2019 No. 230

Plant Health

The Plant Health (Official Controls and Miscellaneous Provisions) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2019

Made13th December 2019

Coming into operation14th December 2019

F1The Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs is a Northern Ireland department designated M1 for the purposes of section 2(2) of the European Communities Act 1972 M2 in relation to the common agricultural policy of the European Union.

The Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs M3 makes these Regulations in exercise of the powers conferred by sections 2, 3(1), 3A and 3B(1) of the Plant Health Act (Northern Ireland) 1967 M4 and section 2(2) of, and Paragraph 1A of Schedule 2 to, the European Communities Act 1972 M5.

These Regulations make provision for a purpose mentioned in section 2(2) of the European Communities Act 1972 and it appears expedient to the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs for the references to Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072 establishing uniform conditions for the implementation of Regulation (EU) 2016/2031 of the European Parliament and of the Council, as regards protective measures against pests of plants and repealing Commission Regulation (EC) No 690/2008 and amending Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2018/2019 (referred to in these Regulations as “the Phytosanitary Conditions Regulation”) and to the European Union instruments mentioned in regulation 3(1) to be construed as references to those instruments as amended from time to time.

PART 1Introduction

Citation and commencementF11.

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InterpretationF12.

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Interpretation: EU DecisionsF13.

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Article 82 of the EU Plant Health Regulation: meaning of “close proximity”F14.

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PART 2Competent authorities

Designation of competent authorityF15.

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PART 3Official Controls on controlled consignments from third countries and other official controls on goods from third countries

Derogations to the requirement to give prior notification in accordance with Article 1(1) of Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/1013F16.

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Suspicion of non-complianceF17.

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Consignments not correctly presented for official controlsF18.

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Official measures in relation to non-compliant consignments or consignments which pose a risk to plant healthF19.

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Notices under Regulation 7, 8 or 9F110.

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Border control posts: authorisation of inspection centres and commercial storage facilitiesF111.

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Transitional provision: approved places of inspectionF112.

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PART 4Official activities to prevent the establishment or spread of plant pests

IntroductionF113.

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Notices in relation to controlled plant pests or prohibited materialF114.

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Action which may be taken by a plant health inspectorF115.

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Establishment of demarcated areas and measures to be taken in those areasF116.

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PART 5Temporary national measures

F117.

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PART 6Registration, authorisations and certificates

Application for registrationF118.

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Other applicationsF119.

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Authorisations for other purposesF120.

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Authorisations granted by the DepartmentF121.

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PART 7Measures relating to certain solanaceous species

F122.

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PART 8Notification requirements for the organisation of official controls

Notification requirements in relation to seed potatoesF123.

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Notification requirements in relation to citrus fruitsF124.

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Notification requirements in relation to other plants and plant productsF125.

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PART 9General powers of inspectors, enforcement, recovery of expenses and appeal

InterpretationF126.

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Powers of entryF127.

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Right of entry conferred by a warrant issued by a lay magistrateF128.

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Information noticesF129.

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Failure to comply with a noticeF130.

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Marking of wood packaging material: power of seizureF131.

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Recovery of expensesF132.

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Disclosure of information held by the Commissioners for Her Majesty's Revenue and CustomsF133.

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Disclosure of informationF134.

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AppealF135.

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PART 10General and supplemental provisions relating to notices

Miscellaneous provisions as to noticesF136.

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Service of noticesF137.

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PART 11Offences

GeneralF138.

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Failure to comply with requirements of notices etc.F139.

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Defence: reasonable excuseF140.

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Provision of false or misleading informationF141.

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Improper use of plant passports or certificatesF142.

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ObstructionF143.

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Offence relating to the disclosure of information held by Revenue and CustomsF144.

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Defence: lawful disclosureF145.

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Offences by bodies corporateF146.

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Offences by partnerships and unincorporated associationsF147.

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PenaltiesF148.

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PART 12Miscellaneous

Minor and consequential amendments49.

Schedule 5 contains minor and consequential amendments to secondary legislation.

Revocation50.

The instruments listed in Schedule 6 are revoked to the extent specified in the corresponding entry in column 3 of that Schedule.

Transitional provisions: licences under article 36(1) of the 2006 Order or article 43(1) of the 2018 OrderF151.

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Transitional provisions: other licences under the 2006 Order or the 2018 OrderF152.

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Transitional provisions: noticesF153.

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Sealed with the Official Seal of the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs on 13th December 2019.

John Joe O'Boyle

A senior officer of the

Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs

SCHEDULE 1Temporary national measures

Regulation 17

PART 1Plants, plant products or other objects from third countries

Interpration

F11.

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Temporary measures applying to the introduction of plants, plant products or other objects from third countries

F12.

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PART 2Plants, plant products or other objects from another part of the Union territory

Temporary measures applying to the introduction of plants, plant products or other objects from another part of the Union territory

F13.

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F14.

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Inspection and control of potato plant health Dickeya spp.

F15.

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SCHEDULE 2

Regulation 22

PART 1General interpretation

F11.

