Council Directive 2000/29/EC (repealed)Show full title

Article 23 U.K.

1. The Member State concerned may receive, at its request, the Community financial contribution referred to in Article 22, where it is established that the harmful organism concerned, whether or not listed in Annexes I and II:

• has been notified under Article 16(1) or (2) first subparagraph, and

• constitutes an imminent danger for all or part of the Community due to its appearance in an area where the organism had either not been known to occur previously or had been or was being eradicated, and

• was introduced into that area through consignments of plants, plant products or other objects from a third country or another area of the Community.

2. The following shall be regarded as necessary measures within the meaning of Article 22:

(a) destruction, disinfection, disinfestation, sterilisation, cleaning or any other treatment carried out officially or upon official request in respect of:

(i)

plants, plant products or other objects constituting the consignment(s) through which the harmful organism was introduced into the area in question and which are recognised as being contaminated or liable to be contaminated;

(ii)

plants, plant products and other objects, recognised as being contaminated or liable to be contaminated by the harmful organism introduced, which have been grown from plants in the consignment(s) concerned or have been in close proximity to the plants, plant products or other objects of those consignments or to plants grown from them;

(iii)

growing substrates and land recognised as being contaminated or liable to be contaminated by the harmful organism concerned;

(iv)

production material, packaging, wrapping and storage material, storage or packaging premises and means of transport which have been in contact with all or some of the plants, plant products and other objects referred to above;

(b) inspections or testing carried out officially or upon official request to monitor the presence or extent of contamination by the harmful organism which has been introduced;

(c) prohibitions or restrictions in respect of the use of growing substrates, cultivable areas or premises, as well as plants, plant products or other objects other than material from the consignment(s) in question or grown therefrom where they result from official decisions taken on the grounds of plant-health risks related to the harmful organism introduced.

3. Payments made from public funds in order to:

• cover all or part of the costs of the measures described in paragraph 2(a) and (b), except for those related to the regular running costs of the competent official body concerned, or

• to compensate for all or part of the financial losses other than loss of earnings resulting directly from one or more of the measures described in paragraph 2(c),

shall be considered to be expenditure directly relating to the necessary measures referred to in paragraph 2.

By way of derogation from the second indent of the first subparagraph an implementing Regulation may specify, [F1 in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 18(2)], cases in which compensation for loss of earnings shall be considered to be expenditure directly relating to necessary measures subject to the conditions specified in this respect in paragraph 5 as well as the time limitations applicable to those cases, with a maximum of three years.

4. In order to qualify for the financial contribution from the Community and without prejudice to Article 16, the Member State concerned shall apply to the Commission, at the latest before the end of the calendar year following that in which the appearance of the harmful organism was detected, and shall forthwith inform the Commission and the other Member States of:

• the reference of the notification provided for in the first indent of paragraph 1,

• the nature and extent of the appearance of the harmful organism as referred to in Article 22 and when, where and how it was detected,

• the identity of the consignments referred to in the third indent of paragraph 1 through which the harmful organism was introduced,

• the necessary measures which have been taken or are planned for which it is seeking assistance, together with timetables for them, and

• the results obtained and the actual or estimated cost of the expenditure incurred or to be incurred, and the proportion of such expenditure covered or to be covered from public funds allocated by the Member State for implementation of those same necessary measures.

Where the appearance of the harmful organism was detected prior to 30 January 1997, that date shall be deemed to be the date of detection within the meaning of this paragraph and paragraph 5, provided that the actual date of detection is not earlier than 1 January 1995. However, this provision shall not apply in respect of compensation for loss of earnings referred to in paragraph 3, second subparagraph save in exceptional cases, under the conditions laid down in the implementing Regulation referred to in paragraph 3, to loss of earnings occurring thereafter.

5. Without prejudice to Article 24, the allocation and the amount of the financial contribution from the Community shall be decided [F1 in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 18(2)], in the light of the information and documents submitted by the Member State concerned in accordance with paragraph 4 and, where appropriate, the results of investigations carried out on the Commission's authority by the experts referred to in Article 21 pursuant to the first subparagraph of Article 16(3), taking into account the extent of the danger referred to in the second indent of paragraph 1 above, and depending on the appropriations available for these purposes.

Within the limits set by the appropriations available for these purposes, the financial contribution from the Community shall cover up to 50 % and, in case of compensation for loss of earnings referred to in paragraph 3, second subparagraph, up to 25 %, of expenditure relating directly to the necessary measures referred to in paragraph 2, provided that these measures have been taken within a period not more than two years after the date of detection of the appearance of a harmful organism as referred to in Article 22, or are planned for that period.

