Statutory Rules of Northern Ireland
1996 No. 563

AGRICULTURE
The Bovine Products (Despatch to Other Member States) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1996

Made
3rd December 1996

Coming into operation
1st January 1997

The Department of Agriculture, being a Department designated(1) for the purposes of section 2(2) of the European Communities Act 1972(2) in relation to the Common Agricultural Policy of the European Economic Community, in exercise of the powers conferred on it by the said section 2(2) and of every other power enabling it in that behalf, hereby makes the following Regulations:

Citation and commencement

1.  These Regulations may be cited as the Bovine Products (Despatch to Other Member States) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1996 and shall come into operation on 1st January 1997.

Interpretation

2.—(1) The Interpretation Act (Northern Ireland) 1954(3) shall apply to these Regulations as it applies to a Measure of the Northern Ireland Assembly.

(2) In these Regulations—

“bovine animal” means a bull, cow, steer, heifer or calf;

“the Department” means the Department of Agriculture;

“establishment” means any place used for the production of relevant goods;

“inspector” means a person appointed as such by the Department and any veterinary surgeon appointed under Regulation 3(1)(b) or any veterinary inspector;

“member State” means any member State of the European Communities other than the United Kingdom;

“relevant goods” means—

(a)
meat for human consumption;

(b)
any meat product for human consumption;

(c)
any meat preparation for human consumption; or

(d)
food for domestic carnivores,

obtained from a bovine animal which was not slaughtered in the United Kingdom;

“third country” means any state which is not a member of the European Communities;

“vertebral column” means the whole or any part thereof; and

“veterinary inspector” has the same meaning as in the Diseases of Animals (Northern Ireland) Order 1981(4).

(3) In these Regulations, “approved” in relation to an establishment means—

(a)approved by the Department under and in accordance with regulation 3(2); or

(b)approved by any Minister of the Crown under and in accordance with regulation 3(2) of the Bovine Products (Despatch to Other Member States) Regulations 1996(5).

(4) In regulation 3(1)(b), the reference to a veterinary surgeon appointed by the Department includes, in relation to the production of relevant goods in Great Britain, a reference to any veterinary surgeon appointed by a Minister of the Crown under regulation 3(1)(b) of the Bovine Products (Despatch to Other Member States) Regulations 1996.

(5) Any reference in these Regulations to an instrument of the European Communities is a reference to that instrument as amended at the date of coming into operation of these Regulations.

Meat and other products from bovine animals slaughtered outside the United Kingdom

3.—(1) A person shall not despatch to a member State any relevant goods unless—

(a)each stage of the production of those goods which took place in the United Kingdom took place in an approved establishment;

(b)each stage of the production of those goods which took place in the United Kingdom was under the control of a veterinary surgeon appointed by the Department;

(c)the goods are accompanied by a health certificate, issued by the veterinary surgeon who exercised control of the steps of their production, stating that they were produced in an approved establishment; and

(d)the goods are despatched in accordance with any relevant provisions of the Animals and Animal Products (Import and Export) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1995(6) and the Products of Animal Origin (Import and Export) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1993(7).

(2) The Department shall approve an establishment for the purposes of this regulation where, following an inspection of that establishment by a veterinary inspector, it is satisfied that the establishment has in place a system for tracing raw materials through all stages of the processes used for the production of any relevant goods which is sufficient to ensure that it is possible to identify the origin of any raw materials contained in any such goods despatched from that establishment.

(3) The Department may withdraw the approval of any establishment granted by it pursuant to paragraph (2) where, in relation to that establishment, the requirements of that paragraph are no longer satisfied.

(4) For the purposes of paragraphs (1) and (2), the storage of any relevant goods shall not be treated as a stage of production where—

(a)the goods are accompanied by the required documents;

(b)all of the goods listed in those documents are present; and

(c)the goods have been packaged and all packaging has been sealed and has not been opened since the completion of the documents.

(5) For the purposes of paragraph (4), “the required documents” means—

(a)in respect of goods originating in another member State, the documents required for the import of those goods by the relevant directive listed in the Animals and Animal Products (Import and Export) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1995 and the Products of Animal Origin (Import and Export) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1993; and

(b)in respect of goods originating in a third country, the certificate referred to in the Products of Animal Origin (Import and Export) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1993.

Fees

4.  The Department may charge such reasonable fees as it may determine in respect of any costs reasonably incurred in connection with—

(a)the approval by it of an establishment pursuant to regulation 3(2);

(b)the control exercised under regulation 3(1)(b) by a veterinary surgeon appointed by it; and

(c)the issue of a health certificate by a veterinary surgeon under regulation 3(1)(c).

Powers of inspectors

5.—(1) An inspector shall, on producing, if required to do so, some duly authenticated document showing his authority, have the right at all reasonable hours to enter any land or premises for the purposes of ascertaining whether there is or has been on the premises any contravention of these Regulations.

(2) An inspector shall, on producing, if required to do so, some duly authenticated document showing his authority, have the right at all reasonable hours to enter any establishment approved for the purposes of regulation 3 in order to ascertain whether the requirements of that regulation are being satisfied in that establishment.

(3) An inspector shall have powers to carry out all checks and examinations necessary for the enforcement of these regulations and in particular may—

(a)carry out inspections of any place from which material derived from bovine animals is consigned to an approved establishment;

(b)carry out inspections of anything used for the marking and identification of any products or other materials;

(c)take samples (and, if necessary, send the samples for laboratory testing) from any product or other material;

(d)examine documentary or data processing material relevant to the checks carried out under these Regulations;

(e)take with him any person he deems necessary to carry out the necessary checks and examinations; and

(f)take with him a representative of the European Commission acting for the purposes of Council Decision 96/239/EC(8).

