(1)

Regulation (EC) No 3223/94 lays down, pursuant to the outcome of the Uruguay Round multilateral trade negotiations, the criteria whereby the Commission fixes the standard values for imports from third countries, in respect of the products and periods stipulated in the Annex thereto.

(2)

In compliance with the above criteria, the standard import values must be fixed at the levels set out in the Annex to this Regulation,

(1)

In the light of the experience gained from the application of Commission Regulation (EC) No 1914/2006 (2) it appears that some provisions of that Regulation need to be adapted.

(2)

Commission Regulation (EC) No 1291/2000 of 9 June 2000 laying down common detailed rules for the application of the system of import- and export licences and advance fixing certificates for agricultural products (3) provides for the issuing and use of certificates using computerised systems; references to this possibility should be integrated in Regulation (EC) No 1914/2006.

(3)

Article 4(1) of Regulation (EC) No 1914/2006 does not clearly indicate that payments are to be made throughout the year. It should, therefore, be amended to include such a statement. Similarly, Article 35 of that Regulation should be amended to make it possible to make payments throughout the year for the measures referred to in that Article.

(4)

The procedures for amendments to programmes provided for in Article 34 of Regulation (EC) No 1914/2006 need to be more precise. It is appropriate to specify the rules for the submission of the requests for amendments to the overall programmes and for their approval by the Commission, as well as the timing for their application. Due to budgetary rules, the approved amendments should be implemented as from 1 January of the year following the request for amendment. Moreover, there should be a distinction between major amendments requiring approval by a Commission Decision and minor amendments that should only be notified to the Commission for information.

(5)

The time limit of 90 days for the aid to be paid by the competent authorities after the date on which the utilised aid certificate is lodged as provided for in Article 4(1) of Regulation (EC) No 1914/2006 is too long and leads to certain administrative difficulties. It should, therefore, be reduced to 60 days.

(6)

Regulation (EC) No 1914/2006 should therefore be amended accordingly.

(7)

The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Management Committee for Direct Payments,

1.

Article 4 is amended as follows:

2.

Article 34 is replaced by the following:

(*1)   OJ L 256, 7.9.1987, p. 1.’;"

3.

in Article 35, the following text is added as the second paragraph:

‘Payments for studies, demonstration projects, training or technical assistance measures shall be made throughout the year.’

(1)

The statement on outermost regions made jointly by the Council and the Commission during the Fisheries Council of 27 July 2006 (3) stresses the need for appropriate measures ensuring the sustainable development of the fisheries sector in those regions. Such measures are to take account of the specificities of fishing activities in the relevant areas. Furthermore, they are to be adopted in the light of the ongoing study on this topic and in the light of the assessment, by the Scientific, Technical and Economic Committee for Fisheries (STECF), of the state of fisheries resources in outermost regions.

(2)

Following that statement, France and Portugal have adopted development plans for Guadaloupe, Martinique, French Guiana, Réunion and the Azores. An assessment of the effects of those plans on fisheries resources has been delivered by STECF during its plenary meeting of April 2007.

(3)

At the same time complementary information has been submitted to the Commission on proposed regularisations relating to an important number of vessels, which carried out fishing activities before 31 December 2006 and remained active in outermost regions without having been entered in the Community Fleet Register. Such regularisations are to be considered as an extension to the development plans.

(4)

The development plans contribute to the sustainable development of the fisheries sector in outermost regions. In this context the reference levels for some of the fleets registered in outermost regions should be reviewed. Commission Regulation (EC) No 2104/2004 (4) should therefore be amended accordingly.

(5)

The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Management Committee for Fisheries and Aquaculture,

(1)

Regulation (EC) No 999/2001 lays down rules for the prevention, control and eradication of certain transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs) in animals. It applies to the production and placing on the market of live animals and products of animal origin.

(2)

Annex IX to Regulation (EC) No 999/2001 lays down the rules for the importation into the Community of live animals, embryos, ova and products of animal origin. The removal of specified risk material from products destined for food and feed is the single most important public health protection measure.

