grandad wrote:
Sussex wrote:
Quote:
How is it state aid when you have a contract.
In the same way the community bus scam has been deemed illegal state aid.
I would imagine somewhere they have contracts.
Are you saying that school contracts are illegal?
It's basically about an unfair subsidy, particularly, for example, if it doesn't apply to all in a particular sector of a market, such as the taxi trade.
In fact there are claims that elements of the UK Government support package may fall foul of the EU state aid rules, which supposedly still apply. This is quite a brief summary and explanation of why the rules might still apply. Think it's all academic now, though, and the Treasury is effectively saying that the EU will relax the rules in light of Covid-19.
Breitbart wrote:
As the finance minister was announcing the measures as part of an “unprecedented” package of government support for businesses through the pandemic, however, the European Union was reportedly moving to block certain aspects of his aid package.
According to Steven Swinford, the deputy political editor at The Times, the European Commission believes that, for example, offering business rates exemptions to specific sectors rather than all sectors violates state EU aid rules.
Britain technically left the EU at the end of January, but despite losing its representation in the European Council and European Parliament, very little has changed, with the country remaining subject to its laws, judges, and Free Movement migration regime — to the extent that the pandemic has not disrupted it — through a so-called “transition” period to the end of December, which may now be extended.
Press Association wrote:
The Government has written to the EU calling for them to alter the state aid rules that ban ministers from handing over more than 200,000 euros (£185,000) to each business, the PA news agency understands.
Treasury officials have notified the European Commission that they intend to “disapply rules appertaining to state aid as they expect approval to be granted”, according to a Government source.
Councils have also been informed that they should assume the commission will grant the move and can begin informing businesses from which they collect rates.[…]
A Treasury spokesman said: “We have not asked the commission to scrap state aid rules.
“We welcome the commission’s proposed state aid flexibilities around Covid-19 and the work they are doing to react to the ongoing economic disruption.
“We believe there is a case for a specific, temporary and targeted business rates intervention, and we have applied to the commission for their approval of the measure.”