Answer given by Ms Vestager on behalf of the Commission

27.6.2017

On 17 May 2017, the Commission published the final version of the targeted revision of the General Block Exemption Regulation (GBER), which exempts certain public support measures for ports from prior Commission scrutiny. This final version is the result of two public consultations.

During this extensive procedure, the Commission engaged in dialogue with Member States, port associations and numerous stakeholders. The result is a text which has evolved significantly since its first draft and which aims at reducing administrative burdens for public authorities and other stakeholders. The newly published text answers to a great extent the concerns raised by the Honourable Members in their questions. For example, the ‘single investment project’ which the question refers to is no longer included in the final version. Another example is recital (8) of the GBER, which foresees that any concession has to be assigned without prejudice to the Union rules on public procurement and concessions.

The revision of the GBER forms part of the Commission's effort to focus state aid control on bigger cases that significantly impact competition in the Single Market and complements several Commission initiatives to modernise state aid enforcement.