THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,
Having regard to Council Directive 89/662/EEC of 11 December 1989 concerning veterinary checks in intra-Community trade with a view to the completion of the internal market, and in particular Article 9(4) thereof,
Having regard to Council Directive 90/425/EEC of 26 June 1990 concerning veterinary and zootechnical checks applicable in intra-Community trade in certain live animals and products with a view to the completion of the internal market, and in particular Article 10(4) thereof,
Whereas:
(1)
Following recent outbreaks of foot-and-mouth disease in Great Britain, Commission Decision 2007/554/EC of 9 August 2007 concerning certain protection measures against foot-and-mouth disease in the United Kingdom was adopted to reinforce the control measures against foot-and-mouth disease taken by that Member State in the framework of Council Directive 2003/85/EC of 29 September 2003 on Community measures for the control of foot-and-mouth disease.
(2)
Decision 2007/554/EC lays down rules applicable to the dispatch from high and low risk areas in Great Britain of products considered safe that either were produced before the restrictions were put in place in the United Kingdom, from raw material sourced from outside those restricted areas, or that have undergone a treatment proven effective in inactivating possible foot-and-mouth disease virus.
(3)
On the basis of information provided by the United Kingdom, it is now appropriate to lay down rules for the dispatch of certain categories of meat from certain areas that have not recorded any outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease for at least 90 days prior to slaughter and which comply with certain specified conditions. Accordingly, a new Annex should be added to Decision 2007/554/EC listing those areas as Annex III thereto.
(4)
In addition, problems have been encountered with the supply of certain medical devices manufactured in accordance with Council Directive 93/42/EEC of 14 June 1993 concerning medical devices from animal tissues that were subject to treatments that render them non-viable and incapable of disease transmission. Such medical devices should therefore not be subject to the prohibition set out in the first subparagraph of Article 8(1) of Decision 2007/554/EC.
(5)
In the interests of consistency of Community legislation, Commission Decision 2005/176/EC of 1 March 2005 laying down the codified form and the codes for the notification of animal diseases pursuant to Council Directive 82/894/EEC should be used for the description of the areas listed in Annex III to Decision 2007/554/EC, added by the present Decision.
(6)
Given the disease situation in the United Kingdom, it is necessary to extend the application of Decision 2007/554/EC until 15 November 2007.
(7)
Decision 2007/554/EC should therefore be amended accordingly.
(8)
The measures provided for in this Decision are in accordance with the opinion of the Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health,
HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION: