United Kingdom Internal Market Act 2020

Threats to human, animal or plant health

1 (1) The United Kingdom market access principles do not apply to (and sections 2(3) and 5(3) do not affect the operation of) legislation so far as it satisfies the conditions set out in this paragraph.

(2) The first condition is that the aim of the legislation is to prevent or reduce the movement of a pest or disease into the part of the United Kingdom in which the legislation applies (“the restricting part”) from another part of the United Kingdom (“the affected part”).

(3) The second condition is that it is reasonable to believe that the pest or disease—

(a) is present in the affected part, and

(b) is not present, or is significantly less prevalent, in the restricting part.

(4) The third condition is that the potential movement of that pest or disease into the restricting part from the affected part poses (or would in the absence of the legislation pose) a serious threat to the health of humans, animals or plants in the restricting part.

(5) The fourth condition is that the responsible administration has provided to the other administrations an assessment of the available evidence in relation to—

(a) the threat referred to in sub-paragraph (4), and

(b) the likely effectiveness of the legislation in addressing that threat.

(6) The fifth condition is that the legislation can reasonably be justified as necessary in order to address the threat referred to in sub-paragraph (4).

(7) In determining whether the fifth condition is met the following consideration is to be taken into account: whether the legislation, taken together with any similar legislation applying in the restricting part, imposes measures of similar severity arising from the potential movement of the pest or disease into, or within, the restricting part (wherever those threats originate).

(8) In this paragraph “pest or disease” includes any organism or agent that is liable to cause a disease or other harm to the health of humans, animals or plants.