Article 1

In Bulgaria and Romania (hereinafter referred to as the new producer Member States) authorised primary processors within the meaning of Article 1(2)(b) of Regulation (EC) No 1673/2000 and primary processors who have submitted an application for authorisation for which the competent authority has not yet granted authorisation shall inform the competent authority by 31 July 2007 of the stocks of flax straw, hemp straw, long flax fibre, short flax fibre and hemp fibre held by them on 30 June 2007.

The competent authorities of the new producer Member States shall verify the accuracy of the information referred to in paragraph 1 on the spot at, at least 50 % of the primary processors referred to in paragraph 1.

The new producer Member States shall determine the penalties to be applied where the information is not provided, is provided late, is incomplete or is incorrect. The penalties shall be effective, proportionate and dissuasive.

The new producer Member States shall provide the Commission by 31 January 2008 with a summary of the quantities of the products referred to in paragraph 1 in stock on 30 June 2007, where applicable adjusted as a result of the checks provided for in paragraph 2, and a summary of the penalties applied under paragraph 3.