Proposal for a COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) amending Regulation (EC) No 3066/95 establishing certain concessions in the form of Community tariff quotas for certain agricultural products and providing for the adjustment, as an autonomous and transitional measure, of certain agricultural concessions provided for in the Europe Agreements to take account of the Agreement on agriculture concluded during the Uruguay Round Multilateral Trade Negotiations

(presented by the Commission)

EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM

The Community has granted tariff concessions to Central European Countries (Hungary, Poland, the Czech and Slovak Republics, Romania and Bulgaria) for the import of amongst others certain goose and duck products including breasts. These concessions date back to 1990 (Council Regulation (EEC) N 3899/89, applicable as from 1990) and were included in the Europe Agreements which today provide for duty reductions by 80 % within the limits of tariff quotas.

The Commission has been informed by operators that the traditional commercial presentation of goose and duck breasts does not correspond to the definition of poultry breast as introduced into the Combined Nomenclature in 1995. In fact, the additional note concerned requires the presence of all ribs whilst traditionally the breasts have been imported without ribs.

On the basis of a strict application of the CN definition, a few shipments of breasts have not been admitted under the heading "breasts" which also would exclude them from preferential treatment according to the Europe Agreements. These facts could negatively affect the traditional trade flows with the six countries mentioned.

In order to fully maintain the concessions applied vis-à-vis the CEEC since 1990 in the poultrymeat sector, it is necessary to add to the relevant product groups in the Europe Agreements the goose and duck breasts without ribs or with part of ribs only, at the same preferential duty rate as for breasts with all ribs, without changing the volume of the tariff quotas.

The proposed Regulation in question has no financial implications for the Community budget.

Proposal for

Council Regulation (EC) No ..../98

of ....................... 1998

amending Regulation (EC) No 3066/95 establishing certain concessions in the form of Community tariff quotas for certain agricultural products and providing for the adjustment, as an autonomous and transitional measure, of certain agricultural concessions provided for in the Europe Agreements to take account of the Agreement on agriculture concluded during the Uruguay Round Multilateral Trade Negotiations

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 113 thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,

Whereas Council Regulation (EC) No 3066/95 of 22 December 1995 has established certain concessions in the form of Community tariff quotas for certain agricultural products;

Whereas it has been noted that the classification of certain poultrymeat products poses problems arising from the fact that the definition of goose and duck breasts as provided for in Council Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87 of 23 July 1987 on the tariff and statistical nomenclature and on the Common Customs Tariff , does not correspond exactly to technical and commercial practices well established in trade with CEEC; whereas in order to fully maintain the concessions referred to in Regulation (EC) No 3066/95, it is necessary to add to the groups of products concerned goose and duck breasts the ribs of which have been partially or completely removed, at the same preferential duty rate as for breasts with all ribs; whereas this amendment should apply as from 1 January 1998, date from which the above problems have been noted;

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

In Annexes I to VI of Regulation (EC) No 3066/95, the concessions provided for under order numbers 09.4702, 09.5304, 09.5301, 09.4801, 09.4601, 09.4650 and 09.4659 are replaced by the corresponding concessions referred to in the Annex to this Regulation.

Article 2

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

It shall apply from 1 January 1998.

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

Done at Brussels, ................. 1998

For the Council

The President

ANNEX

A. Modification of Annex I (H)

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B. Modification of Annex II (PL)

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C. Modification of Annex III (RS)

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D. Modification of Annex IV (RC)

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E. Modification of Annex V (RUM)

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F. Modification of Annex VI (B)

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