CIRCUMSTANCES CONNECTED WITH THE ALLEGED DELAY HAD ALREADY BEEN TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT IN THE DECISION .
17 IT MUST BE POINTED OUT FIRST OF ALL THAT UNDER THE PROVISIONS OF DECISION NO 2794/80 THE APPLICANT WAS REQUIRED - AND THIS IS NOT DISPUTED - TO DECLARE ITS STEEL PRODUCTION TO THE COMMISSION AND TO SPECIFY THE PROPORTION OF ITS PRODUCTION CONSISTING OF CRUDE STEEL AND THE PROPORTION CONSISTING OF ROLLED PRODUCTS . IT MUST THEREFORE BEAR THE RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE CONSEQUENCES OF ANY INCORRECT DECLARATION , REGARDLESS OF WHETHER IT IS THE QUANTITY OF ITS TOTAL PRODUCTION OR ITS BREAKDOWN INTO THE VARIOUS GROUPS OF PRODUCTS THAT IS GIVEN INCORRECTLY . IT CANNOT ESCAPE THAT RESPONSIBILITY BY CLAIMING THAT THE COMMISSION ' S INSPECTORS RESPONSIBLE FOR ENSURING THAT THE COMMUNITY RULES ARE OBSERVED DID NOT NOTICE FROM THE OUTSET THAT ITS DECLARATIONS WERE INCORRECT .
18 NOR CAN THE APPLICANT ESCAPE OR REDUCE ITS RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE CONSEQUENCES OF ITS INCORRECT DECLARATIONS BY ARGUING THAT THE COMMUNITY LEGISLATION DOES NOT MAKE IT SUFFICIENTLY CLEAR HOW THE BILLETS IN QUESTION ARE TO BE CLASSIFIED . IT IS IN FACT CLEAR FROM THE INFORMATION PROVIDED BY THE COMMISSION AND NOT DISPUTED BY THE APPLICANT THAT , THROUGH THE REFERENCE TO EUROSTAT QUESTIONNAIRES NOS 2-11 AND 2-13 , DECISION NO 2794/80 IS REFERRING TO EURONORMS AND THAT THOSE STANDARDS , WHICH HAD BEEN DISTRIBUTED TO THE UNDERTAKINGS CONCERNED , SHOW THAT STEEL BILLETS OF LESS THAN 50 MM THICKNESS ARE ROLLED PRODUCTS WITHIN THE MEANING OF ANNEXES I AND II/2 TO DECISION NO 2794/80 AND NOT CRUDE STEEL WITHIN THE MEANING OF ANNEX II/1 TO THAT DECISION .
19 NOR CAN THE APPLICANT RELY ON THE FACT - WHICH IS DISPUTED BY THE COMMISSION - THAT IT WAS POSSIBLE FOR IT TO TAKE THE VIEW THAT IT WAS NOT SUBJECT TO THE QUOTA SYSTEM BEFORE THE FIRST QUARTER OF 1982 . THAT ARGUMENT CANNOT BE ACCEPTED SINCE THE OBLIGATION TO PROVIDE INFORMATION IS INDEPENDENT OF THE EXEMPTION . IN FACT , ARTICLE 4 OF DECISION NO 1831/81 , AS AMENDED BY DECISION NO 1832/81 , EXPRESSLY PROVIDES THAT THE EXEMPTION FROM THE QUOTA SYSTEM APPLIES ' WITHOUT PREJUDICE TO THE OBLIGATIONS WITH REGARD TO INFORMATION AND CHECKS PROVIDED FOR IN THIS DECISION ' .
20 HOWEVER , AS REGARDS THE ARGUMENT THAT THE DECISION TO RECTIFY THE PRODUCTION QUOTA WAS ADOPTED AFTER UNDUE DELAY , IT MUST BE ACCEPTED THAT , ALTHOUGH , AS WAS STATED ABOVE , THE APPLICANT BEARS THE RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ERROR IN THE ORIGINAL QUOTA ALLOCATION , THAT CIRCUMSTANCE CANNOT DISCHARGE THE COMMISSION FROM ITS DUTY TO RECTIFY THE QUOTA AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE ONCE IT HAD BEEN NOTIFIED BY THE APPLICANT OF ITS ERROR AND THE NECESSARY INVESTIGATIONS HAD CONFIRMED THAT AN ERROR HAD BEEN MADE . IN THE PRESENT CASE , THE FIRST REQUEST FOR RECTIFICATION WAS SENT TO THE COMMISSION ON 19 JANUARY 1982 AND ON-THE-SPOT INVESTIGATIONS WERE CARRIED OUT BY THE COMMISSION ' S