(3)

Article 5 of Regulation (EC) No 999/2001 provides for the bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) status of Member States or third countries or regions thereof to be determined by classification into three categories: negligible BSE risk, controlled BSE risk and undetermined BSE risk. That Article also provides for a reassessment of the Community categorisation of countries following the establishment by the World Organisation for Animal health (OIE) of a procedure for the classification of countries by category.

(4)

Pending the adoption of a decision on the BSE status of Member States and third countries, Regulation (EC) No 999/2001 provides for transitional measures to be applied for a period ending on 1 July 2007. Under the transitional measures regarding BSE the restrictions on imports into the Community from third countries with a BSE risk covered meat products as defined in Council Directive 77/99/EEC (2), which included treated intestines (animal casings). In addition the possibility of triangular trade was introduced where third countries with a BSE risk could export treated intestines, sourced from countries where BSE was considered highly unlikely.

(5)

On 25 June 2007 Regulation (EC) No 999/2001 was amended by Commission Regulation (EC) No 722/2007 (3). Regulation (EC) 999/2001, as thus amended, introduced a Community categorisation system of countries according their BSE risk, in line with that of the OIE. It entailed not only the listing of all countries under one of three categories: negligible BSE risk, controlled BSE risk and undetermined BSE risk, but also introduced trade rules according to each risk category.

(6)

The import rules relating to the new categorisation system referred to meat products as defined in Regulation (EC) No 853/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2004 laying down specific hygiene rules for food of animal origin (4), which excluded treated intestines. In line with the conditions applicable before 1 July 2007 and in order to ensure the same level of consumer protection, treated intestines should be included in the list of products covered by the TSE related import rules in Regulation (EC) No 999/2001. Annex IX to that Regulation should therefore be amended accordingly.

(7)

No TSE related import conditions apply for third countries with a negligible BSE risk status. It is necessary to clarify the import conditions in case intestines are sourced from a country or a region with a negligible BSE risk and treated in a third country with a different BSE risk status. For consistency reasons the possibility of triangular trade should be re-introduced under the new provisions.

(8)

Regulation (EC) No 999/2001 should therefore be amended accordingly.

(9)

The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health,

(1)

Annex VIII to Regulation (EC) No 1782/2003 sets for each Member State the national ceilings which cannot be exceeded by the reference amounts mentioned in Chapter 2 of Title III of that Regulation.

(2)

Article 23(2) of Regulation (EC) No 247/2006 sets the annual maximum amounts up to which the Community finances the measures provided for in Titles II and III of that Regulation.

(3)

Annexes I, II and III to Commission Regulation (EC) No 552/2007 of 22 May 2007 establishing the maximum Community contribution to financing the work programmes in the olive oil sector and fixing, for 2007, budgetary ceilings for the partial or optional implementation of the Single Payment Scheme and the annual financial envelopes for the Single Area Payment Scheme, provided for in Council Regulation (EC) No 1782/2003, and amending that Regulation (3), lay down respectively, for the 2007 calendar year in each case, the budgetary ceilings for direct payments to be granted in accordance with Articles 66 to 69 of Regulation (EC) No 1782/2003, the budgetary ceilings for direct payments to be granted in accordance with Article 70 of that Regulation and the budgetary ceilings for the Single Payment Scheme.

(4)

In accordance with the first sentence of Article 20(3) of Regulation (EC) No 247/2006, Portugal has decided to reduce for 2007 the national ceiling for suckler cow premium rights and to transfer the corresponding financial amount in order to reinforce the Community contribution, provided for in Article 23 of Regulation (EC) No 247/2006, towards the financing of the specific measures laid down in that Regulation. Consequently, it is necessary to deduct from the national ceiling for Portugal for 2007, set in Annex VIII to Regulation (EC) No 1782/2003, the amount which is to be added to the financial amount set in Article 23(2) of Regulation (EC) No 247/2006 and to reduce the budgetary ceilings applicable in Portugal for 2007 to the suckler cow premium, including the supplement thereto, and to the beef and veal payments (Article 69 of Regulation (EC) No 1782/2003), set in Annex I to Regulation (EC) No 552/2007.

(5)

In accordance with a decision taken by Portugal, the amounts deriving from the dairy premium and additional payments, provided for in Articles 95 and 96 of Regulation (EC) No 1782/2003, were included in the Single Payment Scheme as from 2007. It is on this basis that the budgetary ceiling for the Single Payment Scheme referred to in Title III of Regulation (EC) No 1782/2003 was calculated for 2007 for Portugal. This ceiling was set in Annex III to Regulation (EC) No 552/2007. However, when the budgetary ceilings were set for 2007, the exclusion from the Single Payment Scheme of dairy premiums and additional payments for farmers in the Azores and Madeira, in accordance with Article 70(1)(b) of Regulation (EC) No 1782/2003, was not taken into account.

(6)

The budgetary ceilings applicable for 2007 in Portugal to the direct payments to be granted in accordance with Article 70 of Regulation (EC) No 1782/2003 and to the Single Payment Scheme should therefore be amended by deducting from Annex III to Regulation (EC) No 552/2007 an amount corresponding to the amounts relating to the dairy premium and additional payments to milk producers, and by adding them to Annex II to that Regulation.

(7)

Spain decided, before 1 August 2004, to implement partially the Single Payment Scheme under the conditions laid down in Articles 64 to 69 of Regulation (EC) No 1782/2003, including those for beef and veal payments. However, under Article 8 of Council Regulation (EC) No 1083/2006 of 11 July 2006 laying down general provisions on the European Regional Development Fund, the European Social Fund and the Cohesion Fund, and repealing Regulation 1260/1999 (4), the Spanish region of Cantabria cannot, as from 2007, benefit from the transitional aid provided for in that Article. Consequently, the national premium supplementing the suckler cow premium provided for in Article 125(5) of Regulation (EC) No 1782/2003 and granted to holdings situated in the Spanish region of Cantabria cannot be financed by the EAGF as from 2007. In order to ensure continued Community support for suckler cows, Spain has requested that an amount corresponding to the payments made under the additional national premium in Cantabria up to 2006 be transferred from the ceiling set for 2007 in Annex I to Regulation (EC) No 552/2007 for the additional national premium to the ceiling set in that Annex for the suckler cow premium. The above-mentioned budgetary ceilings should therefore be adjusted.

(8)

Regulations (EC) No 1782/2003, (EC) No 247/2006 and (EC) No 552/2007 should be amended accordingly.

(9)

The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Management Committee for Direct Payments,

1.

Annex I is amended as follows:

2.

Annex II is replaced by the text in the Annex to this Regulation;

3.

in Annex III, the amount concerning Portugal is replaced by ‘413 774’.

(1)

Commission Regulation (EC) No 1438/2003 (2) establishes implementing rules for the Chapter on Fleet Policy of Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002, in particular for the application of Articles 11, 12, 13 and 14 thereof.

(2)

On 28 July 2007 the provisions of Article 11 of Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002 have been amended by Regulation (EC) No 865/2007 to allow Member States to re-build 4 % of the annual average tonnage scrapped with public aid between 1 January 2003 and 31 December 2006 and 4 % of the tonnage scrapped with public aid as from 1 January 2007.

(3)

On 28 July 2007 the provisions of Article 13 of Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002 have been amended to take account of the requirement, as laid down in Article 25(3)(b) and (c) of Council Regulation (EC) No 1198/2006 (3), to reduce by at least 20 % the power of an engine that has been replaced with public aid, excluding engine replacements in the small-scale coastal fisheries as defined in that Regulation. In addition, a transitory arrangement is no longer applicable that linked to an overall capacity reduction by 3 % any public aid commitment for fleet renewal occurring after the introduction of the new common fisheries policy and until the end of 2004.

(4)

After completion of the measurement of all fishing vessels, the adjustment rule referring to the effect of such measurement on the tonnage reference level can be discontinued; however, it should be maintained for a strict application of the entry-exit regime in terms of tonnage.

