Brussels, 19/03/2002 (Agence Europe) - On the margins of the Agriculture Council on Monday, Commissioner David Byrne announced that the European Commission would be sending France a warning letter (EUROPE understands it is likely to be sent on Wednesday) for failure to respect the Court of Justice ruling of December 2001 that it should lift its embargo on imports of British beef. Mr Byrne said the ruling had to be respected and normal procedures had to be in place. He explained that as from the date of receipt of the formal notice, France would have 30 days to reply. Should it fail to reply, the second stage of the procedure is the sending of a Reasoned Opinion. If France then continues to refuse to lift the embargo, the Commission would again send the case to the Court of Justice to request the levying of fines. Recently, the new French agriculture minister François Patriat (who took over from Jean Glavagny after he was appointed head of Lionel Jospin's election campaign) indicated that France would not lift the embargo since the necessary conditions had not been met. France has to wait for the opinion of its food safety agency (AFSSA), which met with its British equivalent, the Food Standards Agency, on 14 February to discuss the issue, but failed to reach new conclusions.