Council Regulation (EEC) No 2138/85 of 25 July 1985 opening, allocating and providing for the administration of a Community tariff quota for deep-frozen fillets of Alaska pollack falling within subheading ex 03.01 B II b) 14 of the Common Customs Tariff

COUNCIL  REGULATION (EEC) No 2138/85
of 25 July 1985
opening, allocating and providing for the administration of a Community tariff quota for deep-frozen fillets of Alaska pollack falling within subheading ex 03.01 B II b) 14 of the Common Customs Tariff
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN
COMMUNITIES
,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community, and in particular Article 28 thereof,
Whereas Community supplies of deep-frozen fillets of Alaska pollack (Theragra chalcogramma) currently depend on imports from third countries; whereas it is in the Community's interest to suspend partially the Common Customs Tariff duty for the product in question, within the Community tariff quota of an appropriate volume for a relatively limited period; whereas, in order not to call into question the development prospects of this production in the Community while ensuring an adequate supply to satisfy user industries, it is advisable to open this tariff quota for the product concerned for the period until 31 December 1985 at a duty rate of 8 % and to fix the volume thereof at 3 550 tonnes;
Whereas, in particular, equal and continuous access to the quota should be ensured for all Community importers and the rate of duty for the tariff quota should be applied consistently to all imports until the quota is exhausted; whereas, in the light of these principles, arrangements for the utilization of the tariff quota based on an allocation among Member States would seem to be consistent with the Community nature of the quota; whereas, to correspond as closely as possible to the actual trend in the market in the product in question, allocation of the quota should be in proportion to the requirements of the Member States as claculated by reference to statistics of imports from third countries during a representative reference period and to the economic outlook for the quota period in question;
Whereas in the case in point there are no statistical data broken down by quality of products in question; whereas the quota is an autonomous Community tariff quota intended to cover import needs arising in the Community, the quota volume may be allocated on the basis of the temporary import needs from third countries expressed by each of the Member States; whereas these arrangements for allocation will equally ensure the unform application of the Common Customs Tariff;
Whereas, to take account of possible import trends for the product concerned, the quota volume should be divided into two instalments, the first being allocated between certain Member States and the second held as a reserve to meet subsequent requirements of Member States which have used up their initial shares and any additional requirements which might arise in the other Member States; whereas, to give importers of the Member States some degree of certainty, the first instalment of the tariff quota should be fixed at a relatively high level, which in this case could be 3 250 tonnes;
Whereas initial shares may be used up at different rates; whereas, to avoid disruption of supplies on this account, it should be provided that any Member State which has almost used up its initial share should draw an additional share from the reserve; whereas, each time its additional share is almost used up, a Member State should draw a further share, and so on as many times as the reserve allows; whereas the initial and additional shares be valid until the end of the quota period; whereas this form of administration requires close collaboration between the Member States and the Commission, which latter must be in a position to keep account of the extent to which the quotas have been used up and to inform the Member States accordingly;
Whereas, since the Kingdom of Belgium, the Kingdom of the Netherlands and the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg are united within and jointly represented by the Benelux Economic Union, any measure concerning the administration of the shares allocated to that economic union may be carried out by any one of its members,