No L 198/30 Official Journal of the European Communities 8. 8. 96 REGULATION (EC) No 1610/96 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 23 July 1996 concerning the creation of a supplementary protection certificate for plant protection products THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 100a thereof, Having regard to the proposal from the Commission ('), Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social Committee (%), Acting in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 189b of the Treaty (%), (1) Whereas research into plant protection products contributes to the continuing improvement in the production and procurement of plentiful food of good quality at affordable prices; (2) Whereas plant protection research contributes to the continuing improvement in crop production; (3) Whereas plant protection products, especially those that are the result of long, costly research, will continue to be developed in the Community and in Europe if they are covered by favourable rules that provide for sufficient protection to encourage such research; (4) Whereas the competitiveness of the plant protection sector, by the very nature of the industry, requires a level of protection for innovation which is equivalent to that granted to medicinal products by Council Regulation (EEC) No 1768/92 of 18 June 1992 concerning the creation of a supplementary protec- tion certificate for medicinal products (*); (5) Whereas, at the moment, the period that elapses between the filing of an application for a patent for a new plant protection product and authorization to (') OJ C 390, 31. 12. 1994, p. 21 and OJ C 335, 13. 12. 1995, p. 15 (» OJ No C 155, 21. 6. 1995, p. 14. (®) Opinion of the European Parliament of 15 June 1995 (O] C 16%, 3.7.1995, p. 89), common position of the Council of 27 November 1995 (O] C 353, 30. 12. 1995, p. 36) and decision of the European Parliament of 12 March 1996 (O] C 96, 1. 4. 1996, p. 30). () Of No L 182, 2. 7. 1992, p. 1. place the said plant protection product on the market makes the period of effective protection under the patent insufficient to cover the investment put into the research and to generate the resources needed to maintain a high level of research; (6) Whereas this situation leads to a lack of protection which penalizes plant protection research and the competitiveness of the sector; (7) Whereas one of the main objectives of the supple- mentary protection certificate is to place European industry on the same competitive footing as its North American and Japanese counterparts; (8) Whereas, in its Resolution of 1 February 1993 (*) on a Community programme of policy and action in rela- tion to the environment and sustainable develop- ment, the Council adopted the general approach and strategy of the programme presented by the Commission, which stressed the interdependence of economic growth and environmental quality; whereas improving protection of the environment means maintaining the economic competitiveness of industry; whereas, accordingly, the issue of a supple- mentary protection certificate can be regarded as a positive measure in favour of environmental protec- tion; (9) Whereas a uniform solution at Community level should be provided for, thereby preventing the heterogeneous development of national laws leading to further disparities which would be likely to hinder the free movement of plant protection products within the Community and thus directly affect the functioning of the internal market; whereas this is in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity as defined by Article 3b of the Treaty; (10) Whereas, therefore, there is a need to create a supple- mentary protection certificate granted, under the same conditions, by each of the Member States at the request of the holder of a national or European patent relating to a plant protection product for () OJ No C 138, 17. 5. 1993, p. 1.