ddrg/super_eurlex huggingface dataset:
EN Official Journal of the European Union L 109/22

COMMISSION IMPLEMENTING DECISION

of 29 March 2012

amending Decision 1999/94/EC on the procedure for attesting the conformity of construction products pursuant to Article 20(2) of Council Directive 89/106/EEC as regards precast normal/lightweight/autoclaved aerated concrete products

(notified under document C(2012) 1977)

(Text with EEA relevance)

(2012/202/EU)

THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

Having regard to Council Directive 89/106/EEC of 21 December 1988 on the approximation of laws, regulations and administrative provisions of the Member States relating to construction products (1), and in particular Article 13(4)(a) thereof,

After consulting the Standing Committee on Construction,

Whereas:

(1) On 25 January 1999, the Commission adopted Decision 1999/94/EC on the procedure for attesting the conformity of construction products pursuant to Article 20(2) of Council Directive 89/106/EEC as regards precast normal/lightweight/autoclaved aerated concrete products (2).

(2) Annex III to Decision 1999/94/EC should be amended in order to adapt the systems of attestation of conformity for beam/block floor units and elements incorporating organic material to technical progress in order to take into account uses subject to regulations on reaction to fire, as a different level of third party intervention should be ensured depending on the processes and materials used in production.

(3) Decision 1999/94/EC should therefore be amended accordingly,

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:

Article 1

Annex III to Decision 1999/94/EC is amended in accordance with the Annex to this Decision.

Article 2

This Decision is addressed to the Member States.

Done at Brussels, 29 March 2012. For the Commission Antonio TAJANI Vice-President

(1) OJ L 40, 11.2.1989, p. 12.

(2) OJ L 29, 3.2.1999, p. 55.
EN Official Journal of the European Union L 119/49

COUNCIL DECISION

of 2 May 2012

appointing three Spanish members and two Spanish alternate members of the Committee of the Regions

(2012/239/EU)

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and in particular Article 305 thereof,

Having regard to the proposal of the Spanish Government,

Whereas:

(1) On 22 December 2009 and on 18 January 2010, the Council adopted Decisions 2009/1014/EU (1) and 2010/29/EU (2) appointing the members and alternate members of the Committee of the Regions for the period from 26 January 2010 to 25 January 2015.

(2) Three members’ seats on the Committee of the Regions have become vacant following the end of the terms of office of Mr Pedro CASTRO VÁZQUEZ, Mr Jordi HEREU I BOHER and Mr Alberto RUIZ-GALLARDÓN JIMÉNEZ. Two alternate members’ seats have become vacant following the end of the terms of office of Ms Paz FERNÁNDEZ FELGUEROSO and Mr Andrés OCAÑA RABADÁN,

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:

Article 1

The following are hereby appointed to the Committee of the Regions for the remainder of the current term of office, which runs until 25 January 2015:

(a) as members: — Mr Juan Ignacio ZOIDO ÁLVAREZ, Alcalde de Sevilla, — Mr Abel CABALLERO ÁLVAREZ, Alcalde de Vigo, — Ms Nuria MARÍN MARTÍNEZ, Alcaldesa de Hospitalet de Llobregat, and

(b) as alternate members: — Mr Ramón ROPERO MANCERA, Alcalde de Villafranca de los Barros, — Mr Jordi SAN JOSÉ I BUENAVENTURA, Alcalde de Sant Feliú de Llobregat (Barcelona).

Article 2

This Decision shall enter into force on the day of its adoption.

Done at Brussels, 2 May 2012. For the Council The President M. VESTAGER

(1) OJ L 348, 29.12.2009, p. 22.

(2) OJ L 12, 19.1.2010, p. 11.
EN Official Journal of the European Union L 114/28

COMMISSION IMPLEMENTING DECISION

of 24 April 2012

recognising Serbia as being free from Clavibacter michiganensis ssp. sepedonicus (Spieckerman and Kotthoff) Davis et al.

(notified under document C(2012) 2524)

(2012/219/EU)

THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

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), and in particular point (12) of Part A of Annex III thereto,

Whereas:

(1) Point (12) of Part A of Annex III to Directive 2000/29/EC provides for a general prohibition concerning the introduction into the Union of tubers of species of Solanum L. and their hybrids, other than those specified in points (10) and (11) of that Part A, including tubers of Solanum tuberosum L., originating in third countries. That prohibition is not to apply to European third countries recognised as being free from Clavibacter michiganensis ssp. sepedonicus (Spieckerman and Kotthoff) Davis et al. (‘the organism’).

