that the directive does not require the introduction of new tolls and they assure that they are now “finalizing the processing of the Royal Decree for its approval by the Council of Ministers and, thus, completing the transposition of the directive.”
In the same situation as Spain are seven other countries (Bulgaria, Greece, Italy, Luxembourg, Malta, Poland and Portugal) that have not adapted their national legislation to the community legislation for what they had until March 2024. Now they have a deadline of two months to take the relevant measures and notify the European Commission, which can resort to European justice to impose fines in the event of continued non-compliance with the directive.
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