Press Release: State aid: Commission concludes that majority of derogations from British Aggregates Levy are free of aid

On 27 March 2015 the European Commission concluded that all but one of the exemptions, exclusions and tax reliefs from the aggregates levy introduced in the United Kingdom in 2002 were free of state aid. The British aggregates levy is a tax on aggregates, a material often used in construction, which aims to encourage the use of recycled aggregates and reduce environmental damage. It is levied on rock, sand or gravel on their first extraction as well as on processed products. Derogations apply to certain extraction processes and to materials with certain geological features.

The Commission found that only the exemption for shale and spoil for shale extraction were not justified. This was because shale is the only exempted material that is deliberately extracted to produce aggregates. Exempting shale and spoil for shale extraction from the aggregates levy therefore would not contribute to the environmental objective of the tax. As a result, the beneficiaries of the exemption for shale and spoil for shale received an undue advantage that they had to pay back.

ESO: Background information: Judgment of the Court of First Instance in Case T-210/02. British Aggregates Association v Commission of the European Communities http://www.europeansources.info/record/press-release-judgment-of-the-court-of-first-instance-in-case-t-210-02-british-aggregates-association-v-commission-of-the-european-communities/

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