(1)

Regulation (EC) No 882/2004 establishes a harmonised framework for the organisation of official controls to verify compliance with food law and feed law and animal health and animal welfare rules laid down in Union legislation. Title IV thereof lays down the rules for administrative assistance and cooperation between competent authorities in the Member States in order to ensure the application of food and feed law.

(2)

In particular, Regulation (EC) No 882/2004 requires Member States to provide each other with administrative assistance, to cooperate and to exchange information in order to ensure that cross-border instances of non-compliance are effectively pursued.

(3)

In addition, Regulation (EC) No 882/2004 provides for the administrative assistance and cooperation obligations of Member States to be complemented by the obligation for the Commission to coordinate the action undertaken by Member States where instances of non-compliance are widespread or recurrent, or where Member States fail to agree on how to address non-compliance.

(4)

To fulfil the obligations laid down in Regulation (EC) No 882/2004, the competent authorities in each Member State are required to exchange information that is necessary to enable the verification of compliance with food and feed law with their counterparts in other Member States, and in certain cases, with the Commission, where the results of official controls require action in more than one Member State.

(5)

For the exchange of information to be conducted as efficiently as possible, an IT system should be set up, namely, the Administrative Assistance and Cooperation system (‘AAC system’), to provide the liaison bodies, designated in each Member State in accordance with Article 35 of Regulation (EC) No 882/2004, with the necessary tools to facilitate the practical implementation of the exchange of information required by that Regulation. The AAC system should offer a streamlined method of communication and a structured format for the exchange of information.

(6)

For the development, use and maintenance of the AAC system, the Information Technology (IT) rationalisation policy principles of the Commission apply, which means the reuse of existing systems, in this case, where possible, the reuse of existing data exchange systems, in order to provide the most efficient solution possible and avoid unnecessary duplication of IT systems.

(7)

Access to the AAC System should only be granted to the liaison bodies designated in each Member State in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 882/2004 and to Commission nominated staff. Member States should be able to indicate, among the designated liaison bodies, certain liaison bodies that have been specifically designated to utilise the AAC system in relation to instances of a possible non-compliance perpetrated through deceptive fraudulent practices.

(8)

In order to provide further technical support and facilitate the preparation of administrative assistance and cooperation procedures, upon request of a liaison body, competent authorities at central or regional level, within a Member State, may be given access to a number of technical functionalities of the AAC system. Such access may be given only to the functionalities necessary to enable the exchange of information, relating to requests for assistance or notification of non-compliance, between those authorities and the liaison body that deals with that request or notification.

(9)

In certain cases, information concerning non-compliance with food or feed law is disseminated by and among the competent authorities in the Member States through the Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF), established in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council (2), and through the Trade Control and Expert System (TRACES), established by Commission Decision 2004/292/EC (3). In order to avoid unnecessary duplication, that information should be made available through the AAC system to the liaison bodies designated in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 882/2004, so that the Member State notifying that information to the RASFF or TRACES is not required to upload the same information onto the AAC system for the purposes of administrative assistance and cooperation. Accordingly, the RASFF and TRACES applications should be enabled to provide data to the AAC system in order to streamline the process.

(10)

Information exchanged concerning administrative assistance and cooperation pursuant to Regulation (EC) No 882/2004 may include the results of official controls performed on business operators and on premises and goods under their control, and information which permits the identification of such operators, premises or goods. Access to such information should be restricted to those officials who, given their function within the competent authorities, need the information for the purpose of verifying compliance with, or otherwise enforcing, food or feed law.

(11)

The AAC System should permit the closure of an administrative assistance and cooperation procedure by the liaison body that sent a request for assistance or a notification regarding a possible or established cross-border instance of non-compliance, once the assistance or feedback to the notification has been provided by the liaison body that received the request or notification. Arrangements should be put in place to avoid procedures becoming dormant or remaining open unnecessarily and should allow the system to automatically close a procedure where no activity or exchange of information has taken place over a period of 6 months.

(12)

This Decision respects the fundamental rights and observes the principles which are recognised by the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union. In particular, this Decision seeks to ensure full respect for the right to protection of personal data.

(13)

Where the exchange of information provided for in Regulation (EC) No 882/2004 and in this Decision involves the processing of personal data, a careful assessment should be carried out to ensure that the processing is strictly necessary to achieve the purposes of efficient administrative assistance and cooperation, and that such processing is in accordance with the national provisions implementing Directive 95/46/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (4) and with Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council (5). Where exemptions and restrictions of certain rights of the data subjects and obligations of the data controller laid down by Directive 95/46/EC and Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 are considered in order to safeguard the interests referred to in Article 13(1)(d) and (f) of Directive 95/46/EC and in Article 20(1)(a) and (e) of Regulation (EC) No 45/2001, those exemptions and restrictions may only be adopted if they are necessary and proportionate to the objective pursued. Restrictions to the rights of data subjects should constitute a necessary measure to prevent interference with the official control tasks of the competent authorities and with the assessment of compliance with food law or feed law. In particular, rights of the data subjects may be restricted, in accordance with Directive 95/46/EC and Regulation (EC) No 45/2001, during the period in which actions are carried out for the purpose of sighting or discrete surveillance, where granting them would jeopardise or undermine the purpose of official controls or investigations. In order to guarantee a high level of data protection, it is appropriate to establish a maximum timeframe to ensure that personal data do not remain in the AAC system longer than it is necessary to achieve compliance with the rules laid down in Title IV of Regulation (EC) No 882/2004. In particular, a retention period of 5 years, starting from the closure of the administrative assistance and cooperation procedure, should be established, after which time personal data should be removed from the AAC system. The length of the retention period is necessary to give the possibility to the liaison bodies and the Commission to consult the information over a sufficient period of time after the administrative assistance and cooperation procedure has been closed, in order to ascertain the timely identification of reoccurring, connected or widespread non-compliance with food or feed law.

(14)

It is appropriate to lay down rules concerning the rectification of information exchanged through the AAC system in order to ensure that the information stored in that system is accurate. It is also appropriate to lay down minimum requirements for data security to prevent any unauthorised access or use of them.

(15)

The measures provided for in this Decision are in accordance with the opinion of the Standing Committee on Plants, Animals, Food and Feed,