(2) It appears from official reports related to survey campaigns in 2009, 2010 and 2011 supplied by Serbia and from information collected during a mission carried out in that country by the Food and Veterinary Office in November and December 2009, that the organism does not occur in Serbia and that that country has applied control, inspection and testing procedures for the organism to imports and domestic production of tubers of Solanum tuberosum L.

(3) It is therefore appropriate to recognise Serbia as being free from the organism.

(4) This Decision is without prejudice to any subsequent findings that may show that the organism is present in Serbia.

(5) The Commission will request Serbia to supply, on a yearly basis, the information necessary to verify that Serbia continues to be free from the organism.

(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

Recognition

Serbia is recognised as being free from Clavibacter michiganensis ssp. sepedonicus (Spieckerman and Kotthoff) Davis et al.

Article 2

Addressees

This Decision is addressed to the Member States.

Done at Brussels, 24 April 2012. For the Commission John DALLI Member of the Commission

(1) OJ L 169, 10.7.2000, p. 1.
(6)

Article 18 is replaced by the following: ‘Article 18 Release of information and documents 1. The HR shall be authorised to release to the United Nations, NATO/KFOR and to other third parties associated with this Joint Action, EU classified information and documents generated for the purposes of EULEX Kosovo up to the level of the relevant classification respectively for each of them, in accordance with Decision 2011/292/EU. Local technical arrangements shall be drawn up to facilitate this. 2. In the event of a specific and immediate operational need, the HR shall also be authorised to release to the competent local authorities EU classified information and documents up to the level ‘restreint UE/ EU restricted’ generated for the purposes of EULEX Kosovo, in accordance with Decision 2011/292/EU. In all other cases, such information and documents shall be released to the competent local authorities in accordance with the procedures appropriate to those authorities' level of cooperation with the EU. 3. The HR shall be authorised to release to the United Nations, NATO/KFOR, to other third parties associated with this Joint Action and to the relevant local authorities, EU non-classified documents related to the deliberations of the Council with regard to EULEX Kosovo covered by the obligation of professional secrecy pursuant to Article 6(1) of the Council's Rules of Procedure (5). 4. The HR may delegate such authorisations, as well as the ability to conclude the arrangements referred to above to persons placed under his/her authority, to the Civilian Operations Commander and/or to the Head of Mission.
EN Official Journal of the European Union L 126/13

DECISION OF THE EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK

of 26 April 2012

amending Decision ECB/2010/22 on the quality accreditation procedure for manufacturers of euro banknotes

(ECB/2012/7)

(2012/258/EU)

THE GOVERNING COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and in particular Article 128(1) thereof,

Having regard to the Statute of the European System of Central Banks and of the European Central Bank, and in particular Article 16 thereof,

Having regard to Decision ECB/2010/22 of 25 November 2010 on the quality accreditation procedure for manufacturers of euro banknotes (1), and in particular Article 2(4) and Articles 7 and 10 thereof,

Whereas:

(1) The Executive Board’s competence to decide on accreditations under Article 2(4) of Decision ECB/2010/22 is delegated to it by the Governing Council in accordance with Article 12.1, second paragraph of the Statute of the European System of Central Banks and of the European Central Bank.

(2) The procedure for granting, renewing and extending quality accreditation laid down in Decision ECB/2010/22 should be amended to allow for faster processing of quality accreditation requests, thereby ensuring the timely grant, renewal or extension of accreditation, and to alleviate the administrative burden on the Executive Board of the European Central Bank (ECB).

(3) To this end, it should be made possible for the Executive Board to sub-delegate the competence to take decisions relating to routine accreditation to one or more of its members. The sub-delegation will, however, not cover the competence to grant exemptions, reject accreditation requests, suspend or revoke accreditations.

(4) Decision ECB/2010/22 should therefore be amended accordingly,

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:

Article 1

Amendment

Article 2(4) of Decision ECB/2010/22 is replaced by the following:

‘4. The Executive Board shall be competent to take all decisions relating to a manufacturer’s quality accreditation, taking into account the views of the Banknote Committee, and shall inform the Governing Council thereof. The Executive Board may decide to sub-delegate the powers to grant, renew or extend such accreditation pursuant to Article 3(4), and Article 4(3) and Articles 7 and 10, to one or more of its members.’.