(4) Where an inspector has reasonable suspicion that a consignment of any relevant goods is falsely described in a health certificate issued under regulation 3, he may direct the person in control of the certificate to deliver it and any copies of it to him on demand and may—

(a)give notice that, until the notice is withdrawn, the consignment or any part of it specified in the notice may not—

(i)be removed; or

(ii)be removed except to some place specified in the notice; or

(b)seize the consignment or any part of it and remove it in order to have it dealt with by a justice of the peace.

(5) Where any direction or notice is given to a person under paragraph (4), that person shall comply with that direction or notice, as the case may be.

(6) Where the inspector exercises the powers conferred by paragraph (4), he shall as soon as is reasonably practicable, and in any event within 21 days, satisfy himself whether the consignment is or is not falsely described and—

(a)if he is not satisfied that it is falsely described, he shall return the health certificate which has been delivered to him, withdraw any notice given pursuant to paragraph (4)(a) relating to the consignment and return anything he has seized; or

(b)if he is satisfied that it is falsely described, he shall inform the person in charge of the consignment of his intention to have it dealt with by a justice of the peace.

(7) Any person who may be liable for prosecution under these Regulations in respect of the consignment which is intended to be dealt with before a justice of the peace shall be entitled to attend before that justice of the peace and to call witnesses.

(8) If it appears to a justice of the peace, on the basis of such evidence as he considers to be appropriate in the circumstances, that a consignment is falsely described, he shall—

(a)order that consignment to be destroyed and any expenses reasonably incurred in connection with such destruction be defrayed by the owner of the consignment; or

(b)if he is satisfied that, the owner of the consignment will not despatch it to a member State, return it to that owner.

(9) If a notice under paragraph 4(a) is withdrawn or anything seized is returned in accordance with paragraph (6), or if a justice of the peace acting under paragraph (8) does not find a consignment to be falsely described, the Department shall compensate the owner of the consignment for any depreciation in its value resulting from the action taken by the inspector.

(10) Any disputed question as to the right or to the amount of any compensation payable under paragraph (7) shall be determined by arbitration.

Obstruction

6.—(1) A person shall not—

(a)intentionally obstruct any person acting in the execution of these Regulations;

(b)without reasonable cause, fail to give any person acting in the execution of these Regulations any assistance or information which that person may reasonably require of him for the purposes of his functions under these Regulations; or

(c)furnish to any person acting in the execution of these Regulations any information which he knows to be false or misleading.

(2) Nothing in paragraph (1)(b) shall be construed as requiring any person to answer any question or give any information if to do so might incriminate him.

Offences and Penalties

7.—(1) A person contravening any provision of these Regulations shall be guilty of an offence.

(2) A person guilty of an offence under these Regulations shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three months or to both.

(3) Article 19 of the Food Safety (Northern Ireland) Order 1991(9) shall apply to the commission by any person of an offence under these regulations, and Article 20(1), (5) and (6) of that Order shall apply in any proceedings for an offence under these Regulations, as if the references in those provisions to “any of the preceding provisions of this Part” included references to these Regulations.

Amendment of the Products of Animal Origin (Import and Export) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1993 and the Animals and Animal Products (Import and Export) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1995

8.  The following paragraph shall be added as a new paragraph (5) at the end of regulation 6 of the Products of Animal Origin (Import and Export) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1993 and as a new paragraph (6) at the end of regulation 5 of the Animals and Animal Products (Import and Export) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1995—

“(5) This regulation shall apply without prejudice to the requirements of the Bovine Products (Despatch to other Member States) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1996.”

Sealed with the Official Seal of the Department of Agriculture on 3rd December 1996.

L.S.
Liam McKibben
Assistant Secretary

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations.)
These Regulations implement in part Council Decision 96/239/EC on emergency measures to protect against Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy, as amended by Commission Decision 96/362/EC.
Regulation 3 controls the despatch to other member States of meat and other products from bovine animals slaughtered outside the United Kingdom.
Regulation 4 makes provision for the Department to charge fees.
Regulations 5 to 8 contain provisions on enforcement, obstruction, offences and penalties.
Regulation 9 amends the Products of Animal Origin (Import and Export) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1993 and the Animals and Animal Products (Import and Export) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1995 so that those Regulations apply without prejudice to these Regulations.


(1)
S.I. 1972/1811

(2)
1972 c. 68: section 2 is subject to Schedule 2 to that Act and is to be read with S.I. 1984/703 (N.I. 3) and S.R. 1984 No. 253

(3)
1954 c. 33 (N.I.)

(4)
S.I. 1981/1115 (N.I. 22) as amended by S.I. 1984/702 (N.I. 2) Art. 17 and S.I. 1994/1891 (N.I. 6) Arts. 19, 22, 23(1), (2) and (3), 24(1) and Schedule

(5)
S.I. 1996/2265

(6)
S.R. 1995 No. 52

(7)
S.R. 1993 No. 304

(8)
O.J. No. L78, 28.3.96, p. 47. Council Decision 96/239/EEC was amended by Council Decision 96/362/EEC. O.J. No. L139, 12.6.96, p. 17

(9)
S.I. 1991 No. 762 (N.I. 7) as amended by S.I. 1996 No. 1633 (N.I. 12)