Proposal for a Council Regulation amending Council Regulation (EEC) No 3013/89 on the common organization of the market in sheepmeat and goatmeat (94/C 382/09) COM(94) 643 final - 94/0329(CNS)

(Submitted by the Commission on 19 December 1994)

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 43 thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,

Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament,

Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social Committee,

Whereas by Regulation (EEC) No 2069/92 (1) amending Regulation (EEC) No 3013/89 (2), the Council imposed, with effect from the 1993 marketing year, an individual limit per producer in respect of the grant of the ewe and goat premiums;

Whereas the grant of an individual limit per producer for obtaining the right to the premium has given rise to administrative difficulties in the case of certain groups of producers, in particular family groups, during the transfer of premium rights between members of the said groups; whereas, therefore, for reasons of correct administration, provision should be made for certain groups to be exempted, under certain conditions, from payment to the national reserve of the percentage of rights provided for in the case of a transfer of rights without transfer of holding; whereas that provision must not lead to an increase in individual rights currently allocated in each Member State, nor give rise to the formation of new producer groups created with the sole aim of avoiding payment to the national reserve of the percentage of rights provided for in the case of a transfer of rights without transfer of holding;

Whereas the individual limit was established on the basis of the total amount of premiums granted for the 1991 marketing year for each producer; whereas in Italy and in Greece, because that marketing year was a year of transition between two different premium systems, a number of producers were not able to submit an application for a premium for the 1991 marketing year for the number of eligible animals they held; whereas, in order to remedy this situation, special reserves should be created for Italy and for Greece corresponding to the estimated maximum number of rights which the producers concerned were unable to claim; whereas the competent authorities of those two Members States should initially be allowed to grant new rights up to the limit of the special reserve referred to above and then, subject to verification by the Commission of the correct allocation of the rights granted, in particular in the regions most affected, the national reserves will be increased for Italy and Greece by the sum of the rights newly granted with effect from the 1995 marketing year;

Whereas it is therefore necessary to amend Regulation (EEC) No 3013/89,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

1. In Article 5a (a) (b) of Regulation (EEC) No 3013/89, the following subparagraph is hereby added:

'However, with effect from the 1995 marketing year the previous paragraph shall not apply to groups of producers, in the case of a transfer of rights between members, meeting conditions to be determined by the Commission in accordance with the procedure provided for in Article 30.`

2. In Article 5b (1), the following subparagraph are hereby added:

'In addition, for Italy and Greece a special reserve of 600 000 rights for each of those two Member States shall be established to permit the granting of additional rights to producers affected by the fact that the changes in the conditions of eligibility of animals for the premium and the introduction of individual limits on the guarantee per producer based on the number of premiums paid for the marketing year both occured in 1991. After having clearly identified the producers affected by the situation referred to above, each of the two Member States concerned shall grant additional premium rights before the end of the 1995 marketing year up to the limit of the special reserve referred to above. Subject to verification by the Commission, particularly in the regions principally affected, that the allocation of additional rights has been limited to the producers affected and that those producers do not obtain more rights than would have been granted them if the situation referred to above had not occured, the national reserve established pursuant to this Article shall be increased by an amount corresponding to the sum of the rights newly granted; that increase shall not affect the additional reserve referred to in paragraph 3.`

Article 2

This Regulation shall enter into force on the seventh day following its publication in the Official Journal of the European Communities.

It shall apply from the 1995 marketing year.

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.

(1) OJ No L 215, 30. 7. 1992, p. 59.

(2) OJ No L 289, 7. 10. 1989, p. 1. Regulation last amended by Regulation (EEC) No 1886/94 (OJ No L 197, 30. 7. 1994, p. 30).