Article 2

Entry into force

This Decision shall enter into force on the day following its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

Done at Frankfurt am Main, 26 April 2012. The President of the ECB Mario DRAGHI

(1) OJ L 330, 15.12.2010, p. 14.
EN Official Journal of the European Union L 178/14

DECISION OF THE EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK

of 19 June 2012

amending Decision ECB/2007/5 laying down the Rules on Procurement

(ECB/2012/10)

(2012/367/EU)

THE EXECUTIVE BOARD OF THE EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK,

Having regard to the Statute of the European System of Central Banks and of the European Central Bank, and in particular Article 11.6 thereof,

Having regard to Decision ECB/2004/2 of 19 February 2004 adopting the Rules of Procedure of the European Central Bank (1), and in particular Article 19 thereof,

Whereas:

(1) The thresholds for public tender procedures laid down in Directive 2004/18/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 March 2004 on the coordination of procedures for the award of public works contracts, public supply contracts and public service contracts (2) have been changed by Commission Regulation (EU) No 1251/2011 of 30 November 2011 amending Directives 2004/17/EC, 2004/18/EC and 2009/81/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council in respect of their application thresholds for the procedures for the award of contracts (3).

(2) The European Central Bank (ECB), although not subject to Directive 2004/18/EC, intends to apply the same thresholds for its public tender procedures.

(3) Decision ECB/2007/5 of 3 July 2007 laying down the Rules on Procurement (4) should therefore be amended accordingly,

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:

Article 1

Amendments

Article 4(3) of Decision ECB/2007/5 is replaced by the following:

‘3. The following threshold amounts shall apply: (a) EUR 200 000 for supply and service contracts; (b) EUR 5 000 000 for works contracts.’.

Article 2

Entry into force

1. This Decision shall enter into force on 1 September 2012.

2. Tender procedures started before the entry into force of this Decision shall be completed in accordance with the provisions of Decision ECB/2007/5 in force at the date when the tender procedure started. For the purpose of this provision a tender procedure is deemed to start on the date on which the contract notice was sent to the Official Journal of the European Union or, in cases where no such notice is required, on the date when the ECB invited one or several suppliers to submit a tender.

Done at Frankfurt am Main, 19 June 2012. The President of the ECB Mario DRAGHI

(1) OJ L 80, 18.3.2004, p. 33.

(2) OJ L 134, 30.4.2004, p. 114.

(3) OJ L 319, 2.12.2011, p. 43.

(4) OJ L 184, 14.7.2007, p. 34.
EN Official Journal of the European Union L 174/24

COMMISSION DECISION

of 2 July 2012

updating the Annex to the Monetary Agreement between the European Union and the Vatican City State

(2012/355/EU)

THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

Having regard to the Monetary Agreement of 17 December 2009 between the European Union and the Vatican City State, and in particular Article 8(3) thereof,

Whereas:

(1) Article 8 of the Monetary Agreement between the European Union and the Vatican City State (hereinafter ‘the Monetary Agreement’) requires the Vatican City State to implement Union acts concerning the rules on euro banknotes and coins, prevention of money laundering, prevention of fraud and counterfeiting of cash and non-cash means of payment; medals and tokens and statistical reporting requirements. Those acts are listed in the Annex to the Monetary Agreement.

(2) The update of the Annex is made according to Article 8(3) of the Monetary Agreement which foresees that the Annex needs to be amended by the Commission every year to take into account the new relevant EU legal acts and rules and the amendments to the existing ones. Following this provision one act was repealed and two new Union acts, falling within the scope of Article 8(1) of the Monetary Agreement, have been adopted and should be included in the Annex.

(3) Council Decision of 29 April 1999 extending Europol’s mandate to deal with forgery of money and means of payment (1) is obsolete and hence deleted from the Annex. As soon as the new legal instrument allowing Europol to sign cooperation agreements with third countries has entered into force, the new instrument will be added to the Annex to the Monetary Agreement.

(4) Regulation (EU) No 1210/2010 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 December 2010 concerns authentication of euro coins and handling of euro coins unfit for circulation (2) has been adopted. It, therefore, falls within the scope of Article 8(1) of the Monetary Agreement and should also be included in the Annex.

(5) Decision ECB/2010/14 of the European Central Bank of 16 September 2010 on the authenticity and fitness checking and recirculation of euro banknotes (3) was adopted. It falls within the scope of Article 8(1) of the Monetary Agreement and should also be included in the Annex.

(6) The Annex to the Monetary Agreement should therefore be amended accordingly,

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:

Sole Article

The Annex to the Monetary Agreement between the European Union and the Vatican City State is replaced by the Annex to this Decision.

This Decision shall enter into force on the day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

Done at Brussels, 2 July 2012. For the Commission The President José Manuel BARROSO

(1) OJ C 149, 28.5.1999, p. 16.

(2) OJ L 339, 22.12.2010, p. 1.

