§ Mr. PaiceTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what assessment he has made of the transposition by Italy of(a) the EU Poultry Meat Hygiene Directive, (b) other veterinary directives into national law and their enforcement of such directives; and if he will take steps to ensure that poultry meat imports into the United Kingdom from Italy are produced and processed according to the directive's requirements. [35221]
§ Mr. Rooker[holding answer 19 March 1998]: In their fourteenth report on monitoring the application of Community law (published in the Official Journal of the European Communities ref. C332 1997) the European Commission noted that Italy had been censured by the European Court of Justice for failing to fulfil its obligation to transpose into national law various directives in the veterinary field. Failure to transpose Community law into national law does not necessarily mean that Italian producers are not complying with the veterinary requirements for intra-Community trade. Where failure to meet these requirements is identified in specific cases, they are thoroughly investigated and the necessary action is taken.