(5)

It is necessary to revise the existing exemption from the entry-exit regime for the vessels that joined the fleet as from 1 January 2003 or, for those Member States that acceded later, as from the accession date, on the basis of an administrative decision adopted respectively before 1 January 2003 or before the accession date. This revision will allow such exemption for vessels whose entry, although decided in accordance with national and Community law before the accession or the administrative decision, could not benefit from the transitional measures because the three-year transitional period was too short.

(6)

Bulgaria and Romania acceded to the Community on 1 January 2007, and therefore the provisions of Regulation (EC) No 1438/2003 should be adapted.

(7)

Regulation (EC) No 1438/2003 should therefore be amended accordingly.

(8)

The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Committee for Fisheries and Aquaculture,

1.

Article 2 is amended as follows:

2.

Article 4 is replaced by the following:

3.

Article 5 is deleted.

4.

Article 6 is replaced by the following:

(*2)   OJ L 175, 3.7.1997, p. 27.’ "

5.

Article 6a is replaced by the following:

6.

Article 7 is replaced by the following:

7.

Article 7a is replaced by the following:

8.

Annex II is amended in accordance with Annex I to this Regulation.

9.

Annex III is replaced by the text in Annex II to this Regulation.

(1)

Commission Regulation (EC) No 318/2007 (3) lays down the animal health conditions for imports of certain birds other than poultry into the Community and the quarantine conditions applicable to such birds after import.

(2)

It is appropriate to explicitly state that only imports of captive bred birds is authorised under Regulation (EC) No 318/2007. For the sake of clarity, it should also be explicitly stated that birds may only be imported into the Community under Regulation (EC) No 318/2007 if they come from approved breeding establishments.

(3)

After imports, the imported birds are to be transported directly to an approved quarantine facility or centre in a Member State, where they must remain until infection with avian influenza or Newcastle disease virus is ruled out.

(4)

Regulation (EC) No 318/2007 provides that in case avian influenza or Newcastle disease is suspected in an approved quarantine facility or in a unit of an approved quarantine centre, all birds in the quarantine facility or unit of a quarantine centre are to be killed and destroyed before the suspicion is confirmed by laboratory testing.

(5)

However, because these birds suspected to be infected by avian influenza or Newcastle disease are kept in an approved quarantine facility or in a unit of an approved quarantine centre, there is no risk of the disease spreading further.

(6)

Therefore, it is appropriate to wait until the suspicion is confirmed to rule out any other cause of disease symptoms before commencing to kill and destroy the birds in the affected premises.

(7)

Annex V to Regulation (EC) No 318/2007 sets out a list of quarantine facilities and centres approved by the competent authorities of the Member States for import of certain birds other than poultry. Austria, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom have reviewed their approved quarantine facilities and centres and have sent an updated list of those quarantine facilities and centres to the Commission. The list of approved quarantine facilities and centres set out in Annex V to Regulation (EC) No 318/2007 should therefore be amended accordingly.

(8)

Regulation (EC) No 318/2007 should therefore be amended accordingly.

(9)

The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health,

1.

in Article 4, the introductory phrase is replaced by the following:

‘Approved breeding establishments shall comply with the following conditions:’;

2.

Article 5 is amended as follows:

3.

Article 13 is replaced by the following:

4.

in Article 14(1), the first subparagraph is replaced by the following:

5.

Annex V is replaced by the text in the Annex to this Regulation.

(1)

If the amount of manure that a Member State intends to apply per hectare each year is different from the one specified in the first sentence of the second subparagraph of paragraph 2 of Annex III to Directive 91/676/EEC and in point (a) therof, that amount has to be fixed so as not to prejudice the achievement of the objectives specified in Article 1 of that Directive and has to be justified on the basis of objective criteria, such as, in the present case, long growing seasons and crops with high nitrogen uptake.

(2)

On 12 November 2004, Ireland submitted to the Commission a request for a derogation under the third subparagraph of paragraph 2 of Annex III to Directive 91/676/EEC. An updated request, based on the revised European Communities (Good Agricultural Practice for the Protection of Waters) Regulations, 2006 (Statutory Instrument Number 378 of 2006) was submitted on 18 October 2006.

