The Transfer of Functions (Agriculture and Food) Order 1999

Citation, commencement and interpretation

1.—(1) This Order may be cited as the Transfer of Functions (Agriculture and Food) Order 1999.

(2) This Order shall come into force on 27th December 1999.

(3) In this Order–

• “the transferor” means, in relation to anything transferred by this Order, the Minister or Ministers from whom it is transferred,

• “the transferee” means, in relation to anything transferred by this Order, the Minister or Ministers to whom it is transferred,

and any reference to a function of a Minister shall, in the case of a function which is exercisable by him jointly with another person or is otherwise shared by him with another person, be construed as a reference to his share in that function.

Transfer of certain functions involving territorial Secretaries of State

2.—(1) Any function of the Secretary of State, the Secretary of State for Scotland or the Secretary of State for Wales under an enactment mentioned in the Schedule is hereby transferred to the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food.

(2) Any function of the Secretary of State, the Secretary of State for Scotland or the Secretary of State for Wales under the Industrial Organisation and Development Act 1947(1) which is exercisable by him by virtue of the Transfer of Functions (Wales) (No. 1) Order 1978 or the proviso to section 1(2) of the Act of 1947 is hereby transferred to the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food.

(3) Any function of the Secretary of State or the Secretary of State for Wales which is exercisable by him under section 34(2) or 61 of the Agriculture Act 1967(2) by virtue of the Transfer of Functions (Wales) Order 1969 or the Transfer of Functions (Wales) (No. 1) Order 1978 is hereby transferred to the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food.

(4) Any function of the Secretary of State for Scotland under paragraph 1(2) of Schedule 9 to the Deregulation and Contracting Out Act 1994(3) is hereby transferred to the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food.

(5) For the purposes of paragraphs (1) to (4)–

(a) the references to any function of the Secretary of State do not include any function of a named Secretary of State (however described), and

(b) the references to the Secretary of State for Scotland and the Secretary of State for Wales include references to the Secretary of State concerned with agriculture in Scotland and the Secretary of State concerned with agriculture in Wales respectively.

(6) Any function under the Food Safety Act 1990(4) which is exercisable by the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food jointly with the Secretaries of State respectively concerned with health in England and food and health in Wales is hereby transferred to the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and the Secretary of State acting jointly.

(7) This article is subject to article 3.

Exception from article 2 for EC functions

3.  Article 2 shall not apply in relation to any function of a Minister which is exercisable by him by virtue of paragraph 5 of Schedule 3 to the Government of Wales Act 1998 or section 57(1) of the Scotland Act 1998.

Transfer of property, rights and liabilities

4.  All property, rights and liabilities to which the transferor is entitled or subject at the coming into force of this Order in connection with any function transferred by this Order are hereby transferred to the transferee.

Supplementary and consequential

5.—(1) Any reference in this Order to a function of a Minister under an enactment includes a reference to the functions of that Minister under any scheme, regulations, Order in Council, order, bye-laws or similar instrument having effect under or in relation to that enactment.

(2) This Order shall not affect the validity of anything done (or having effect as if done) by or in relation to the transferor before the coming into force of this Order.

(3) Anything (including any legal proceedings) which, at the coming into force of this Order, is in the process of being done by or in relation to the transferor may, so far as it relates to anything transferred by this Order, be continued by or in relation to the transferee.

(4) Anything done (or having effect as if done) by or in relation to the transferor for the purposes of or in connection with anything transferred by this Order shall, if in force at the coming into force of this Order, have effect as if done by or in relation to the transferee in so far as that is required for continuing its effect after the coming into force of this Order.

(5) Subject to paragraph (6), any enactment or instrument passed or made before the coming into force of this Order shall have effect, so far as may be necessary for the purposes of or in consequence of any transfer effected by this Order, as if any references (including references which are to be construed as such references) to the transferor or his department or officers were references to the transferee or his department or officers, as the context may require.

(6) Any enactment or instrument passed or made before the coming into force of this Order shall have effect, so far as may be necessary for the purposes of or in consequence of any transfer effected by this Order of, or in connection with, a share of any function which is exercisable jointly with the transferee (with or without others) or is otherwise shared with the transferee (with or without others), as if any references (including references which are to be construed as such references) to the transferor and the transferee or to their departments or officers were references to the transferee or to his department or officers, as the context may require.

(7) In this article “instrument”, without prejudice to the generality of that expression, includes in particular Royal Charters, Orders in Council, Letters Patent, judgments, decrees, orders, rules, regulations, schemes, bye-laws, awards, contracts and other agreements, memoranda and articles of association, warrants, certificates and other documents.

A. K. Galloway

Clerk of the Privy Council