2.4.2008 Official Journal of the European Union L 90/7 (Acts adopted under the EC Treaty/Euratom Treaty whose publication is not obligatory) DECISIONS COMMISSION COMMISSION DECISION of 13 November 2007 amending Decision 2003/757/EC on the aid scheme implemented by Belgium for coordination centres established in Belgium (notified under document number C(2007) 5416) (Only the French and Dutch texts are authentic) (Text with EEA relevance) (2008/283[EC) THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES, Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular the first subparagraph of Article 88(2) thereof, Having regard to the Agreement on the European Economic Area, and in particular Article 62(1)(a) thereof, Having called on interested parties to submit their comments pursuant to the provisions cited above (') and having regard to their comments, Whereas: I. PROCEDURE (3) (1) The legal basis for the scheme for coordination centres is Royal Decree No 187 of 30 December 1982. By Decisions of 2 May 1984 and 9 March 1987, the Commission had authorised the scheme since, in its view, it did not give rise to any objections as regards the applicable State aid rules of the Treaty. (2)  As it had undertaken to do so under the code of conduct for business taxation (hereinafter the code of conduct), adopted by resolution of the Council and of the rep- () O] C 110, 16.5.2007, p. 20. (3 For details of the procedural steps that preceded the present Decision, see the Commission Decision of 27 February 2002 initiating the procecdure and Decision 2003/757/EC. resentatives of the Member States’ Governments meeting within the Council of 1 December 1997 (}), the Commission re-examined the scheme in the light of the applicable state aid rules of the Treaty and its notice on the application of the State aid rules to measures relating to direct business taxation (%) (3)  On 11 July 2001 the Commission proposed appropriate measures designed to remove the effects of the scheme for all the undertakings concerned by 31 December 2005 at the latest. Belgium did not accept these appro- priate measures since, in its view, it was required by law to comply until their expiry with the ten-year author- isations, some of which ceased to apply after 31 December 2005. (40 On 27 February 2002, in the absence of any acceptance of the appropriate measures, the Commission initiated the formal investigation procedure (°) provided for in Article 88(2) of the Treaty in accordance with Article 19(2) of Council Regulation (EC) No 659/1999 of 22 March 1999 laying down detailed rules for the application of Article 93 (now Article 88) of the EC Treaty (°). On that occasion, the Commission called on interested third parties to submit their comments, notably on the circumstances making it possible to establish the existence of a legitimate expectations on the part of the interested parties. C 2, 6.1.1998, p. 2. C 384, 10.12.1998, p. 3. C 147, 20.6.2002, p. 2. L 83, 27.3.1999, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Regulation ) No 1791/2006 (O] L 363, 20.12.2006, p. 1).