S.L. 437.58 чл. 20Mutual assistance.

(1) Council Directive 89/608/EEC of 21 November 1989

on mutual assistance between the administrative authorities of the Member States and cooperation between the latter and the Commission to ensure the correct application of legislation on veterinary and zootechnical matters, shall apply for the purposes of these regulations.

(2) Where the competent authority considers that, in another Member State, the controls provided for in these regulations are not being, or have ceased to be, carried out, it shall inform the competent central authority of that State accordingly. Following an investigation carried out in accordance with rule 16(b), that authority shall take all necessary measures and shall, at the earliest opportunity notify the competent central authority of Malta of the decisions taken and the reasons for those decisions. If the competent authority fears that such measures are not being taken or are inadequate, it shall, together with the Member State which has been challenged, seek ways and means of remedying the situation; if appropriate, this may involve an on-the-spot inspection. Malta shall inform the Commission of disputes and of solutions arrived at. If Malta is involved in a dispute and is unable to reach agreement, it shall bring the matter to the notice of the Commission within reasonable period of time, and the latter shall instruct one or more experts to deliver an opinion. Pending that opinion, Malta may carry out checks on products coming from any establishment or holding to which the dispute relates and, if the result is positive, take measures similar to those provided for in Article 7(1)(b) of Directive 89/662/EEC.

In the light of the experts’ opinion, appropriate measures may be taken in accordance with the procedure provided for in rule 32. Those measures may be reviewed in accordance with the same procedure, in the light of a new expert opinion delivered within fifteen days.