Opinion of the Advocate General — ECLI:EU:C:2005:269
Date: 2005-05-03
Language of the case: English
Based on: Treaty establishing the European Economic Community (1957)
Subject matter: Accession;Agriculture and Fisheries;Free movement of goods;Measures having equivalent effect;Quantitative restrictions;Customs Union;Potatoes
Procedure: Reference for a preliminary ruling
Origin: United Kingdom

Summary of the Judgment 1. Accession of new Member States – 1972 Act of Accession – Protocol No 3 on the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man – Free movement of goods – Treaty Provisions – Scope – Agricultural products – Included – Potatoes grown on the Island of Jersey (Arts 23 EC, 25 EC, 28 EC and 29 EC; 1972 Act of Accession, Protocol No 3, Arts 1 and 2) 2. Accession of new Member States – 1972 Act of Accession – Protocol No 3 on the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man – Free movement of goods – The Channel Islands, the Isle of Man and the United Kingdom to be treated as a single Member State for the purposes of Articles 23 EC, 25 EC, 28 EC and 29 EC (Arts 23 EC, 25 EC, 28 EC and 29 EC; 1972 Act of Accession, Protocol No 3, Art. 1) 3. Accession of new Member States – 1972 Act of Accession – Protocol No 3 on the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man – Free movement of goods – Customs duties – Charges having equivalent effect – Jersey legislation requiring potato producers to pay contributions to an exports framework body calculated by reference to the quantities of potatoes exported to the United Kingdom – Not permissible – Legislation applying only to exports to the United Kingdom – Irrelevant – Contribution calculated by reference to the area cultivated and serving to finance activities undertaken by that body contrary to Article 29 EC – Not permissible (Arts 23 EC, 25 EC and 29 EC; 1972 Act of Accession, Protocol No 3, Art. 1) 4. Accession of new Member States – 1972 Act of Accession – Protocol No 3 on the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man – Free movement of goods – Quantitative restrictions – Measures having equivalent effect – Jersey legislation prohibiting, with penalties for non-compliance, potato producers not registered with an exports framework body and who have not entered into a marketing agreement with it, and marketing organisations which are not party to a management agreement with that body, from exporting to the United Kingdom – Not permissible – Legislation applying only to exports to the United Kingdom – Irrelevant (Art. 29 EC; 1972 Act of Accession, Protocol No 3, Art. 1) 1. Under Article 1(1) of Protocol No 3 on the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man annexed to the Act concerning the Conditions of Accession of the Kingdom of Denmark, Ireland and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the Adjustments to the Treaties, the Community rules on customs matters and quantitative restrictions are to apply to the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man under the same conditions as they apply to the United Kingdom, without distinction according to the nature of the goods concerned. Since agricultural products listed in Annex II to the EEC Treaty (now Annex I to the EC Treaty) are not subject to any particular treatment in that regard, Articles 23 EC, 25 EC, 28 EC and 29 EC are applicable to potatoes grown on the Island of Jersey and to products derived from them on that island. The application of those provisions to agricultural products cannot be made subject to the adoption by the Council, under Article 1(2) of Protocol No 3, of the measures judged necessary to ensure the proper operation of the regime put in place as regards the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man, or to the existence, within the Community, of a common organisation of the markets in the sectors concerned. (see paras 35-36, 38-39, 41) 2. The Channel Islands, the Isle of Man and the United Kingdom must be treated as one Member State for the purposes of the application of Articles 23 EC, 25 EC, 28 EC and 29 EC. (see para. 54) 3. The combined provisions of Articles 23 EC and 25 EC and Article 1 of Protocol No 3 on the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man annexed to the Act concerning the Conditions of Accession of the Kingdom of Denmark, Ireland and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the Adjustments to the Treaties are to be interpreted as precluding Jersey legislation which confers on an exports framework body the power to impose on Jersey potato producers a contribution, the amount of which is fixed by reference to the quantities of potatoes produced by the parties concerned and exported to the United Kingdom. It is in that regard irrelevant that the legislation in question applies only to situations forming part of that Member State’s internal trade. The customs union necessarily implies that the free movement of goods should be ensured between Member States and, in more general terms, within the customs union, and nothing rules out, in this case, the possibility that potatoes dispatched to the United Kingdom might then be re-exported to other Member States. Community law also precludes a contribution levied under the same conditions, the amount of which, however, is fixed by such a body by reference to the agricultural area used by the parties concerned for growing potatoes, to the extent to which the income therefrom serves to finance activities undertaken by that body contrary to Article 29 EC. (see paras 61, 64-65, 67, 85, operative part 2-3) 4. The combined provisions of Articles 29 EC and 1 of Protocol No 3 on the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man annexed to the Act concerning the Conditions of Accession of the Kingdom of Denmark, Ireland and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the Adjustments to the Treaties are to be interpreted as precluding Jersey legislation which: – on the one hand, prohibits, with penalties imposed for non-compliance, Jersey producers from offering for export or exporting their potatoes to the United Kingdom market unless they are registered with an exports framework body and have entered into a marketing agreement with it for the purpose of determining, in particular, the areas which may be planted with crops for export as well as the identity of those authorised to acquire those crops, and, – on the other hand, prohibits, also with penalties imposed for non-compliance, all marketing organisations from effecting such exports unless they are party to a management agreement with that same framework body for the purpose of determining, in particular, the identity of the sellers from whom it is permissible for them to obtain their supplies. It is in that regard irrelevant that such legislation concerns only exports to the United Kingdom since nothing rules out that potatoes dispatched to the United Kingdom might then be re-exported to other Member States. (see paras 79, 85, operative part 1)