(3) OJ L 267, 9.10.2010, p. 1.
(1)

Article 1 is replaced by the following: ‘Article 1 The use of the following methods is authorised for grading pig carcasses pursuant to point 1 of Section B.IV of Annex V to Council Regulation (EC) No 1234/2007 (4) in Spain: (a) the “Fat-O-Meat’er (FOM)” apparatus and the assessment methods related thereto, details of which are given in Part 1 of the Annex; (b) the “Fully automatic ultrasonic carcase grading (Autofom)” apparatus and the assessment methods related thereto, details of which are given in Part 2 of the Annex; (c) the “Ultrafom 300” apparatus and the assessment methods related thereto, details of which are given in Part 3 of the Annex; (d) the “Automatic vision system (VCS2000)” apparatus and the assessment methods related thereto, details of which are given in Part 4 of the Annex; (e) the “Fat-O-Meat’er II (FOM II)” apparatus and the assessment methods related thereto, details of which are given in Part 5 of the Annex; (f) the “AutoFOM III” apparatus and the assessment methods related thereto, details of which are given in Part 6 of the Annex; (g) the “manual method (ZP)” with a ruler and the assessment methods related thereto, details of which are given in Part 7 of the Annex. The manual method ZP with a ruler, referred to in point (g) of the first paragraph, shall only be authorised for abattoirs: (a) where the number of slaughters does not exceed 500 pigs per week on yearly average basis; and (b) having a slaughter line with a capacity to process no more than 40 pigs per hour.
(2)

The review has found that Portugal’s compliance with the conditionality for the first quarter of 2012 was satisfactory. In 2011, the general government deficit was 4,2 % of GDP. The fiscal target for 2012 of 4,5 % of GDP remains within reach. The rebalancing of the economy has continued at a swift pace and exports have outperformed expectations and more than offset weaker domestic demand. However, risks to the fiscal objectives related to the rebalancing of the macroeconomic outlook have started to materialise, with the growth composition tilting more strongly towards net exports and away from domestic demand and in view of the substantial worsening of the labour market situation. Progress has been made with reforms to raise the long-term growth potential of the economy. Reform of the labour market aimed at removing rigidities and improving productivity has already been legislated for and need to be sustained. Severance payments should be aligned with the Union average and a fund to finance part of severance payments should be created. A proposal to revise the mechanism for extending collective agreements is under preparation. Policy efforts to support financial system stability continue. The sale of Banco Português de Negócios (BPN) has been concluded and the management of the special purpose vehicles should be optimised to maximise the recovery of the assets transferred from BPN. The deleveraging of the financial sector is evolving in an orderly fashion. The recapitalisation of the banking system is on target to ensure by June 2012 a minimum Core Tier 1 capital ratio of 9 %, including the European Banking Authority requirements and the capital needs related to the partial transfer of pension funds and special on-site inspections. The early intervention, resolution and deposit insurance framework has been strengthened and the Portuguese authorities are asked to prepare the implementing measures. Product market reforms, in particular in sheltered services, are essential to restore competitiveness and promote growth and employment. The Portuguese government is implementing a strategy to restructure state-owned enterprises (SOEs) to reduce their indebtedness and to insure improved conditions for market financing. A study to assess the costs and benefits of renegotiating any public-private partnerships (PPPs) or concession contracts to reduce the government financial obligations is being prepared by an international auditing firm. The Portuguese government is committed to ensuring an effective competition enforcement regime. Housing market regulations are being modernised with a view to promoting geographical mobility and the reform of the judicial system is making good progress. The privatisation programme is being implemented under the new framework law.
The following Article is inserted:

"Article 17b

1. If Member States have information that provides reasonable grounds to believe that the cargo of vessels and aircraft bound for Syria contains items whose supply, sale, transfer or export is prohibited under Article 1 or subject to authorisation under Article 1a, they shall inspect, in accordance with their national legislation and consistent with international law, in particular the law of the sea and relevant international civil aviation agreements and maritime transport agreements, such vessels and aircraft in their seaports and airports, as well as in their territorial sea, in accordance with decisions and capabilities of their competent authorities and with the consent, as necessary in accordance with international law for the territorial sea, of the flag State.

2. Member States, in accordance with their national legislation and consistent with international law, shall, upon discovery, seize and dispose of items whose supply, sale, transfer or export is prohibited under Article 1 or 1a.

3. Member States shall cooperate, in accordance with their national legislation, with inspections and disposals undertaken pursuant to paragraphs 1 and 2.

4. Aircraft and vessels transporting cargo to Syria shall be subject to the requirement of additional pre-arrival or pre-departure information for all goods brought into or out of a Member State.".