31.1.74 Official  Journal  of the  European  Communities No C 8/19 
— Monetary  Committee, 
— Short-term  and 
— Medium-term  Economic  Policy  Committee. 
The Member  States  and  the  Commission  will  be 
invited  to  nominate  two  members  each,  plus 
alternates. 
Members  and  alternates  will  be  senior  officials 
responsible  for regional  policy. 
The European  Investment  Bank  will  appoint  an 
observer. 
The chair  will  be taken  by a representative  of the 
Member  States. 
The Secretariat  will  be provided  by the Commission. 
7.2. Comments  of  the  Economic  and  Social 
Committee 
7.2.1.  TASKS 
In view  of the  importance  and  complexity  of the 
linked  problems  of  incentives  and  disincentives 
(point  (h)),  the Committee  has  not  had  time  to take 
a stand  on them  in this  Opinion;  seeing,  however, 
that these  tasks  will  fall  within  the  terms  of 
reference  of the  Committee  for Regional  Policy,  the 
Done  at Brussels,  25 October  1973. Committee  asks  to be consulted  at the  appropriate 
time. 
7.2.2.  COMPOSITION  AND  CONSULTATION 
Attention  is drawn  to what  has  been  said  earlier. 
Furthermore,  it seems  that  the  Committee  should 
ascertain  the  views  of the  regions  and  socio-
professional  organizations. 
7.2.3.  THE  RELATIONS  OF  THE  COMMITTEE 
FOR  REGIONAL  POLICY  WITH  OTHER 
BODIES 
The draft  Regulation  is vague  about  relations 
between  the  Committee  for Regional  Policy  and  the 
Commission,  the  Council,  the  Economic  and  Social 
Committee  and  the  Regional  Development  Fund. 
The Committee  stresses  the  relevance  of relations 
between  the  various  Community  bodies  to avoiding 
a dispersion  of effort  and  ensuring  that  energies  are 
coordinated. 
8. THE  FINANCIAL  REGULATION 
8.1. The  Committee  has  no comments  to make  on 
the proposal  for  a financial  regulation  embodying 
special  provisions  to be applied  to the  European 
Regional  Development  Fund. 
The Chairman 
of the Economic  and  Social  Committee 
Alfons  LAPP  AS 
CONSULTATION  OF  THE  ECONOMIC  AND  SOCIAL  COMMITTEE 
on three  proposals  for Council  Directives  amending  certain  Directives  on the marketing 
of plants,  certain  agricultural  seeds  and  plants,  of propagation  material  for the vine  and 
of forest  reproductive  material 
A. REQUEST  FOR  AN  OPINION 
At its 247th  meeting  held  on 18 June  1973,  the Council  decided  to consult  the Economic 
and Social  Committee  on three  proposals  for a Council  Directive,  namely: 
— 'Proposal  for a Council  Directive  amending  the Directives  of 14 June  1966  on the 
marketing  of beet  seed',  fodder  plant  seed,  cereal  seed,  seed  potatoes,  the  Directive 
of 30 June  1969  on the marketing  of seed  of oil and  fibre  plants  and  the Directives 
of 29 September  1970  on the marketing  of vegetable  seed  and  the common  catalogue 
of varieties  of agricultural  plant  species', 
No C 8/20 Official  Journal  of the European  Communities 31. 1.74 
— 'Proposal  for a Council  Directive  amending  the Directive  of 9 April  1968  on the 
marketing  of material  for the vegetative  propagation  of the vine', 
— 'Proposal  for a second  Council  Directive  amending  the Council  Directive  of 14 June 
1966  on the marketing  of forest  reproductive  material'. 
The request  for an Opinion  was  sent  by the President  of the Council  to the Chairman 
of the Economic  and  Social  Committee  on 21 June  1973. 
B. TEXT  WHICH  WAS  THE  SUBJECT  OF  THE  CONSULTATION 
The text  which  was  the subject  of the consultation  was  published  in the Official  Journal 
of the European  Communities,  No  C 90 of 26 October  1973,  pages  75 to 92. 
