CER-EIM Joint Position Paper - Fitness check on State aid rules

The Community Guidelines on State Aid for Railway Undertakings are the relevant legal basis for the approval of national rail funding measures and therefore play a significant role for the sector. In the view of the current climate change debate and urgent need to decarbonise transport, a revision in favour of the rail sector would be consistent with the current EU priorities on shifting to low-emission mobility.

CER and EIM welcome the fact that the Guidelines are included in a Fitness check and believe that any revision of the Guidelines should give a greater level of certainty. In our view, provisions of the Guidelines should recognise circumstances when funding that could potentially be classed as State aid may be permitted, such as when it is being used to further Commission objectives, while having a negligible or no likely potential to distort competition.

Read more in this joint position paper.