The European Court of Justice must give an opinion, but this opinion opens the door for thousands of permits in Spain
European Union (EU) Lawyer General, Maciej Szpunar, believes that the restrictions on licenses for chauffeur-driven transport vehicles (VTC), such as Uber or Cabify, imposed in Catalonia to protect the taxi sector, violate European law standards, applicable throughout Spain. This conclusion does not oblige the Court of Justice of the EU to make the same decision, although it follows the same line in most cases.
This Thursday’s advisory explains that reducing VTC permits by a ratio of one in every 30 taxis violates freedom of establishment. It is a conclusion that is a blow to the regulations promoted by the mayor of Barcelona, Ada Colau, who limited the activity of these cars by pointing out that both the dual authorization regime and the ratio restriction are not justified by reasons of public interest. .
It should be borne in mind that, although it is a consideration that the Supreme Court of Catalonia had brought to Luxembourg, the EU ruling will have implications for all of Spain. In the event that Europe advocates for the same solution, the rules launched by the Barcelona City Council would be abolished and all rejected VTC licenses could be resumed. In the rest of Spain, the VTC sector would open even more, as there was no limit compared to taxis. From the VTC, they prefer to wait for Luxembourg’s final judgment to give their opinion, but believe that this is “good news for the sector”.
Source: La Verdad
I’m Ben Stock, a journalist and author at Today Times Live. I specialize in economic news and have been working in the news industry for over five years. My experience spans from local journalism to international business reporting. In my career I’ve had the opportunity to interview some of the world’s leading economists and financial experts, giving me an insight into global trends that is unique among journalists.
