(This note is not part of the Regulations)
These Regulations are made in exercise of the powers conferred by section 8(1) of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 (c. 16) in order to address failures of retained EU law to operate effectively and other deficiencies (in particular under paragraphs (a), (c) and (g) of section 8(2)) arising from the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union.
These Regulations make temporary amendments to legislation in the field of type approval for road vehicles and non-road mobile machinery and, in particular, provide for an interim arrangement allowing the Secretary of State or Northern Ireland Department to issue type approval certificates to holders of EU type approval granted other than in the United Kingdom and (in respect of road vehicles) for those type approval certificates to be the basis for issue of certificates of conformity used for the purposes of vehicle registration. Part 2 amends primary legislation, Part 4 amends Northern Ireland legislation, Part 5 amends subordinate legislation, and Part 6 amends retained direct EU legislation.
These Regulations also make amendments to Northern Ireland legislation to correct the transposition of Directive 2007/46/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 September 2007 establishing a framework for the approval of motor vehicles and their trailers and of systems, components and separate technical units intended for such vehicles (OJ No L263, 9.10.2007, p 1). In particular, Part 3 substitutes a new definition of “EC certificate of conformity” into the Road Traffic (Northern Ireland) Order 1981 (S.I. 1981/154 (N.I. 1)) to mirror that applying in Great Britain under section 85 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 (c.52).
Part 7 provides for the interim arrangements for type approval set out in these Regulations to cease to have effect two years after exit day and for the validity of any type-approval issued before that point to be unaffected.
The net costs imposed on business, the voluntary sector and the public sector by these Regulations have been assessed as being less than £5m in any year and therefore a full impact assessment has not been prepared.
An Explanatory Memorandum has been prepared and is available alongside this instrument at www.legislation.gov.uk.