Introductory text

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EEC) No 3730/87 of 10 December 1987 laying down the general rules for the supply of food from intervention stocks to designated organisations for distribution to the most deprived persons in the Community^f1, and in particular Article 6 thereof,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 2799/98 of 15 December 1998 establishing agrimonetary arrangements for the euro^f2, and in particular Article 3(2) thereof,

Whereas:

In accordance with Article 2 of Commission Regulation (EEC) No 3149/92 laying down detailed rules for the supply of food from intervention stocks for the benefit of the most deprived persons in the Community^f3, the Commission must adopt a distribution plan to be financed from resources available in the 2008 budget year. The plan should lay down in particular, for each of the Member States applying the measure, the maximum financial resources available to carry out its part of the plan, and the quantity of each type of product to be withdrawn from the stocks held by the intervention agencies.

The Member States involved in the plan for the 2008 budget year have supplied the information required in accordance with Article 1 of Regulation (EEC) No 3149/92.

For the purposes of resource allocation, account must be taken of experience and of the degree to which the Member States used the resources allocated to them in previous years.

Article 2(3)(c) of Regulation (EEC) No 3149/92 provides for the allocation of resources for the purchase on the market of products temporarily unavailable in intervention stocks. Given that the stocks of cereals, skimmed-milk powder and rice currently held by the intervention agencies are very low and that measures have already been taken, regarding both their sale on the market and their distribution under Regulation (EEC) No 3149/92, and given the fact that no sale of these foods is planned for 2007, these resource allocations should be fixed to enable the purchase on the market of cereals, skimmed-milk powder and rice as required to implement the plan for the 2008 budget year.

Article 7(1) of Regulation (EEC) No 3149/92 provides for the transfer between Member States of products unavailable in the intervention stocks of the Member State in which such products are required to implement the annual plan. Accordingly the intra-Community transfers necessary to implement the plan for 2008 should be authorised, subject to the conditions laid down in Article 7 of Regulation (EEC) No 3149/92.

To implement the plan, the operative event within the meaning of Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 2799/98 should be the date on which the financial year for administration of stocks in public storage starts.

In accordance with Article 2(2) of Regulation (EEC) No 3149/92, the Commission has consulted the major organisations familiar with the problems of the most deprived persons in the Community when drawing up the plan.

The Management Committee for Cereals has not delivered an opinion within the time limit set by its chairman,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION: