Commission Decision
of 28 January 2003
authorising the Member States to provide for temporary derogations from certain provisions of Council Directive 2000/29/EC in respect of plants of Vitis L., other than fruits, originating in Switzerland
(notified under document number C(2003) 340)
(2003/69/EC)
THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,
Having regard to Council Directive 2000/29/EC of 8 May 2000 on protective measures against the introduction into the Community of organisms harmful to plants or plant products and against their spread within the Community(1), as last amended by Directive 2002/89/EC(2), and in particular Article 15(1) thereof,
Having regard to the request made by France,
Whereas:
(1) Under Directive 2000/29/EC, plants of Vitis L., other than fruits, originating in third countries must not in principle be introduced into the Community. However, that Directive permits derogations from that rule, provided that there is no risk of spreading harmful organisms.
(2) By Commission Decisions 97/159/EC(3), 1999/166/EC(4), 2000/189/EC(5), 2001/5/EC(6) and 2001/836/EC(7), derogations from certain provisions of Directive 2000/29/EC in respect of plants of Vitis L., other than fruits, originating in Switzerland have been authorised for limited periods and subject to specific conditions.
(3) The circumstances justifying those derogations are still valid. There is no new information giving cause for revision of the specific conditions.
(4) The Member States should therefore be authorised to provide for derogations for a limited period and subject to specific conditions.
(5) That authorisation to provide for derogations should be terminated if it is established that the specific conditions laid down in this Decision are not sufficient to prevent the introduction of harmful organisms into the Community or have not been complied with.
(6) The measures provided for in this Decision are in accordance with the opinion of the Standing Committee on Plant Health,
HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:
Article 1
The Member States are authorised to provide for derogations from Article 4(1) of Directive 2000/29/EC, with regard to the prohibitions referred to in point 15 of Part A of Annex III to that Directive for plants of Vitis L., other than fruits, originating in Switzerland.
In order to qualify for the derogation provided for in the first paragraph, plants of Vitis L., other than fruits, shall satisfy, in addition to the requirements laid down in Annexes I and II to Directive 2000/29/EC, the conditions set out in the Annex to this Decision.
Article 2
Member States shall provide the Commission and the other Member States, before 30 November 2003, with the information on quantities imported pursuant to this Decision and with a detailed technical report of the official examination referred to in point 6 of the Annex.
Any Member State in which buds from the plants are grafted on to rootstocks and in which the grafted plants are planted after the import, shall also provide the Commission and the other Member States, before 30 November 2003, with a detailed technical report of the official examination referred to in point 9(b) of the Annex.
Article 3
Member States shall immediately notify the Commission and the other Member States of all cases of consignments introduced into their territory pursuant to this Decision which were subsequently found not to comply with this Decision.
Article 4
Article 1 shall apply for the period from 1 February to 30 March 2003.
Article 5
This Decision is addressed to the Member States.
Done at Brussels, 28 January 2003.