(3)

The requested derogation concerns the intention of Ireland to allow the application of 250 kg nitrogen per hectare per year from livestock manure in farms with at least 80 % grassland. A maximum of 10 000 cattle holdings in Ireland representing 8 % of total holdings, 8 % of the Utilized Agricultural Land and 20 % of the Livestock Unit are potentially encompassed by the derogation.

(4)

The Irish legislation implementing Directive 91/676/EEC, the European Communities (Good Agricultural Practice for the Protection of Waters) Regulations, 2006 (Statutory instrument No 378 of 2006), applies equally to the requested derogation.

(5)

The Irish legislation implementing the Directive 91/676/EEC includes application maximum fertilisation rates both for nitrogen and phosphate. These maximum fertilisation rates are differentiated on the basis of nitrogen and phosphate soil content and, therefore, take into account the contribution of nitrogen and phosphate from the soil.

(6)

The Third report on the implementation of the Nitrates Directive in Ireland and the recent Environmental Protection Agency reports covering the period 2001-2003 submitted to the Commission showed that mean nitrate concentration recorded in groundwater is of the order of 2,5 mg/L N and concentrations greater than 50 mg/L nitrates were recorded in no more than 2 % of the sampling points. Data on water quality in rivers for the period 2000-2003 showed that the mean value in Eurowaternet monitoring stations is 6,9 mg/L nitrates.

(7)

70 % of groundwater monitoring sites showed stable or decreasing trends in nitrates concentration; rivers recorded an improved quality in 2001-2003 compared to the previous reporting period 1995-1997 and reversed a decline in water quality that had been in evidence since the late 1980’. A decline of hypertrophic lakes was also noticed.

(8)

Ireland, in conformity with paragraph 5 of article 3 of Directive 91/676/EEC, applies an action programme throughout its whole territory according to the European Communities (Good Agricultural Practice for the Protection of Waters) Regulations, 2006 (Statutory instrument No 378 of 2006).

(9)

The number of livestock and the utilisation of chemical fertilisers decreased in the last decade. Cattle, pig and sheep number decreased respectively by 7 %, 3 % and 17 % in the period 1997-2004. Average nitrogen loading from livestock manure in 2004 was 103 kg/ha, with a significant decline compared to 140 kg/ha in 1998. Phosphorus (P) average loading was 16 kg/ha. Chemical nitrogen fertiliser use decreased by 21 % in the period 1999 to 2005, phosphate fertiliser use declined by 37 % in the period 1995 to 2005.

(10)

In Ireland ninety percent of agricultural land is devoted to grassland with prevalence of grassland types well suited for grassland production. Overall, in grassland farms, 47 % of land area is farmed extensively and has therefore a relatively low stocking rate and low fertiliser inputs, 36 % is farmed under agro-environmental programmes (Rural Environment Protection Scheme, REP Scheme) and only 7 % is farmed intensively; 10 % is used for arable agriculture. Average chemical fertiliser use on grassland is 82 kg/ha nitrogen and 7,6 kg/ha phosphorus.

(11)

Irish climate, characterised by an annual rainfall evenly distributed throughout the year and a relatively narrow annual temperature range promote a long grass-growing season ranging from 330 days per year in the south-west to around 250 days per year in the north-east.

(12)

The technical and scientific documents presented in the Irish notification show that the proposed amount of 250 kg per hectare per year nitrogen from grazing livestock manure in farms with at least 80 % grassland is justified on the basis of objective criteria such as long growing seasons and crops with high nitrogen uptake.

(13)

The Commission considers therefore that the amount of manure requested by Ireland will not prejudice the achievement of the objectives of Directive 91/676/EEC, subject to certain strict conditions being met.

(14)

This Decision should be applicable in connection with the action programme of Ireland, European Communities (Good Agricultural Practice for the Protection of Waters) Regulations, 2006 (Statutory instrument No 378 of 2006).

(15)

The measures provided for in this Decision are in accordance with the opinion of the Nitrates Committee set up pursuant to Article 9 of Directive 91/676/EEC,

(a)

‘Grassland farms’ means holdings where 80 % or more of the agricultural area available for manure application is grass,

(b)

‘Grazing livestock’ means cattle (with the exclusion of veal calves), sheep, deer, goats and horses,

(c)

‘Grass’ means permanent grassland or temporary grassland (temporary implying leys of less than four years).

