No L 49/50 Official Journal of the European Communities 4. 3. 95 COMMISSION REGULATION (EC) No 491/95 of 3 March 1995 amending Regulation (EEC) No 3600/92 and Regulation (EC) No 933/94, in particular with regard to the integration of the designated public authorities and the producers in Austria, Finland and Sweden in the implementation of the first stage of the programme of work referred to in Article 8 (2) of Council Directive 91/414/EEC concerning the placing of plant protection products on the market THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES, Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, Having regard to Council Directive 91/414/EEC of 15 July 1991 concerning the placing of plant protection products on the market('), as last amended by the Commission Directive 94/79/EC (%), and in particular Article 8 (2) thereof, Having regard to Commission Regulation (EEC) No 3600/92 of 11 December 1992 laying down the detailed rules for the implementation of the first stage of the programme of work referred to in Article 8 (2) of Direc- tive 91/414/EEC concerning the placing of plant protec- tion products on the market (*), and in particular Article 5 (2) and (5) thereof, Whereas owing to the accession of Austria, Finland and Sweden to the European Community an imbalance has arisen in the responsibilities borne by the Member States as rapporteurs for the 89 active substances covered by the first phase of the programme of work for reassessment of the active substances on the market two years after the date of notification of Directive 91/414/EEC ; whereas in such a situation a reallocation of active substances has to be undertaken ; whereas Annexes I and III to Commis- sion Regulation (EC) No 933/94 of 27 April 1994 laying down the active substances of plant protection products and designating the rapporteur Member States for the implementation of Commission Regulation (EEC) No 3600/92 (*) should therefore be amended ; Whereas the number of substances to be reallocated must be limited to the minimum required to ensure a proper balance in the responsibility borne by each of the 15 Member States ; Whereas, however, the reallocation should also take into - account the need to keep substances with similar proper- ties under evaluation by one Member State, as well as the () OJ No L 230, 19. 8. 1991, p. 1. () OJ No L 354, 31. 12. 1994, p. 16. () OJ No L 366, 15. 12. 1992, p. 10. () O No L 107, 28. 4. 1994, p. 8. need to ensure that after reallocation all substances are examined by a designated rapporteur Member State that has authorized the substance ; Whereas account had also to be taken of indications from certain Member States regarding the advanced stage already reached in the preparation of the evaluation of certain active substances; Whereas, to comply with these requirements, it has been necessary to reallocate one substance between Member States of the Community as constituted at 31 December 1994 ; Whereas notifiers of active substances reallocated to another rapporteur Member State must be assured of flexi- bility with regard to adherence to the deadline set for the introduction of the dossiers, where they can show that the reallocation has led to a delay in the presentation of the dossiers to the new designated rapporteur Member State ; Whereas it is necessary to provide that the original rapporteur Member State will transfer to the new desig- nated rapporteur Member State all correspondence and information which it received as rapporteur Member State on the active substance concerned ; Whereas any producers (that is, manufacturers and im- porters of substances produced outside the Community) having a permanent office in the territory of one of the acceding Member States must be given the opportunity of participating in the programme in their own right; whereas this opportunity should however not affect the original timetable for the work ; Whereas the participation of the notifiers in the programme of work is a long-term exercise, requiring more specific provisions for cases where a notifier decides to withdraw its participation or to agree to a transfer of its participation to another producer ; whereas such transfer may be of particular interest for producers in the acceding Member States that were originally required to participate via a notifier which had its permanent office in one of the 12 Member States -before the accessions ; Whereas the measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Standing Committee on Plant Health,