LeX-Ray

The particular geographical situation of some of the Aegean islands imposes additional transport costs in supplying products which are essential for human consumption, for processing or as agricultural inputs. In addition, objective factors arising as a result of insularity and remoteness impose further constraints on economic operators and producers in those Aegean islands that severely handicap their activities. In certain cases, operators and producers suffer from double insularity. Those handicaps can be alleviated by lowering the price of those products. It is therefore appropriate to introduce specific supply arrangements to guarantee supply to the Aegean islands and compensate for the additional costs arising from their remoteness, insularity and distant location.

The problems experienced by the Aegean islands are accentuated by the small size of the islands. In order to guarantee the effectiveness of the measures envisaged, such measures should only apply to islands known as the ‘smaller islands’.

Community policy to assist local production in the smaller Aegean islands as established by Council Regulation (EEC) No 2019/93 of 19 July 1993 introducing specific measures for the smaller Aegean islands concerning certain agricultural products ( 1 ) has involved a multitude of products and measures for their production, marketing or processing. Those measures have proved effective and have ensured that agricultural activities have been maintained and developed. The Community should continue to support the production lines, which are a key factor in the environmental, social and economic equilibrium of the smaller Aegean islands. Experience has shown that, as in the case of rural development policy, closer partnership with the local authorities can help to address the particular issues affecting the islands concerned in a more targeted way. Support for local production should thus continue to be granted through a general programme at the most appropriate geographical level, and this programme should be submitted to the Commission by Greece.

In order to achieve the goal of lowering prices in the smaller Aegean islands and mitigating the additional costs of their remoteness, insularity and distant location, while maintaining the competitiveness of Community products, aid should be granted for the supply of Community products to the smaller Aegean islands. Such aid should take account of the additional cost of transport to the smaller Aegean islands and, in the case of agricultural inputs and products intended for processing, the additional costs of insularity and distant location.

Since the quantities covered by the specific supply arrangements are limited to the supply requirements of the smaller Aegean islands, those arrangements do not impair the proper functioning of the internal market. Nor should the economic advantages of the specific supply arrangements result in the diversion of trade in the products concerned. The dispatch or export of those products from the smaller Aegean islands should therefore be prohibited. However, dispatch or exportation of those products should be authorised where the advantage resulting from the specific supply arrangements is reimbursed or, in the case of processed products, to permit regional trade. Account should also be taken of exports to third countries and exports of processed products corresponding to traditional exports should be authorised accordingly. Moreover, the restriction should not apply to the traditional dispatching of processed products. For the sake of clarity, this Regulation should specify the reference period for defining traditionally exported or dispatched quantities.

In order to achieve the objectives of the specific supply arrangements, the economic advantages of the arrangements must be in terms of production costs and must cut prices up to the end-user stage. Such economic advantages should therefore be granted only on condition that they are actually passed on to the end-user and appropriate checks must be carried out.

To help achieve the goals of developing local agricultural production and the supply of agricultural products, the level of programming of supplies to the islands concerned should be harmonised and the approach of partnership between the Commission and Greece should be systematic. Forecast supply balances should therefore be established by the authorities designated by Greece and submitted to the Commission for approval.

Farmers in the smaller Aegean islands should be encouraged to supply quality products and the marketing of such products should be assisted.

A derogation may be granted from the Commission's consistent policy of not authorising State operating aid for the production, processing and marketing of agricultural products listed in Annex I to the Treaty in order to mitigate the specific constraints on farming in the smaller Aegean islands as a result of their remoteness, insularity and distant location, small area, mountainous terrain and climate and their economic dependency on a small number of products.

Implementation of this Regulation should not jeopardise the level of special support from which the smaller Aegean islands have benefited up to now. In order to be able to carry out the appropriate measures Greece should continue to have at its disposal sums equivalent to the Community support already granted under Regulation (EEC) No 2019/93. The new system of support for agricultural production in the smaller Aegean islands established by this Regulation should be coordinated with the support for the same production lines applied in the rest of the Community and Regulation (EEC) No 2019/93 should therefore be repealed.

In accordance with the principle of subsidiarity and in the spirit of Council Regulation 2003/1782 of 29 September 2003 establishing common rules for direct support schemes under the common agricultural policy and establishing certain support schemes for farmers ( 2 ) it is appropriate to devolve the management of the specific measures for the smaller Aegean islands to Greece. Those measures may therefore be operated through a support programme submitted by Greece and approved by the Commission.

Greece has decided to apply the Single Payment Scheme to the whole country as from 1 January 2006. To ensure coordination of the respective arrangements concerning the smaller Aegean islands Regulation 2003/1782 should be amended accordingly.

The measures necessary for the implementation of this Regulation should be adopted in accordance with Council Decision 1999/468/EC of 28 June 1999 laying down the procedures for the exercise of implementing powers conferred on the Commission ( 3 ) .

The programme provided for in this Regulation should start on 1 January 2007. However, to enable the programme to start on that date, Greece and the Commission should be permitted to take all the preparatory measures between the date of entry into force of this Regulation and that of the application of the programme,