(a)

temporary grassland shall be ploughed in spring;

(b)

ploughed grass on all soil types shall be followed immediately by a crop with high nitrogen demand;

(c)

crop rotation shall not include leguminous or other plants fixing atmospheric nitrogen. This however will not apply to clover in grassland with less than 50 % clover and to cereals and pea undersown with grass.

(1)

Commission Decision 2007/116/EC on reserving the national numbering range beginning with ‘116’ for harmonised numbers for harmonised services of social value (2) reserves the national numbering range beginning with ‘116’ for harmonised numbers for harmonised services of social value. The Annex to that Decision contains a list of specific numbers within this numbering range and the services for which each number is reserved. This list may be adapted in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 22(3) of Directive 2002/21/EC.

(2)

The service description associated with the number 116000 should be updated. Moreover, two services, namely Child Helplines and Emotional Support Helplines, have been identified as services of social value that may benefit from harmonised numbers. For these reasons, Decision 2007/116/EC should be updated and additional reserved numbers introduced.

(3)

Decision 2007/116/EC should therefore be amended accordingly.

(4)

The measures provided for in this Decision are in accordance with the opinion of the Communications Committee,

(1)

The Commission is required pursuant to Article 16(1) of Directive 92/33/EEC to decide whether vegetable propagating and planting material, other than seed, produced in a third country and affording the same guarantees as regards obligations on the supplier, identity, characteristics, plant health, growing medium, packaging, inspection arrangements, marking and sealing, is equivalent in all these respects to vegetable propagating and planting material other than seed produced in the Community and complying with the requirements and conditions of that Directive.

(2)

However, the information presently available on the conditions applying in third countries is still not sufficient to enable the Commission to adopt any such decision in respect of any third country at this stage.

(3)

In order to prevent trade patterns from being disrupted, Member States importing vegetable propagating and planting material, other than seed, from third countries should continue to be allowed to apply to such products conditions equivalent to those applicable to similar Community products in accordance with Article 16(2) of Directive 92/33/EEC. The period of application of the derogation provided for in Directive 92/33/EEC for such imports should consequently be extended beyond 31 December 2007.

(4)

Directive 92/33/EEC should therefore be amended accordingly.

(5)

The measures provided for in this Decision are in accordance with the opinion of the Standing Committee on Seeds and Propagating Materials for Agriculture, Horticulture and Forestry,

(1)

Annex I to Guideline ECB/2000/7 needs to be amended due to recent changes to the definition and implementation of the Eurosystem’s single monetary policy. These changes relate inter alia to eligible assets and to the removal of outright transactions from the list of fine-tuning operations.

(2)

Pursuant to Council Decision 2007/503/EC of 10 July 2007 in accordance with Article 122(2) of the Treaty on the adoption by Cyprus of the single currency on 1 January 2008 (2), Cyprus fulfils the necessary conditions for adoption of the euro and its derogation under Article 4 of the Act of Accession will be abrogated with effect from 1 January 2008. Pursuant to Council Decision 2007/504/EC of 10 July 2007 in accordance with Article 122(2) of the Treaty on the adoption by Malta of the single currency on 1 January 2008 (3), Malta fulfils the necessary conditions for adoption of the euro and its derogation under Article 4 of the Act of Accession will be abrogated with effect from 1 January 2008. In view of the above, it is necessary to amend the table of Eurosystem websites in Annex I to Guideline ECB/2000/7.

(3)

Guideline ECB/2007/2 of 26 April 2007 on a Trans-European Automated Real-time Gross settlement Express Transfer system (TARGET2) (4), establishes the TARGET2 system as a replacement for the current TARGET system as laid down in Article 14(2) of Guideline ECB/2007/2. National central banks (NCBs) will migrate to TARGET2 in accordance with the schedule specified in Article 13 of Guideline ECB/2007/2. In view of the above, it is necessary to amend references to TARGET in Annexes I and II to Guideline ECB/2000/7,