Statutory Instruments
1998 No. 2969

ANIMALS
ANIMAL HEALTH
The Cattle Identification (Amendment) Regulations 1998

Made
28th November 1998

Laid before Parliament
3rd December 1998

Coming into force
1st January 1999

The Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and the Secretary of State, being Ministers 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 Community, acting jointly, in exercise of the powers conferred on them by the said section 2(2) and of all other powers enabling them in that behalf, make the following Regulations:

Title and commencement

1.  These Regulations may be cited as the Cattle Identification (Amendment) Regulations 1998 and shall come into force on 1st January 1999.

Amendment to the Cattle Identification Regulations

2.—(1) The Cattle Identification Regulations 1998(3) are amended in accordance with this Regulation.

(2) For paragraph (3) of regulation 3 (the maximum time within which an eartag must be applied to an animal) there is substituted the following–

“(3) In accordance with Article 4.2 of the Council Regulation–

(a)in the case of a dairy herd, the keeper shall apply one eartag to the animal within 36 hours of the birth of the animal, and the second eartag–

(i)within 30 days of the birth of an animal born before 1st January 2000, or

(ii)within 20 days of the birth of an animal born on or after 1st January 2000;

(b)in the case of any other herd the keeper shall apply the eartags to the animal–

(i)within 30 days of the birth of an animal born before 1st January 2000, or

(ii)within 20 days of the birth of an animal born on or after 1st January 2000.”.

(3) The following paragraph is inserted between paragraphs (1) and (2) of regulation 13 (application for a cattle passport)–

“(1A) For the purpose of paragraph (1) above, the period within which the keeper shall apply for a cattle passport shall be calculated, in the case of a dairy herd, from the date on which the second eartag is applied to the animal.”.

Jeff Rooker
Minister of State, Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food
25th November 1998

Sewel
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State, Scottish Office
28th November 1998

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)
These Regulations amend the Cattle Identification Regulations 1998 (S.I. 1998/871) which make provision for the enforcement of Title 1 of Council Regulation (EC) No. 820/97 (establishing a system for the identification and registration of bovine animals and regarding the labelling of beef and beef products, OJ No. L117, 7.5.97, p. 1). They amend regulation 3 of those Regulations so as to extend the time for applying the second eartag to a bovine animal in a dairy herd from 36 hours to 30 days in the case of an animal born before 1st January 2000, and 20 days in the case of an animal born on or after that date. They make a consequential amendment to regulation 13 to make it clear that the time limit for applying for a cattle passport runs from the date that the second tag is applied.
A regulatory impact assessment has not been prepared for these Regulations.


(1)
S.I. 1972/1811.

(2)
1972 c. 68.

(3)
S.I. 1998/871 as amended by S.I. 1998/1796.