C. OPINION  OF  THE  ECONOMIC  AND  SOCIAL  COMMITTEE 
At its 114th  Plenary  Session  held  in Brussels  on 24 and  25 October  1973,  the Committee 
adopted  its Opinion  on the  text  referred  to under  B by a unanimous  vote  of all the 
members  present  or represented. 
The text  of the Opinion  is as follows: 
THE  ECONOMIC  AND  SOCIAL  COMMITTEE, 
Having  regard  to the  Council's  request  dated  18 
June  1973  for an opinion  on the: 
— Proposal  for  a Council  Directive  amending  the 
Directive  of 14 June  1966  on the  marketing  of 
beet seed,  fodder  plant  seed,  cereal  seed  and  seed 
potatoes,  the  Directive  of 30 June  1969  on the 
marketing  of seed  of oil and  fibre  plants  and  the 
Directives  of  29  September  1970  on  the 
marketing  of vegetable  seed  and  on the common 
catalogue  of  varieties  of  agricultural  plant 
species, 
— Proposal  for  a Council  Directive  amending  the 
Directive  of 9 April  1968  on the  marketing  of 
material  for  the  vegetative  propagation  of the 
vine, 
— Proposal  for  a second  Council  Directive 
amending  the Council  Directive  of 14 June  1966 
on the marketing  of forest  reproductive  material. 
Having  regard  to Article  198  of the EEC  Treaty; 
Having  regard  to the  decision  of its Bureau  of 25 
June  1973  instructing  the Section  for Agriculture  to 
prepare  an opinion  on the matter; 
Having  regard  to the Committee's  previous  work  on 
this subject,  in particular  the  Opinions  of 25 
September  1964,  25 April  1967,  30 October  1968 
and 22 January  1969; Having  regard  to the  opinion  delivered  by  the 
Section  for  Agriculture  at  its  meeting  on  6 
September  1973; 
Having  regard  to its discussions  at its 114th  Plenary 
Session  on 24 and  25 October  1973  sitting  of 25 
October  1973. 
Whereas  the  Commission  proposals  aim  essentially 
at supplementing  the texts  of existing  directives; 
Whereas  it is important  for farmers  to have  at their 
disposal  seeds  and  reproductive  material  offering 
optimum  guarantees  as to their  cultural  value  and 
utility; 
Whereas  the  liberalizing  of intra-Community  trade 
in the  products  in question  enables  agricultural 
producers  to secure  the  maximum  benefit  from 
technical  progress  in this  field, 
HAS  ADOPTED  THE  FOLLOWING  OPINION: 
The Economic  and  Social  Committee,  aware  of the 
importance  of the  seeds  sector  to agricultural 
producers  and  to agriculture  as a whole,  welcomes 
these  proposals  for directives,  which  supplement  and 
clarify  the  already  existing  Community  provisions 
on the marketing  of seeds  produced  in the Member 
States  of the Community. 
The Committee  would  draw  attention  to its view 
that in this  sector,  as in others,  steps  should  be 
taken  to prevent  the  desirable  harmonization  from 
being  linked  with  exaggerated  perfectionism. 
31. 1. 74 Official  Journal  of the  European  Communities No C 8/21 
Given  the  development  of Community  rules  in this 
sector,  the  Committee  agrees  with  the  European 
Parliament  on the need  to collect  together  in a single 
text the  basic  directives  and  the  amendments  made 
thereto  so that  those  concerned  may  have  at their 
disposal  a complete  text  of the legislation  in force. 
The Committee  approves  the  proposals  for 
directives,  subject  to the following  comments. 
1. Proposal  for a Directive  amending: 
(a) the  Council  Directive  of 14 June  1966  on: 
— the  marketing  of beet  seed, 
— the  marketing  of seed  of fodder  plants, 
— the  marketing  of cereal  seed, 
— the  marketing  of seed  potatoes; 
(b) the  Directive  of 30\June  1969  on: 
— the  marketing  of seed  of oil and  fibre  plants; 
(e) the  Directive  of 29 September  1970  on: 
— the  marketing  of vegetable  seed, 
— the  common  catalogue  of agricultural  plant 
species. 
