The European Communities (Definition of Treaties) (Agreement on Enlargement of the European Economic Area) Order 2004

Statutory Instruments

2004 No. 1499

EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES

The European Communities (Definition of Treaties) (Agreement on Enlargement of the European Economic Area) Order 2004

Made

10th June 2004

Coming into force in accordance with Article 1

At the Court at Buckingham Palace, the 10th day of June 2004

Present,

The Queen’s Most Excellent Majesty in Council

Whereas a draft of this Order has been laid before Parliament in accordance with section 1(3) of the European Communities Act 1972(1) and has been approved by a resolution of each House of Parliament:

Now, therefore, Her Majesty, in exercise of the powers conferred upon on Her by section 1(3) of the European Communities Act 1972 or otherwise in Her Majesty vested, is pleased, by and with the advice of Her Privy Council, to order, and it is hereby ordered, as follows:

1.  This Order may be cited as the European Communities (Definition of Treaties) (Agreement on Enlargement of the European Economic Area) Order 2004. It shall come into force in respect of the treaty specified in the Schedule to this Order on the date on which the treaty enters into force for the United Kingdom. This date will be notified in the London, Edinburgh and Belfast Gazettes.

2.  The treaty specified in the Schedule to this Order is to be regarded as a Community Treaty as defined in section 1(2) of the European Communities Act 1972.

A K Galloway

Clerk of the Privy Council

10th June 2004

SCHEDULE

The Agreement on the Participation of the Czech Republic, the Republic of Estonia, the Republic of Cyprus, the Republic of Latvia, the Republic of Lithuania, the Republic of Hungary, the Republic of Malta, the Republic of Poland, the Republic of Slovenia and the Slovak Republic in the European Economic Area signed at Luxembourg on 14^th October 2003(2).

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Order)

This Order declares the Agreement on the Participation of the Czech Republic, the Republic of Estonia, the Republic of Cyprus, the Republic of Latvia, the Republic of Lithuania, the Republic of Hungary, the Republic of Malta, the Republic of Poland, the Republic of Slovenia and the Slovak Republic in the European Economic Area, signed at Luxembourg on 14^th October 2003, to be a Community Treaty as defined in section 1(2) of the European Communities Act 1972.

By Article 6(5) of the Act of Accession annexed to the Treaty of Accession to the European Union signed at Athens on 16 April 2003, the new Member States undertook to accede to the Agreement on the European Economic Area signed at Oporto on 2^nd May 1992. That Agreement extended the internal market to Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway and provided in Article 128 that any European States becoming members of the European Union must also apply to become Parties to the EEA Agreement. The present Agreement achieves this. The principal effect of declaring this Agreement to be a Community Treaty as so defined is to bring into play, in relation to it, the provisions of section 2 of the European Communities Act 1972 which provide for the implementation of treaties so specified.

(1)

1972 c. 68.

(2)

Cm 6171.