Opinion of Mr Advocate General Cruz Vilaça delivered on 15 March 1988

1 Translated from the Portuguese.

2 Official Journal 1977, L 145, p. 1.

3 Council Directive 67/227/EEC of 11 April 1967, Official Journal, English Special Edition 1967, p. 14.

4 I gave a fuller account of the VAT system in my Opinion in Joined Cases 138 and 139/86 Direct Cosmetics, delivered at the sitting on 27 January 1988 (see [1988] ECR 3937 and page 3749).

5 Council Directive 67/228/EEC of 11 April 1967, Official Journal, English Special Edition 1967, p. 16.

6 See judgment of 11 july 1985 in Case 107/84 Commission v Federal Republic of Germany [1985] ECR 2655, paragraph 20.

7 Judgment of 14 May 1985 in Case 139/84 Van Dijk's Boekhuis [1985] ECR 1405, paragraph 19.

8 That is the interpretation underlying the recent judgment of 23 February 1988 in Case 353/85 Commistion v United Kingdom [1988] ECR 817.