Article  2, point  2 
The Committee  is of the  opinion  that  fixing  the 
maximum  weight  of the  contents  of small  packages 
for seeds  of fodder  plants  in different  regions  of the 
Community  does  not  meet  the  requirements  of 
consumers,  who  buy  seeds  in quantities  depending 
on the  size  of the  area  to be sown.  The  10 kg limit 
for seeds  of fodder  plants  is not  in keeping  with 
practical  needs.  The  Committee  thus  considers  that 
the maximum  authorized  weight  should  be fixed  at 
a higher  level.  A maximum  of 12-5  kg would  accord 
better  with  the  situation  in the  regions  concerned, 
even  if all the  difficulties  to be expected  were  not 
solved  in this  way.  In this  context  it should  not  be 
forgotten  that  certain  current  national  provisions 
have  been  in  force  for  only  a short  time. 
Consequently,  implementation  of the  Commission 
proposals  would  be  detrimental  to  the 
manufacturers  of small  packages,  the trade  and  even 
consumers. 
Article  I, points  6 and  11,  Article  2, points  7 and 20 
The Committee  is of the  opinion  that  the  attaching 
of a sticker  to small  packages  could  entail  additional 
capital  expenditure  to equip  the  automatic  filling apparatus  with  the  necessary  devices;  these 
additional  production  costs  could  lead  to an increase 
in the  price  of  seeds  without  this  necessarily 
meaning  an improvement  in quality. 
The Committee  therefore  considers  that  it would  be 
advisable  to dispense  with  requiring  the  use  of a 
sticker.  The  possibilities  for  making  a check 
envisaged  by this  Commission  provision  would  also 
be afforded  by  requiring  producers  to  provide 
adequate  labelling. 
Article  1, point  9, Article  2, point  11,  Article  3, 
point  3, Article  4, point  2, Article  5, point  4 
The Committee  stresses  that  the  time  limit  within 
which  the  Member  States  may  establish  the 
equivalence  of seeds  produced  in third  countries,  in 
so far as the  Council  has  not  yet  made  a decision, 
has already  been  changed  several  times.  The 
Commission's  proposal  for  a directive  now  provides 
for a further  extension  till July  1974.  There  can  be 
no objection  to this  measure,  which  takes  traditional 
trade  patterns  into  account  and  guarantees  their 
maintenance.  In  order  to  avoid  negative 
consequences  for  the  trade  in seeds,  in future  these 
time  limits  should  not  be changed  without  sufficient 
notice;  for  example,  next  time  the  time  limit  is 
changed  it could  be extended  for  several  years  and 
not just  one  year.  Furthermore,  it would  be possible 
for competence  for  fixing  the  time  limits  to be 
transferred  to the  Commission  of the  European 
Communities,  in line  with  the  procedure  provided 
for the  Standing  Committee  on  Seeds  and 
Propagation  Material. 
2. Proposal  for  a Council  Directive  modifying  the 
Directive  of 9 April  1968  on the  marketing  of 
material  for  the  vegetative  propagation  of the 
vine 
The Committee  has  no new  comments  to make  on 
this matter. 
It welcomes  the  fact  that  the  directive  proposed  by 
the Commission  incorporates  in  Article  2 the 
proposal  which  the  Committee  made  in its  first 
Opinion  on the  subject,  dated  25 April  1967,  to the 
effect  that  Member  States  be authorized,  notwith-
standing  the  provisions  of Chapter  III of Annex  II, 
to reduce  the  minimum  lengths  of propagation 
material  of the  vine,  for  production  and  marketing 
in certain  territories. 
No C 8/22 Official  Journal  of the  European  Communities 31. 1.74 
However  the Committee  points  out  that  a common 
catalogue  of varieties  does  not  exist  for vine  plants. 
