19. 11. 84 Official Journal of the European Communities No C 307/1 
II 
(Preparatory Acts) 
ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE 
Opinion on the proposal for a Council Directive on the financing of health inspections and 
controls of fresh meat 
(84/C 307/01) 
The text referred to the Committee has been published in Official Journal of the European 
Communities No C 168 of 28 June 1984, page 4. 
A. LEGAL BASIS FOR THE OPINION 
On 14 June 1984 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 
abovementioned proposal. 
Procedure 
' The Section for Agriculture, which was responsible for preparing the Committee's work on the 
subject, adopted its opinion on 6 September 1984, in the light of the oral report by 
Mr Wick. 
B. OPINION OF THE ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE 
At its 219th plenary session (meeting of 26 September 1984) the Economic and Social 
Committee adopted the following opinion by a unanimous vote. 
1. General comments 
1.1. The Committee would refer first of all to the 
comments it made in its opinion regarding the 
Commission's plan for dealing with the health problems 
affecting intra-Community trade in fresh meat, and in 
particular to its call to carry out only those checks that are 
strictly necessary, on account of the cost involved. 
1.2. Given the very different situations in the Member 
States regarding the cost of the checks and their financing, 
as indicated in the Annex to the Commission document, the Committee considers the present proposal to be 
basically appropriate for removing the distortions of 
competition caused by this diversity. The Committee 
regrets, however, that information on one Member State 
is not available. It welcomes the move to advance 
harmonization of the arrangements for the financing of 
the checks in question. 
1.3. While it appreciates the Commission's concern to 
deal first of all with the fundamental questions 
concerning the harmonization of the financing of health 
inspections and controls of fresh meat, the Committee 
No C 307/2 Official Journal of the European Communities 19. 11. 84 
would have liked the Commission to have presented the 
technical implementing provisions simultaneously with 
this proposal. 
1.4. The Committee thinks that allowance should be 
made for the use of the latest inspection and control 
techniques when fixing the amount of the 
contribution. 
2. Specific comments 
Article 1 
The German text is open to misinterpretation through the 
use of the term 'Haustiere' (domestic animals/pets). The 
Committee would like it to be made clear that for the 
purposes of the Directive 'Haustiere' means 'Nutztiere' 
(livestock kept for productive purposes). 
Article 2, third indent 
The Committee considers it unacceptable that where the 
results of the not yet harmonized tests for residues are 
positive the party concerned should have to pay the full 
charge. The Committee takes the view that the Member 
States should share in the cost. 
Done at Brussels, 26 September 1984. Article 2, fourth indent 
The Committee would suggest that 'the party concerned' 
be defined with reference to Article 1 as the person on 
whose account the additional checks are carried out. 
Article 3 (1) 
With reference to its general comments, the Committee 
assumes that the level of the contribution will be such as 
to allow use of the most modern methods of analysis. 
Article 4 
To clarify the aim of this Article, the Committee would 
suggest the following wording: 
'The Member States shall ensure that adequate health 
inspection and control measures are taken. Funds at 
least equivalent to the total amount of the 
contributions shall be made available for the financing 
of these measures.' 
The Committee also thinks that it is necessary to ensure 
that the contributions are used for the purpose in 
question. 
Article 5 
The Committee considers that the Commission should be 
notified of relevant provisions of the Member States, also 
after 1 January 1986. 
The Chairman 
of the Economic and Social Committee 
Francois CEYRAC 
Opinion on the proposal for a Council Decision on the ratification of the Torremolinos 
International Convention for the Safety of Fishing Vessels and the application of the provisions 
thereof by the Member States pending the entry into force of the Convention at international 
level 
(84/C 307/02) 
The text referred to the Committee has been published in Official Journal of the European 
Communities No C 183 of 10 July 1984, page 17. 
A. LEGAL BASIS FOR THE OPINION 
On 6 July 1984 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 
abovementioned proposal. 
Procedure 
The Section for Agriculture, which was responsible for preparing the Committee's work on the 
subject, adopted its opinion on 6 September 1984 in the light of the oral report by the 
Rapporteur, Mr Morselli.