The abovementioned period may be extended, in accordance with the same procedure, if examination of the situation concerned leads to the conclusion that the objective of the measures will be achieved within a reasonable additional period. The financial contribution from the Community shall be degressive over the years concerned.

Where a Member State is unable to supply the required information regarding the identity of the consignment in accordance with the third indent of paragraph 4, it shall indicate the presumed sources of the appearance and the reasons why the consignments could not be identified. The allocation of the financial contribution may be approved, in accordance with the same procedure, depending on the outcome of an assessment of that information.

Detailed rules for the implementation of this paragraph shall be established in an implementing Regulation [F1 in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 18(2)].

6. In the light of the development of the situation in the Community, it may be decided, [F1 in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 18(2)] or Article 19, that further action will be implemented or that measures taken or planned by the Member State concerned will be made subject to certain requirements or additional conditions, if these are necessary for the achievement of the objective in question.

The allocation of the financial contribution from the Community for such further action, requirements or conditions shall be decided by the same procedure. Within the limits set by the appropriations available for these purposes, the financial contribution from the Community shall cover up to 50 % of expenditure relating directly to the further action, requirements or conditions concerned.

Where such further action, requirements or conditions are essentially designed to protect Community territories other than that of the Member State concerned, it may be decided, in accordance with the same procedure, that the Community financial allocation shall cover more than 50 % of the expenditure.

The financial contribution from the Community shall be of a limited duration and shall be degressive over the years concerned.

7. The allocation of a financial contribution from the Community shall be without prejudice to claims which the Member State concerned or individuals may have against others, including other Member States in the cases referred to in Article 24(3), for the refunding of expenditure, compensation for losses or other damages under national law, Community law or international law. Rights in these claims will be the object of a transfer, by operation of law, to the Community with effect from the payment of the financial contribution from the Community, to the extent that such expenditure, losses or other damages are covered by that contribution.

8. The financial contribution from the Community may be paid in several instalments.

If it appears that the financial contribution from the Community as allocated is no longer justified, the following shall apply:

• The amount of the financial contribution from the Community allocated to the Member State concerned pursuant to paragraphs 5 and 6 may either be reduced or suspended, if it is established from the information supplied by that Member State, or from the results of investigations carried out on the Commission's authority by the experts referred to in Article 21, or from the results of the suitable examination which the Commission has conducted in accordance with the procedures analogous to those in Article 39 of Council Regulation (EC) No 1260/1999 of 21 June 1999 laying down general provisions on the Structural Funds(1) that:

  • failure to implement the necessary measures decided on in accordance with paragraphs 5 and 6, whether in whole or in part, or failure to comply with the rules or time limits set in accordance with those provisions or required by the objectives pursued is not justified, or

  • the measures are no longer necessary, or

  • a situation as described in Article 39 of Regulation (EC) No 1260/1999 is revealed.

9. Articles 8 and 9 of Council Regulation (EC) No 1258/1999 of 17 May 1999 on the financing of the common agricultural policy(2), shall apply mutatis mutandis.

10. The Member State concerned shall repay the Community all or part of any amounts paid it by way of a Community financial contribution allocated under paragraphs 5 and 6 above if it is established from the sources as specified in paragraph 8, that

(a) the necessary measures taken into account pursuant to paragraphs 5 or 6

(i)

have not been implemented; or

(ii)

have not been implemented in a manner which complies with the rules or time limits set in accordance with those provisions or required by the objectives pursued;

or

(b) the amounts paid have been used for purposes other than those for which the financial contribution was allocated;

or

(c) a situation as described in Article 39 of Regulation (EC) No 1260/1999 is revealed.

The rights referred to the second sentence of paragraph 7 will be the object of a transfer by operation of law back to the Member State concerned with effect from the time of repayment, inasmuch as they are covered by that repayment.

Interest on account of late payment shall be charged on sums not repaid in compliance with the provisions of the Financial Regulation and in accordance with the arrangements to be drawn up by the Commission [F1 in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 18(2)].

Textual Amendments

F1 Substituted by Council Directive 2002/89/EC of 28 November 2002 amending Directive 2000/29/EC on protective measures against the introduction into the Community of organisms harmful to plants or plant products and against their spread within the Community.

(1)

OJ L 161, 26.6.1999, p. 1.

(2)

OJ L 160, 26.6.1999, p. 103.