The European Commission has decided to launch infringement proceedings against 10 Member States for failure to implement certain Internal Market Directives into national law. The Commission will refer Germany, Hungary, Luxembourg, Poland, Sweden and the United Kingdom to the Court over non-implementation of a Directive on recognition of professional qualifications. The Commission will also refer Belgium, the Czech Republic, Greece, Poland and Portugal to the Court over non-implementation of a Directive on reinsurance.

The Commission has decided to take six Member States to the European Court of Justice, namely Germany, Luxembourg, Hungary, Poland, Sweden and the United Kingdom for failure to send the Commission their measures transposing Directive 2005/36/EC on the recognition of professional qualifications.

This Directive is the result of the reform of the system of recognition of professional qualifications undertaken by the Commission in order to promote flexibility on the labour markets, further liberalise the provision of services, make the recognition of qualifications more automatic and simplify administrative procedures.

The Directive consolidates in a single piece of legislation fifteen directives, including twelve sectoral directives covering the professions of doctor, nurse responsible for general care, dental practitioner, veterinary surgeon, midwife, pharmacist and architect, and three directives which introduced a general system of recognition of professional qualifications and covered most other regulated professions. The Directive simplifies the structure of the system of recognition of qualifications and improves the way it operates. It thus aims to facilitate mobility within the internal market for qualified people moving to another Member State either to provide a service or to settle there permanently.

The deadline for transposition of Directive 2005/36/EC was October 20th, 2007.

Also relating to Single Market rules infringements, Commission has taken actions against five Member States, namely Belgium, the Czech Republic, Greece, Poland and Portugal for failing to implement Directive on reinsurance.

Directive 2005/68/EC on reinsurance fills a gap in EU insurance legislation, which in the past did not regulate specialised re-insurers (i.e. insurers that do not conduct direct insurance). The lack of an EU regulatory framework for reinsurance resulted in significant differences in the level of supervision of reinsurance undertakings between different EU Member States and a lack of a level playing field.

The regulatory framework of the Directive is based on the existing prudential regime of the non-life Insurance Directives and extends to reinsurance undertakings the system of home state control and the single licence principle.

The transposition deadline for the Directive was December 10th, 2007.