Highlights

OTHER HIGHLIGHTS The European Property Federation welcomes the new Energy Performance of Buildings Directive as a step change in the greening of the European building stock CRUCIAL DECISION FOR A BETTER RENTAL PROPERTY MARKET The Real Estate Council of the Netherlands – Raad voor Onroerende Zaken (ROZ) joins the European Property Federation ALTERNATIVE INVESTMENT FUND MANAGERS DIRECTIVE: Problems with scope and possible solutions raised at meeting with Commission STRICTER CRITERIA FOR PROPERTY LOANS UNDER THE CAPITAL REQUIREMENTS DIRECTIVE: EPF Position : Largely negative EPF response to the Commission Consultation REVISION OF THE INSURANCE MEDIATION DIRECTIVE: Landlords targeted. EU INITIATIVES ON LIABILITY AND INSURANCE REGIMES IN THE CONSTRUCTION SECTOR: EPF response to the Elios Report EPF ACTIVITY: 2009 Annual Report EPF EU REAL ESTATE POLICY CHART: Overview of EU Real Estate Policy and EPF activity EU ECOLABEL FOR BUILDINGS: Major problems with the Commission Ad Hoc Working Group’s 2nd draft criteria for the award of the ecolabel COUNCIL RECOMMENDATION ON SMOKE-FREE ENVIRONMENTS: No tolerance for designated smoking areas. Owner/manager responsibilities. Penalties. EU LEGISLATION ON DERIVATIVES MARKETS: Would cover real estate interest rate hedging NEW EU URBAN POLICY AND EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT INTERGROUP: New Commissioner announces new EU urban policy and 69 MEPs launch URBAN Intergroup COMMISSION CONSTRUCTION POLICY INITIATIVES IMPACTING EPF: 1) Construction Competitiveness, 2) Liability and Insurance Regimes in the Construction Sector, 3) EU Construction Information Platform TREATY OF LISBON: Impacts EU real estate policy in many ways

EQUAL TREATMENT DIRECTIVE: Very badly thought out measures for the identification and elimination of barriers to accessibility for the disabled in housing and other buildings In  representations  to  the  Council  of  Ministers,  EPF  has  pointed  out  that  the  latest  Council  draft  is  fundamentally  flawed  because:  1.  Measures  ensuring  equal  access  to  the  disabled  by  “identification  and  elimination  of  obstacles  and  barriers  to  accessibility”  would  be  very  hard  to  apply  and  interpret.  2.  Many  concepts  enunciated  in  Article  4  will  lead  to  considerable  litigation,  in  particular  the  concept  of  ‘disproportionate  burden’. 3.  The  Article  4b(new)(1)(c)  “estimated  cost”  caveat  and  the  partial  twenty-year  implementation  period  now  envisaged  in  Article  15  come  nowhere  near  addressing  the  problem  of  the  phenomenal  costs  that  will  be  generated  by  the  Directive. The  full  EPF  Position  is  freely  accessible  at  EMPLOYMENT,  SOCIAL  AFFAIRS  &  EQUAL  OPPORTUNITIES:  Equal  Treatment  Directive.

© 1999 European Property Federation