No L 44/30 Official Journal of the European Communities 20. 2. 90 (Acts whose publication is not obligatory) COMMISSION COMMISSION DECISION of 9 February 1990 setting up an Advisory Committee on the Protection of Animals Used for Experimental and Other Scientific Purposes (90/67/EEC) THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES, Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community, Whereas Council Directive 86/609/EEC of 24 November 1986 on the approximation of laws, regulations and admi- nistrative provisions of the Member States regarding the protection of animals used for experimental and other scientific purposes ('), and in particular Article 22 (3) thereof, provides that the Commission shall set up a permanent consultative committee in which the Member States shall be represented ; Whereas the aim of the Directive is to ensure that where animals are -used for experimental or other scientific purposes the laws, regulations and administrative provi- sions in the Member States for their protection -are harmonized so as to avoid affecting the establishment and functioning of the common market, in particular by distortions of competition or:barriers to trade; Whereas, in order to achieve this aim, the Directive states, inter alia, that any risk-of duplication of experiments should be avoided; whereas the Commission should therefore be assisted by a permanent advisory committee in organizing an exchange of appropriate information in the field of experiments on live animals; Whereas, more generally, the Commission will be able to respond effectively to questions raised by the application of the Directive only if it is assisted by experts who are . specialists in the field of animal experiments and who have considerable experience of administrative practices and regulations in the Member States ; Whereas the Committee should be given a legal form on the basis of the experience gained within the Commis- () OJ No L 358, 18. 12. 1986, p. 1. sion’s departments on the subject of consultative commit- tees, : HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS: Ar;icle 1 There shall be attached to the Commission an Advisory Committee on the Protection of Animals Used for Expe- rimental and ~Other Scientific Purposes (hereinafter referred to as ‘the Committee’). Article 2 The task of the Committee shall be to assist the Commis- sion in organizing the exchange of appropriate informa- tion as provided for in Article 22 (3) of Directive 86/609/EEC and to assist the Commission with other matters raised by the.application of that Directive. Article 3 Each- Member State shall be represented on- the- Committee by two officials from the national authority referred to in-Article 6-of Directive 86/609/EEC respon- sible for verifying that the provisions of the Directive are properly carried out. In those Member States where more than one authority has been designated for this purpose the Member State shall indicate to the Commission from- which of the authorities the two representatives should be- chosen. Members -of the Committee shall be ‘at liberty on any- occasion and at their own discretion to nominate a suitably qualified expert from within their own authority to act for them at any given meeting.