Plant Health (Amendment No. 2) Order (Northern Ireland) 2003

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Order.)

1.  This Order amends the Plant Health Order (Northern Ireland) 1993 so as to implement:

• Commission Directives 2002/36/EC (O.J. No. L116, 3.5.02, p. 16), and 2003/22/EC (O.J. No. L78, 25.3.03, p. 10) which amend various Annexes to Council Directive 2000/29/EC (O.J. No. L169, 10.7.00, p. 1) on protective measures against the introduction into the Community of organisms harmful to plants or plant products and against their spread within the Community; and

• Commission Directive 2003/21/EC (O.J. No. L78, 25.3.03, p. 8) which amends some protective zones exposed to particular plant health risks in the Community in Commission Directive 2001/32/EC (O.J. No. L127, 9.5.01, p. 38).

2.  The Order also takes into account amendments required by Directives 2003/46/EC and 2003/47/EC (O.J. No. L138, 5.6.03, p. 45 and 47), which correct clerical errors in Directives 2002/36/EC and 2003/21/EC.

3.  The principal changes introduced by this Order are:

(a) addition of Naupactus leucoloma (Article 5) and Anisogramma anomala (Article 9) to the list of quarantine plant pests. It introduces specific measures for the import of Corylus from Canada and the United States (Article 13(a));

(b) restriction of the quarantine provisions on Liriomyza bryoniae to the Protected Zones of the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland (Articles 4, 6, and 20(b));

(c) restriction of the quarantine provisions on Liriomyza huidbobrensis and Liriomyza trifolii to a list of host plants (Articles 4 and 8);

(d) extension of plant passport and phytosanitary certificate requirements for certain plants or plant products in respect of Bemisia tabaci, Liriomyza sativae, Amauromyza maculosa, Liriomyza huidobrensis, Liriomyza trifolii and Thrips palmi (Articles 13(b) to (g), 14, 15(f), 16, 17(c), 18(b), (c) and (d));

(e) amendment of the provisions against Beet necrotic yellow vein virus (Articles 15(c), (e), and (g) to (j), 17(a) and (b), and 19(a) and (b));

(f) addition of South Africa to the list of countries where Tilletia indica is known to occur (Articles 13(h) and 18(a));

(g) removal of areas in Sweden from the Protected Zones for Beet necrotic yellow vein virus (Articles 7, 15(c), (e), and (g) to (j), and 22) and removal of areas in Italy from the Protected Zone for Erwinia amylovora (Articles 11, 12 and 15(d) and 21);

(h) restriction of the Protected Zone for Gonipterus scutellatus to Greece and Portugal (Azores) (Articles 10, 15(a) and 20(a)); and

(i) inclusion of the definition of relevant international Standards for Phytosanitary Measures and details of their availability (Article 3(b)).