LAW REPORTS: CASE SUMMARIES; 3 February 1997

LAW REPORTS

The following notes of judgments were prepared by the reporters of the All England Law Reports.

European law

R v MAFF, ex p First City Trading Ltd; QBD (Laws J) 29 Nov 1996.

The fundamental principles of Community law only applied to an action or decision taken by a member state under domestic law if it constituted a measure taken pursuant to Community law. Since the Beef Stocks Transfer Scheme which gave effect to the Slaughtering Industry (Emergency Aid) Scheme 1996 did not constitute a measure taken pursuant to Community law, it was not within the scope of the fundamental principles and accordingly was not subject to the doctrine of equal treatment.

Nicholas Green (Clyde & Co) for the applicants; Kenneth Parker QC (Treasury Solicitor) for the respondents.

Practice

Practice Direction No 2 of 1996 (Chancery Division: Schemes and reductions); Sir Richard Scott V-C; 27 Nov 1996.

The principal effect of this direction was that petitions to sanction schemes would in future be heard by a judge. Chancery judges considered this change of prac- tice desirable. Among the considerations taken into account was the fact that schemes often bound numerous persons who were not before the court. During term time petitions to sanction schemes would be listed on Mondays.

VAT

Customs & Excise Commrs v Safeway Stores plc; QBD (Keene J) 22 Nov 1996.

"Party trays" supplied to order in a supermarket, consisting of items otherwise sold separately in the store but arranged attractively on a disposable foil dish, did not amount to a "supply in the course of catering" and were therefore zero-rated. They were not excluded from the zero-rating of food provided by note 3 to Group 1 of Sch 8 to the Value Added Tax Act 1994.

David Milne QC, Andrew Hitchmough (Garrett & Co, Leeds) for Safeway; Hugo Keith (Customs & Excise).