That leaves them vulnerable to proposed regulation like the directive on Alternative Investment Fund Managers, which could prevent their funds from being sold in Europe.
Supporters point to such pillars of legislation as the 2006 REACH directive on chemicals, which they say was "rescued" by MEPs when early drafts were blocked by squabbling governments.Such star MEPs have more influence over the lives of European citizens and businesses than does any national parliamentarian, claims a senior Belgian MEP.
I would also have expected more from the Commission today in terms of more criticism and also of more questions about the background to the directive on patenting which also virtually legitimises past practice on the part of the Patent Office.
This directive complements another one which we approved not long ago, the directive on the protection of personal data and privacy in general.
The two main instruments are the Ecodesign Directive, which sets up requirements for the design, manufacturing, and sale of energy-related products, and Directives on Ecolabeling, which recur to market mechanisms and consumer decisions, as well as the possibility of using eco-criteria in public procurement.
What about the madness of the EU's directives on eggs which, if you believe the various rumours, have to be stamped with the home address of the farmer, must not be sold by the dozen and can no longer be called "eggs".
There also appears to have been no directive from the Defense Department on which Trump based his blanket announcement, which would be remarkable in any normal Administration.
The Commission refers to an earlier EU directive on combating terrorism — which defines the material as "information which is used to incite and glorify the commission of terrorist offences, encouraging the contribution to and providing instructions for committing terrorist offences as well as promoting participation in terrorist groups".
But the grounds on which one EU country can expel citizens of another are severely limited by a 2004 EU directive on freedom of movement.
Any criminal cases which rested on acquisition of data through the directive could also be called into question, because the court decided that "the declaration of invalidity takes effect from the date on which the directive entered into force" – that is, 2006.
