No C 44/8 Official Journal of the European Communities 15. 2. 85 
3.2. Worker's undertaking and employer's 
notification 
3.2.1. The ' Committee thinks it is improbable, 
especially in the present economic climate, that a worker 
will objectively and systematically notify the health 
authorities of any relevant disease or symptom, at the risk 
of jeopardizing his job. 
3.2.2. In addition, the employer does not seem to be in 
a proper position to be able to supply the same authorities 
with information relating to the health of his staff. 
3.2.3. In the event of a health problem, both the 
worker and the employer must contact the firm's doctor, 
who will take the requisite measures in each case and 
notify the health authorities, if need be. 
3.3. Health training 
3.3.1. The proposals do not specify who is to be 
responsible for this training and providing the funds. 
Done at Brussels, 12 December 1984. 
Gerd MUHR 
Opinion of the Economic and Social Committee on the proposal for a Council Regulation on 
customs debt (J) 
(85/C 44/07) 
On 24 September 1984 the Council, decided to consult the Economic and Social Committee, 
under Article 198 of the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community, on the 
abovementioned proposal. 
The Section for Industry, Commerce, Crafts and Services, which was responsible for 
prepararing the Committee's work on the subject, adopted its opinion on 28 November 1984, 
in the light of the report by Mr Broicher. 
At its 222nd plenary session (meeting of 12 December 1984) the Economic and Social 
Committee adopted the following opinion unanimously: 
The Committee approves the draft Regulation but wishes to make the comments set out 
below. 3.3.2. The Committee suggests that the firm should 
draw up its training programme with the assistance of the 
firm's doctors. The firm is to be responsible for this 
training, though this does not rule out the possibility that 
specific measures be laid down in the interests of public 
safety. 
3.3.3. At all events, the principle is a good one, 
provided that both basic and continuing training is 
provided and is backed up by posters or other audiovisual 
aids which indicate the main rules. 
3.3.4. The employer and the workforce are both 
responsible for maintaining a good standard of hygiene. 
Both must be aware at all times of the importanceof the 
rules governing general, personal and food hygiene. 
3.4. Surveillance by the health authorities 
Regardless of whether Member States' rules specify that 
the surveillance is to be carried out by an official 
veterinarian or another competent authority, it goes 
without saying that only a doctor can examine staff and 
issue medical certificates for this staff. 
The Chairman 
of the Economic and Social Committee 
i1) OJ No C 261, 29. 9. 1984, p. 4. 
15. 2. 85 Official Journal of the European Communities No C 44/9 
1. General comments 
1.1. The upgrading of customs Directives into 
Regulations ties in with the Committee's view that there 
should be a progressive harmonization of EC law in the 
interests of greater legal security and the operation of the 
customs union. 
1.2. The Committee does, however, consider that this 
goal can most readily be achieved by the establishment of 
a uniform EC consolidated customs code. Bearing in 
mind the work already in progress and the preliminary 
draft documents which have been drawn up, the question 
arises as to whether the upgrading of Directives into 
Regulations should not be looked upon merely as a step 
on the way towards the establishment of the customs code 
and whether the Regulations should not be brought into 
effect concurrently with the customs code rather than 
separately. This would prevent overlapping and 
repetitions and would avoid burdening administrations 
and the economy with more frequent changes in the law. 
For this reason the Committee urges that the work on the 
customs code be concluded as soon as possible. 
1.3. Related legal fields, namely customs debt and 
persons liable for the payment of customs debt, should be 
dealt with together in order to avoid unnecessarily 
complicating the understanding and the application of the 
law. The Committee has already made this point in its 
opinion on the proposal for a Council Regulation 
determining the persons liable for the payment of a 
customs debt (1). The Committee would therefore take 
this opportunity to ask the Council once again to set out 
provisions governing both of these legal fields in a single 
Regulation. 
2. Specific comments 
Article 2 (1) (e) 
2.1. In the case of the use of goods in a free zone in 
violation of the regulations or their consumption in a free 
zone, the Commission bases the incurrence of a customs 
debt on Council Directive 69/75/EEC of 4 March 
1969. 
Done at Brussels, 12 December 1984. Under the provisions of Article 1 (2) of this Directive, 
however, goods in a free zone are to be considered as 
outside the customs territory of the Community. Goods 
transferred to a free zone are therefore regarded as not yet 
imported into EC customs territory. Such goods are to be 
treated no differently from goods stored in a non-EC 
country. They are therefore not subject to customs 
control and not liable for import duty. Under Article 8 of 
Directive 69/75/EEC a customs debt thus arises only 
once the goods have been cleared for free circulation. 
2.2. There are of course special regulations governing 
the use of goods in free zones and these have to be 
observed. Failure to observe them may lead to 
prosecution or fines but in no way will the goods be liable 
to import duty. The correctness of this assumption is 
borne out by the first indent of Article 8 (2) (d) of the 
present draft Regulation under which the transfer of 
goods to a free zone leads to the extinction of the customs 
debt, the goods no longer having customs status. The 
reverse inference which may be drawn from this is that 
under no circumstances whatever can a customs debt 
arise in respect of goods in a free zone without customs 
status. 
2.3. The Committee therefore calls for the deletion of 
Article 2 (1) (e) of the draft Regulation as a customs debt 
cannot be incurred under any circumstances in a free 
zone. 
Article 7 (a) 
2.4. The Committee assumes that the 'special 
provisions' include Article 11 (2) of Directive 
79/695/EEC thus enabling, in the event of change in the 
rate of duty, the person concerned to claim the more 
favourable rate. 
Article 9 
2.5. Article 9 does not stipulate the moment in time at 
which the amount of the customs debt is to be calculated. 
The Committee assumes that this will be covered by the 
inward processing arrangements. The Article should be 
clarified accordingly. 
The Chairman 
of the Economic and Social Committee 
Gerd MUHR 
(') OJNoCUl, 8. 8. 1983.