Council Regulation (EC) No 1630/98 of 20 July 1998 amending Regulation (EEC) No 1442/88 on the granting, for the 1988/89 to 1997/98 wine years, of permanent abandonment premiums in respect of wine-growing areas

COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) No 1630/98 of 20 July 1998 amending Regulation (EEC) No 1442/88 on the granting, for the 1988/89 to 1997/98 wine years, of permanent abandonment premiums in respect of wine-growing areas
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION
,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Articles 42 and 43 thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission (1),
Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament (2),
Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social Committee (3),
Whereas the encouragement of the permanent abandonment of wine-growing areas by the grant of premiums is provided for in Regulation (EEC) No 1442/88 (4);
Whereas, pending adoption of the reform of the common organisation of the market in wine, the existing scheme for the grant of permanent abandonment premiums in respect of wine-growing areas should be extended, whilst limiting the total area that may be covered by it;
Whereas Article 3(a) of Regulation (EEC) No 1442/88 excludes from the permanent abandonment premium areas of less than 25 ares, except in the special case where they constitute the whole of the cultivated wine-growing area of the holding concerned; whereas experience has shown that this threshold may prove to be too high in certain wine-growing regions a feature of which is advanced fragmentation of the growth area; whereas Member States should be allowed to fix a threshold for these regions of less than 25 but not less than 10 ares,