The Rural Development Programme Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2015

Interpretation N.I.

2.—(1) In these Regulations—

“agent” means a person, other than an authorised person, who is appointed in writing by the Department for the purposes of these Regulations;

“applicant” means any person who makes an application;

“application” means an application under regulation 5;

“approved operation” means an operation approved by the Department or an agent under regulation 6;

“authorised person” means a person authorised by the Department, either generally or specifically, to act in relation to the enforcement of these Regulations;

“beneficiary” means—

(a)

a person who has applied for and been granted approval for an operation;

(b)

in relation to any time after a rural development payment has been made in connection with the operation, the person to whom the payment was made; or

(c)

any person who has undertaken to assume the conditions of an approval in place of a previous beneficiary;

“Council Regulation 73/2009” means Council Regulation (EC) No. 73/2009 establishing common rules for direct support schemes for farmers under the common agricultural policy and establishing certain support schemes for farmers(1);

“Council Regulation 1782/2003” means Council Regulation (EC) No. 1782/2003 establishing common rules for direct support schemes under the common agricultural policy and establishing certain support schemes for farmers(2);

“Council Regulation 1698/2005” means Council Regulation (EC) No. 1698/2005 on support for rural development by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) etc(3);

“the Department” means the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development;

“the European Regulations” means the instruments listed in Schedule 1;

“EU assistance” means assistance payable pursuant to the Rural Development Regulation from the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development in accordance with the European Regulations;

“the Horizontal Implementing Regulation” means Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) No. 809/2014 laying down rules for the application of Regulation (EU) No. 1306/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council with regard to the integrated administration and control system, rural development measures and cross compliance(4);

“operation” means an investment, plan, commitment, project or action which is the subject of an application;

“Regulation 1307/2013” means Regulation (EU) No. 1307/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing rules for direct payments to farmers under support schemes within the framework of the common agricultural policy(5);

“rural development payment” means any payment made by the Department under Regulation 3;

“the Rural Development Programme 2014-2020” means the Rural Development Programme submitted by the United Kingdom to the European Commission in accordance with the Rural Development Regulation, as approved by Commission Decision C(2015) 6018 of 25^th August 2015(6);

“the Rural Development Regulation” means Regulation (EU) No. 1305/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council on support for rural development by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development(7).

(2) Other terms used in these Regulations that are also used in the European Regulations have the meaning they bear in those Regulations.

(3) Any reference in these Regulations to a Community instrument is a reference to that instrument as amended on the date on which these Regulations are made.

(4) A reference in these Regulations to anything done in writing or produced in written form includes a reference to an electronic communication which has been recorded and is consequently capable of being reproduced.

(5) The Interpretation Act (Northern Ireland) 1954(8) shall apply to these Regulations as it applies to an Act of the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Commencement Information

I1 Reg. 2 in operation at 5.10.2015, see reg. 1

(1)

O.J. No. L 30, 31.1.2009, p.16, as last amended by Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) No. 320/2014 (O.J. No. L 93, 28.3.2014, p.81) and repealed on 1^st January 2015 by Article 72(2) of Regulation 1307/2013

(2)

O.J. No. L 270, 21.10.2003, p.1, as last amended by Council Regulation (EC) No. 1009/2008 (O.J. No. L 276, 17.10.2008, p.1) and repealed on 1^st January 2009 by Council Regulation 73/2009

(3)

O.J. No. L 277, 21.10.2005, p.1 as last amended by Regulation (EU) No. 1312/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council (O.J. No. L 339, 21.12.2011, p.1) and repealed on 1^st January 2014 by Article 88 of the Rural Development Regulation

(4)

O.J. No. L 227, 31.7.2014, p.69

(5)

O.J. No. L 347, 20.12.2013, p. 608 as amended by Regulation (EU) No. 1310/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ No. L 347, 20.12.2013, p.865)

(6)

CCI No. 2014UK06RDRP002. Copies of the Northern Ireland Rural Development Programme may be downloaded from http://www.dardni.gov.uk/2014-2020-rdp-version-1.2.pdf

(7)

O.J. No. L 347, 20.12.2013, p.487, as amended by Regulation (EU) No. 1310/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council (O.J. No. L. 347, 20.12.2013, p.865)

(8)

1954 c. 33 (N.I.)