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PART 2General provisions relating to the planting of certain solanaceous species

General restrictions on the planting of potatoes

F12.

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Restrictions on the planting of potatoes in the protected region

F13.

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PART 3Measures for the control of Potato wart disease

Interpretation

F14.

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Official measures relating to contaminated plots of land

F15.

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Prohibition on the planting of potatoes on contaminated plots

F16.

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Revocation of the demarcation of a contaminated plot

F17.

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PART 4Measures for the control of European populations of Potato cyst nematode

Interpretation

F18.

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Official investigations and surveys

F19.

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Official records of investigations and surveys

F110.

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Notices in relation to infested fields and contaminated susceptible material

F111.

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Prohibition on the planting of potatoes in infested fields

F112.

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Controls on contaminated seed potatoes etc.

F113.

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Controls on potatoes for industrial processing or grading

F114.

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Controls on contaminated bulbs etc.

F115.

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Further investigations for the presence of Potato cyst nematodes

F116.

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PART 5Measures for the control of Potato ring rot

Interpretation

F117.

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Official surveys and testing

F118.

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Measures to be taken following the confirmation of the presence of Potato ring rot

F119.

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Restrictions in relation to susceptible material or objects contaminated or possibly contaminated with Potato ring rot

F120.

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Measures in relation to a contaminated place of production

F121.

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Additional measures applicable to a unit of protected crop production

F122.

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Measures to be taken in demarcated zones for the control of Potato ring rot

F123.

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PART 6Measures for the control of Potato brown rot

F124.

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Official surveys and testing

F125.

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Measures to be taken following the confirmation of the presence of Potato brown rot

F126.

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Restrictions in relation to susceptible material or objects contaminated or possibly contaminated with Potato brown rot

F127.

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Measures which may be required in relation to a contaminated place of production

F128.

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Additional measures in relation to units of protected crop production

F129.

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Measures to be taken in demarcated zones for the control of Potato brown rot

F130.

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SCHEDULE 3Offences: relevant provisions in the EU Regulations

Regulation 38(1)(d) to (f)

PART 1The EU Plant Health Regulation

F1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

PART 2The Official Controls Regulation

F1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

PART 3Other EU legislation

F1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

SCHEDULE 4EU emergency decisions relating to plant health

Regulation 38(1)(g)

PART 1Offences relating to the EU Decisions

F1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

SCHEDULE 5Amendments to secondary legislation

Regulation 49

PART 1The Marketing of Vegetable Plant Material Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1995

1. (1)

The Marketing of Vegetable Plant Material Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1995 M6 are amended as follows.

F1(2)

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(3)

In regulation 8(2), for “Council Directive 2000/29/EC” substitute “ the EU Plant Health Regulation ”.

PART 2The Marketing of Ornamental Plant Propagating Material Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1999

2. (1)

The Marketing of Ornamental Plant Propagating Material Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1999 are amended as follows.

(2)

In regulation 2(1)—

(a)

omit the definition of “Directive 2000/29/EC”;

(b)

at the appropriate place insert—

““the EU Plant Health Regulation” means Regulation (EU) 2016/2031 of the European Parliament of the Council on protective measures against pests of plants, amending Regulations (EU) No 228/2013, (EU) No 652/2014 and (EU) No 1143/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council and repealing Council Directives 69/464/EEC, 74/647/EEC, 93/85/EEC, 98/57/EC, 2000/29/EC, 2006/91/EC and 2007/33/EC.
“the Plant Health Official Controls Regulations” means the Plant Health (Official Controls and Miscellaneous Provisions) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2019;”.

(3)

In regulation 6A(4), in the definition of “responsible official body”, for the words from “a body” to the end, substitute “ an appropriate authority described in regulation 2(1) of the Plant Health Official Controls Regulations ”.

(4)

For regulation 7(5) substitute—

“(5)
Registration of a supplier on the register of professional operators under regulation 5 of the Plant Health Official Controls Regulations is deemed to constitute registration for the purposes of paragraph (1) above.”.

(5)

In regulation 8(3)—

(a)

for the words from “a plant pest” to “Order (Northern Ireland) 1993” substitute “ a controlled plant pest as defined in regulation 2(1) of the Plant Health Official Controls Regulations ”;

(b)

for the words from “article 20” to “certain plant pests” substitute “ the EU Plant Health Regulation ”.

(6)

In regulation 9(2), for “Directive 2000/29/EC” substitute “ the EU Plant Health Regulation ”.

F1(7)

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PART 3The Forest Reproductive Material Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2002

F13.

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PART 4The Seed Potatoes Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2016

F14.

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PART 5The Marketing of Fruit Plant and Propagating Material Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2017

5. (1)

The Marketing of Fruit Plant and Propagating Material Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2017 M7 are amended as follows.

F1(2)

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(3)

In regulation 3(1), omit the definition of “Directive 2000/29/EC”.

(4)

Omit regulation 10(6).

(5)

In regulation 11(7), for the words from “plant trader” to “2006” substitute “ professional operator under regulation 4 of the Plant Health Official Controls Regulations ”.

