Dear Mr X,

You submitted a complaint to the European Ombudsman against the European Commission concerning the above issue.

In your complaint, you argue that the Greek authorities infringe EU environmental legislation in relation to the operation of the Kenan Mesare Road. You contend that the Greek authorities refuse to implement existing relevant studies, and ignore and fail to implement decisions of other national authorities.

You believe that the Commission should launch infringement proceedings against Greece, as the Commission financed the construction of the Kenan Mesare Road.

After careful analysis of all the information you provided with your complaint, we have decided to close the inquiry with the following conclusion:

There was no maladministration by the European Commission.[1]

We find that the Commission provided you with a reasonable explanation as to why it will not launch infringement proceedings in this case. As the Commission explained, its role is not to investigate individual cases but, rather, to address systemic breaches of EU law. Even if the issue with the Kenan Mesare Road has been going on for a long time, this does not make the matter systemic as it still relates to one specific project. As the Commission explained, it is the role of national authorities to investigate individual cases such as yours.

It appears from the information you have sent to us that you lodged an appeal before a national court concerning the alleged infringement of EU law by the Greek authorities (which is pending). As the Commission explained, national courts are responsible for upholding EU law in individual matters.

We appreciate this may not be your desired outcome but we hope you find these explanations useful. Thank you for having contacted the European Ombudsman.

Yours sincerely,

Tina Nilsson
Head of the Case-handling Unit

Strasbourg, 04/09/2024

 

[1] Full information on the procedure and rights pertaining to complaints can be found at  https://www.ombudsman.europa.eu/en/document/70707