These Regulations amend the Seed Marketing Regulations 2011 (S.I 2011/463) (“the principal Regulations”).

Regulation 3 adds Council Decision 2003/17/EC on the equivalence of field inspections carried out in third countries on seed-producing crops and on the equivalence of seed produced in third countries (OJ No L8, 14.1.2003, p. 10) to the list of EU instruments in respect of which references in the principal Regulations are to be construed as references to those instruments as amended from time to time.

Regulation 4 allows the Secretary of State to license exemptions for temporary experiments organised under any of the five European Directives on the marketing of, respectively, beet seed, cereal seed, fodder plant seed, seed of oil and fibre plants and vegetable seed. Other provisions of these Directives are already implemented (in relation to England) by the principal Regulations.

Regulation 5 amends the definition of certified seed to include lucerne (Medicago sativa) amongst the seeds to which it does not apply and regulation 6 amends one of the requirements as regards the content of an official label on a mixture of seed.

An impact assessment has not been produced as no impact, or no significant impact, on the private, voluntary or public sectors is foreseen.