F1(6)

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SCHEDULE 6Revocation of Instruments

Regulation 50

Instrument revoked	Reference	Extent of revocation
The Plant Health (Wood and Bark) (Phytophthora ramorum) Order (Northern Ireland) 2005	S.R. 2005 No. 252	The whole instrument
The Plant Health (Wood and Bark) Order (Northern Ireland) 2006	S.R. 2006 No. 66	The whole instrument
The Plant Health (Wood and Bark) (Amendment) Order (Northern Ireland) 2009	S.R. 2009 No. 340	The whole instrument
The Plant Health (Wood and Bark) (Amendment) Order (Northern Ireland) 2010	S.R. 2010 No. 48	The whole instrument
The Plant Health (Wood and Bark) (Amendment) Order (Northern Ireland) 2012	S.R. 2012 No. 400	The whole instrument
The Plant Health (Wood and Bark) (Amendment) Order (Northern Ireland) 2015	S.R. 2015 No. 129	The whole instrument
The Seed Potatoes Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2016	S.R. 2016 No. 190	Regulation 25(3)
The Plant Health Order (Northern Ireland) 2018	S.R. 2018 No. 184	The whole instrument
The Plant Health (Amendment) Order (Northern Ireland) 2019	S.R. 2019 No. 49	The whole instrument
The Plant Health (Wood and Bark) (Amendment) Order (Northern Ireland) 2019	S.R. 2019 No. 99	The whole instrument
The Plant Health (Amendment No. 2) Order (Northern Ireland) 2019	S.R. 2019 No. 151	The whole instrument
The Plant Health (Amendment No. 3) Order (Northern Ireland) 2019	S.R. 2019 No. 160	The whole instrument
The Plant Health (Wood and Bark) (Amendment No. 2) Order (Northern Ireland) 2019	S.R. 2019 No. 162	The whole instrument

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations give effect to—

(a)
Regulation (EU) 2016/2031 of the European Parliament of the Council on protective measures against pests of plants, amending Regulations (EU) No 228/2013, (EU) No 652/2014 and (EU) No 1143/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council (“the EU Plant Health Regulation”); and
(b)
Regulation (EU) 2017/625 of the European Parliament and of Council on official controls and other official activities performed to ensure the application of food and feed law, rules on animal health and welfare, plant health and plant protection products, in so far as it applies to the rules referred to in Article 1(2)(g) (“the official Controls Regulation”).

The Regulations also implement in relation to Northern Ireland—

(a)
Council Directive 69/464/EEC on control of Potato Wart Disease (O.J. No. L 323, 24.12.1969, p. 1);
(b)
Council Directive 93/85/EEC on the control of potato ring rot (O.J. No. L 259, 18.10.1993, p. 1);
(c)
Council Directive 98/57/EC on the control of Ralstonia solanacearum (Smith) Yabuuchi et al. (O.J. No. L 235, 21.8.1998, p. 1); and
(d)
Council Directive 2007/33/EC on the control of potato cyst nematodes and repealing Directive 69/465/EEC (O.J. No. L 156, 16.6.2007, p. 12).

Part 1 is introductory and includes definitions. Regulation 3(2) provides for references to the European Union instruments listed in regulation 3(1) to be read as references to those instruments as amended from time to time.

Regulation 5 designates the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs as the competent authority in Northern Ireland.

Part 3 makes further provision in relation to consignments of plants, plant products and other objects from third countries which are subject to official controls on their entry into the European Union.

Part 4 contains powers to enable plant health inspectors appointed by the Department to take measures to prevent the establishment or spread of harmful plant pests in Northern Ireland.

Part 5 imposes additional temporary measures to prevent the entry of certain harmful plant pests into Northern Ireland or their establishment in, or spread within, Northern Ireland.

Part 6 makes further provision in relation to the registration of professional operators and the granting of authorisations to professional operators by the Department.

Part 7 imposes additional requirements in relation to certain solanaceous species (potatoes and tomatoes) to implement the Directives mentioned above.

Part 8 imposes additional notification requirements in respect of certain plants and plant products which are to be brought into Northern Ireland from third countries, other member States or Switzerland.

Part 9 sets out general powers of plant health inspectors to enable them to perform official controls and other official activities, and enforce the EU Plant Health Regulation, the Official Controls Regulation and these Regulations. Regulation 32 provides for recovery of expenses incurred by the Department and regulation 35 provides for an appeal process.

Part 10 contains general and supplemental provisions in relation to notices given by plant health inspectors.

Part 11 contains offences for non-compliance with specified provisions of the EU Plant Health Regulation and the Official Controls Regulation, and offences in relation to these Regulations. Regulation 48 sets out the penalties for these offences.

Part 12 deals with minor and consequential amendments to secondary legislation, revocations and transitional provisions in relation to Northern Ireland. Regulation 55 requires the Department to review the operation and effect of the EU Plant Health Regulation, the Official Controls Regulation and these Regulations and publish a report at five-yearly intervals.

An impact assessment has not been produced for this instrument as no, or no significant, impact on the private or voluntary sector is foreseen.