THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,
Having regard to theTreaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and in particular Article 31 thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,
Whereas:
(1) Production in the European Union of certain agricultural and industrial products is insufficient to meet the specific requirements of the user industries in the Union. Consequently, the Union's supplies of those products depend to a considerable extent on imports from third countries. The most urgent requirements of the Union for the products in question should be met immediately on the most favorable terms. Tariff quotas of the Union at preferential duty rates should therefore be opened within the limits of appropriate volumes taking account of the need not to disturb the markets for such products or impede the establishment or development of the Union's production.
(2) It is necessary to ensure for all importers in the Union equal and uninterrupted access to those quotas, and to ensure the uninterrupted application of the rates laid down for the quotas to all imports of the products concerned into all Member States until the quotas have been exhausted.
(3) Commission Regulation (EEC) No 2454/93 of 2 July 1993 laying down provisions for the implementation of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2913/92 establishing the Community Customs Code(1) provides for a system of tariff quota management which ensures equal and uninterrupted access to the quotas and uninterrupted application of the rates and follows the chronological order of dates of acceptance of declarations of release for free circulation. The tariff quotas opened by the present Regulation should therefore be managed by the Commission and the Member States in accordance with that system.
(4) The quota volumes are mostly expressed in tonnes. For certain products for which an autonomous tariff quota is opened the quota volume is set out in another measurement unit. Where for those products no supplementary measurement unit is specified in the Combined Nomenclature laid down in Annex I to Council Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87 of 23 July 1987 on the tariff and statistical nomenclature and on the Common Customs Tariff(2) there can be uncertainty in respect of the measurement unit used. For the sake of clarity and in the interest of better quota management it is therefore necessary to provide that, in order to benefit from those autonomous tariff quotas, the exact quantity of the products imported be entered in the declaration for release for free circulation using the measurement unit of the quota volume set out for those products in the Annex to this Regulation.
(5) Regulation (EC) No 2505/96 of 20 December 1996 opening and providing for the administration of autonomous Community tariff quotas for certain agricultural and industrial products(3) has been amended many times. In the interest of transparency it should therefore be repealed and replaced in its entirety.
(6) The measures necessary for the the adoption of amendments to this Regulation arising from amendments to the Combined Nomenclature and TARIC codes should be adopted in accordance with Council Decision 1999/468/EC of 28 June 1999 laying down the procedures for the exercise on implementing powers conferred on the Commission(4).
(7) Since the tariff quotas have to take effect from 1 January 2010, this Regulation should apply from the same date and enter into force immediately,
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION: