S.I. No. 510/1998 - European Communities (Units of Measurement) (Amendment) Regulations, 1998

I, Mary Harney, Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by section 3 of the European Communities Act, 1972 (No. 27 of 1972), for the purpose of giving effect to Council Directive 89/617/EEC of 27 November 1989,¹ hereby make the following regulations:

¹O.J. No. L. 357,7.12.89,p.28

1. (1) These Regulations may be cited as the European Communities (Units of Measurement) (Amendment) Regulations, 1998.

(2) These Regulations shall come into operation on the 1st day of January, 1999.

2. In these Regulations "the Principal Regulations" means the European Communities (Units of Measurement) Regulations, 1992 ( S.I. No. 255 of 1992 ).

3. Regulation 3(1) of the Principal Regulations is hereby amended by the substitution for " 'the Directive' " of " 'the Council Directive' ".

4. Regulation 4(2) of the Principal Regulations is hereby amended -

(a) in paragraph (c), by the substitution for "thereafter, and" of "thereafter,",

(b) in paragraph (d), by the substitution for "1972)." of "1972), and", and

(c) by the insertion after paragraph (d) of the following paragraph:

"(e) For the specific fields of application specified in Chapter II of the Annex to the Council Directive and set out in Schedule 6 to these Regulations, the units of measurement listed therein may be used until the 30th day of June, 2001, and shall not be used thereafter.".

5. Regulation 7 of the Principal Regulations is hereby amended -

(a) by the substitution for subparagraph (a) of paragraph (1) of the following subparagraph:

"(a) A unit of measurement referred to in subparagraph (a), (b) or (c) of paragraph (2) of Regulation 4 of these Regulations may continue to be used, until the 31st day of December, 1999, as a supplementary indication accompanying an indication of quantity expressed in an authorised unit, after the date specified in that subparagraph that it may not be used.", and

(b) by the insertion after subparagraph (c) of paragraph (1) of the following subparagraph:

"(d) In this paragraph 'authorised unit' means a unit of measurement authorised under Regulation 4 of these Regulations.".

6. Schedule 3 to the Principal Regulations is hereby amended by the deletion therein of the field of application "Road traffic signs, distance and speed measurement" set out in the first column of that Schedule and the units of measurement listed in the columns opposite mention of that field of application.

7. The following Schedule is hereby inserted after Schedule 5 to the Principal Regulations:

"SCHEDULE 6

LEGAL UNITS OF MEASUREMENT REFERRED TO IN REGULATION 4(2)(e)

Until the date referred to in Regulation 4(2)(e) of these Regulations, the units listed in this Schedule may be combined with each other and with those in Schedule 1 to these Regulations to form compound units.".

GIVEN under my Official Seal, this 21st day of December, 1998.

MARY HARNEY

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

These Regulations provide for a further extension of the time period during which conversion of road distance and speed measurement signs to units of the metric system may be carried out.