The Beef Special Premium (Scotland) Regulations 2001

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations, which extend to Scotland only, consolidate with amendments the Beef Special Premium Regulations 1996 and the Beef Special Premium (Amendment) Regulations 1999.

The Regulations implement measures for the beef special premium scheme provided for in Article 4 of Council Regulation (EC) No. 1254/1999 on the common organisation of the market in beef and veal. They provide for the administration of the scheme in relation to holdings situated wholly in Scotland and holdings situated partly in Scotland and partly elsewhere in the United Kingdom, where the Scottish Ministers are the competent authority in respect of an application for beef special premium.

The main change effected by these Regulations is that, in respect of any application for beef special premium, the headage limit of 90 bovine animals per holding and per age bracket has been waived (regulation 13). Regulation 13 also introduces a limit on the number of applications for beef special premium that may be made by a producer in a given year and, in respect of a small producer (as defined), disapplies the reduction in the number of animals entitled to benefit from the premium where the regional ceiling (also as defined) is exceeded.

The Regulations also–

(a) make provision relating to the form and issue of a national administrative document (regulation 5). This implements Article 4(3)(a) of Commission Regulation (EC) No. 2342/1999 which lays down detailed rules for the application of Council Regulation (EC) No. 1254/99. Article 4(3)(a) enables member States to provide that a national administrative document shall take the form of a document accompanying each individual animal. A corresponding provision which requires that each animal be accompanied by a passport is contained in Article 6(2) of Regulation 1760/2000 of the European Parliament and Council which establishes a system for the identification and registration of bovine animals and deals with the labelling of beef products;

(b) require that a bovine animal is accompanied by its national administrative document when sold, purchased and moved (regulation 6);

(c) make provision relating to the surrender of a national administrative document on the loss, theft, export, slaughter or death (other than by slaughter) of a bovine animal (regulations 7 and 8);

(d) make provision regarding the duplication or replacement of a national administrative document (regulation 9);

(e) make provision for the making of an application for beef special premium, including the requirement that the application is accompanied by the cattle passport or national administrative document issued in respect of all animals included in the application (regulations 10 to 13);

(f) enable an applicant to set the starting date for the commencement of the retention period for the animals specified in the application (regulation 14);

(g) enable beef special premium otherwise payable to be reduced or withheld and any such premium already paid to be recovered where excessive numbers of bovine animals are being grazed and maintained on land which the Scottish Ministers have identified as being overgrazed (regulation 15);

(h) enable beef special premium otherwise payable to be reduced or withheld and any such premium already paid to be recovered, if the applicant uses unsuitable supplementary feeding methods (regulation 16). Regulations 15 and 16 are included in the Regulations in implement of Article 3 of Council Regulation (EC) No. 1259/99 which establishes common rules for direct support schemes under the common agricultural policy;

(i) require an applicant to retain specified documents (regulation 17);

(j) confer powers of entry, inspection and collection of evidence on authorised persons (regulations 18 and 19). These include the powers required under Article 6 of Commission Regulation (EC) No. 3887/92 which lays down detailed rules for applying the integrated administration and control system for certain Community aid schemes;

(k) provide for the withholding or recovery of beef special premium where there is a breach of the scheme rules (regulation 20) and prescribe the rate of interest that may be charged on any sums recovered (regulation 21);

(l) create offences and lay down penalties (regulations 22 and 23);

(m) specify time limits for bringing prosecutions (regulation 24);

(n) make provision for offences committed by bodies corporate (regulation 25); and

(o) revoke a number of provisions in consequence, subject to a saving (regulation 26).

No Regulatory Impact Assessment has been prepared in respect of these Regulations.