Opinion of the Economic and Social Committee on the 'Proposal for a Council Directive amending Directive 70/524/EEC concerning additives in feedingstuffs and Directive 95/69/EC laying down the conditions and the arrangements for approving and registering certain establishments and intermediaries operating in the animal feed sector and amending Directive 70/524/EEC, 74/63/EEC, 79/373/EEC and 82/471/EEC` () (98/C 284/15)

On 19 May 1998 the Council decided to consult the Economic and Social Committee, under Articles 43 and 198 of the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community, on the above-mentioned proposal.

The Section for Agriculture and Fisheries, which was responsible for preparing the Committee's work on the subject, adopted its opinion on 15 June 1998. The rapporteur was Mr Gardner.

At its 356th plenary session (meeting of 2 July 1998) the Economic and Social Committee adopted the following opinion by 42 votes to seven, with 15 abstentions.

1. Introduction

1.1. Current Community legislation on additives to animal feeds provides that it is for the Council, at the proposal of the Commission, to set the level of fees for registration of additives and for approval of establishments and intermediaries.

1.2. Since differences have emerged in Council concerning the method for calculating these fees and, consequently, the actual amounts involved, and in order to break the ensuing deadlock, the Commission is proposing to amend Directives 70/524/EEC and 95/69/EC to assign the decision on the level of fees to the Member States, albeit on the basis of harmonized rules for the calculation.

2. Comments

2.1. In the report accompanying the proposal, the Commission itself stresses that the difficulties in Council have concerned the method for calculating the fees.

2.2. According to the Commission, agreement could now be reached by dividing authority between the Council, for the calculation method, and the Member States, for the actual amount of the fees.

2.2.1. The Committee does not believe that the conditions for reaching agreement on common rules have altered.

2.3. The Committee believes that in principle both registration of additives and approval of establishments fall within the official powers of the national administrations and that they should therefore bear the relevant costs.

2.4. The Committee does, however, consider that if the principle of charging a fee for these services is accepted - as confirmed by Directives 70/524/EEC and 95/69/EEC - then there is a need to establish methods and instruments to minimize the risk of any distortion of competition arising from fee levels which vary from country to country.

2.5. Such measures could, in the Committee's view, include a transitional phase of limited duration, for countries adopting the euro, during which the latter would remain free to set the amount of the fees, while observing general rules to be drawn up at Community level.

2.5.1. Adoption of the single currency could facilitate an alignment of the costs involved, leading in the future to a single cost being set for all.

2.6. Upper and lower limits for fees should be set for non-euro countries, since it is necessary to avoid significant cost differences between them and countries adopting the single currency.

3. Conclusions

3.1. In conclusion, the Committee holds that there can be no retreat from the aim of agreeing to set fees equally applicable to all EU Member States, following a transitional period yet to be agreed.

3.2. It therefore calls upon the Commission to adapt its own proposals in this direction and to amend the dates set out in Articles 1 and 2 (1 April 1998 and 31 March 1998), which have already passed.

Brussels, 2 July 1998.

The President of the Economic and Social Committee

Tom JENKINS

() OJ C 155, 20.5.1998, p. 29.