The Member  States  should  therefore  ensure  by 
means  of provision  of mutual  information  on their 
catalogues  and  any  changes  thereto,  the creation  for 
the wine  growers  of sufficient  transparency  as to the 
supply  of varieties  within  the Community. 
The Committee  further  draws  attention  to the  fact 
that it also  proposed  abolishing  the  obligation  to 
mention  on the  label  'the  country  of production' 
next to the  name  and  address  of the  producer  and 
of the  person  responsible  for the  final  choosing  of 
the packages  (Annex  IV, A—a7). 
Article  5 
The Committee  is of the  opinion  that  producers 
who buy  reproductive  material  should  always  have 
sound  guarantees  as to its  quality,  even  if the 
Member  State  is allowed  to dispense  with  the 
application  of the  Directive  because  of the minimal 
economic  importance  of vine  growing  and  the 
marketing  of propagation  material  of the vine  in its 
territory.  In order  to afford  such  a guarantee  the 
Committee  proposes  that  in this  case  provision  be 
made  for special  indication  on deliveries  to users. 
3. Proposal  for a second  Council  Directive  amending 
the Council  Directive  of 14 June  1966  on the 
marketing  of forest  reproductive  material 
The Committee  considers  that  this  proposal  for  a 
second  Directive  on  the  marketing  of  forest 
reproductive  material  meets  the need  for  regulation 
of the  development  of forestry  and  for  a stricter 
definition  of forest  reproductive  material. 
Article  13 
According  to the new  version  proposed,  the Member 
States  have  two  years  in which  to decide  whether 
Done  at Brussels,  25 October  1973. the import  of a new  officially  approved  stand 
should  be  prohibited  (Article  13,  paragraph  1). 
After  this  time  limit  a Member  State  has  to obtain 
Community  authorization  if it wishes  to prohibit  the 
marketing  in all  or  part  of  its  territory  of 
reproductive  material  derived  from  specific  basic 
material. 
The Committee  is of the  opinion  that  these 
provisions  may  cause  difficulties  in intra-Community 
trade  in reproductive  material,  since,  in the case  of 
mixtures,  Member  States  run  the  risk  of not  being 
able to export  all the material  of this  provenance.  In 
order  to avoid  any  complication  in the  trade  in 
forest  reproductive  material  the  Committee 
proposes: 
(a) that  the  period  of two  years  allowed  for 
opposition  in Article  13, paragraph  1 be reduced 
to one  year, 
(b) that  the  following  provisions,  which  are  similar 
to those  of Article  15,  paragraphs  4 and  5 of 
Council  Directive  No  70/457/EEC  of 
29 September  1970  concerning  a common 
catalogue  of varieties  of species  of agricultural 
plants,  be  inserted  in  the  proposal  for  a 
Directive: 
'If a Member  State  does  not  intend  to make 
an application  in respect  of reproductive 
material  derived  from  specific  basic  material, 
according  to the  procedure  provided  for  in 
Article  13,  paragraph  2, it shall  notify  the 
Commission  accordingly  or make  a statement 
to this  effect  to the  Standing  Committee  on 
Seeds  and  Propagating  Material', 
'When  all the  Member  States  have  notified 
the Commission  or  made  the  statement 
provided  for  in the  previous  paragraph,  the 
time  limit  laid  down  in Article  13, paragraph  1, 
shall  no longer  be applicable  and  Article  13a 
shall  apply.' 
The Chairman 
of the Economic  and  Social  Committee 
Alfons  LAPP  AS 
CONSULTATION  OF  THE  ECONOMIC  AND  SOCIAL  COMMITTEE 
on a proposal  for a Council  Regulation  on trans-frontier  oil and  gas pipelines 
A. REQUEST  FOR  AN  OPINION 
At its 210th  meeting  held  on 30 October  1972,  the  Council  decided  to consult  in 
accordance  with  the provisions  of Article  75 of the  Treaty  establishing  the European 
Economic  Community,  the Economic  and  Social  Committee  on the above  proposal  for 
a Regulation.