Arable Area Payments (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1999

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations.)

These Regulations which come into operation on 19th April 1999, further amend the Arable Area Payments Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1997 (S.R. 1997 No. 477) (“the principal Regulations”), as amended by the Arable Area Payments (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1998 (S.R. 1998 No. 308). The principal Regulations, as amended, implement Council Regulations 1765/92 (O.J. No. L181, 1.7.92, p. 12), which establishes a support system for producers of certain arable crops, Commission Regulation 762/94 (O.J. No. L90, 7.4.94, p. 8), Commission Regulation 658/96 (O.J. No. L91, 12.4.96, p. 46) and Commission Regulation 1586/97 (O.J. No. L215, 7.8.97, p. 3).

These Regulations—

(a) amend the rules relating to exchanges of eligible for ineligible land consequent on changes made to Article 2(5) of Commission Regulation 658/96 by Article 1 of Commission Regulation 1589/98 (regulation 2(4));

(b) delete the provision permitting a farmer to claim set-aside compensatory payment on land which he had not farmed for the two years prior to the commencement of the set-aside period, consequent on Article 1 of Commission Regulation 1981/98, which repeals Article 3(4) of Commission Regulation 762/94 (regulation 2(5));

(c) permit the application of plant protection products other than herbicides on set-aside land after 15th July in any year, in preparation for the sowing of a crop for harvest the following year, and modify the restrictions on the application of herbicides to set-aside land where the herbicide is applied in preparation for growing a crop (regulation 2(6)(b));

(d) make a number of additional minor modifications.