The Agriculture (Cross compliance) (No. 2) Regulations 2009

Title, application and commencement

1.  These Regulations may be cited as the Agriculture (Cross compliance) (No. 2) Regulations 2009; they apply in England and come into force on 15th January 2010.

Designation

2.  The Secretary of State is the competent national authority for the purposes of 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).

Standards of Good Agricultural and Environmental Condition

3.—(1) The standards of good agricultural and environmental condition set out in Schedule 1 apply as minimum requirements for the purposes of Article 6 of, and Annex III to, Council Regulation (EC) No 73/2009.

(2) But the provisions of Schedule 2 set out the circumstances in which breach of a provision of Schedule 1 does not constitute non-compliance.

Permanent pasture

4.—(1) If it is established that the ratio in Article 3(1) of Commission Regulation (EC) No 1122/2009 (laying down detailed rules for the implementation of Council Regulation (EC) No 73/2009 as regards cross-compliance, modulation and the integrated administration and control system, under the direct support schemes for farmers provided for that Regulation, as well as for the implementation of Council Regulation (EC) No 1234/2007 as regards cross-compliance under the support scheme provided for the wine sector(2)) is decreasing, the Secretary of State must prohibit a claimant from converting land under permanent pasture, in accordance with Article 4(1) of that Regulation.

(2) If it is established that the obligation in Article 3(2) of that Regulation cannot otherwise be met, the Secretary of State must oblige a claimant to reconvert land to permanent pasture in accordance with Article 4(2) of that Regulation.

(3) But the Secretary of State must not—

(a) prohibit a claimant from converting land under permanent pasture where the claimant turned that land into permanent pasture in the circumstance mentioned in Article 4(3) of that Regulation, or

(b) require a claimant to reconvert land where the claimant turned that land into permanent pasture in the circumstance mentioned in Article 4(3) of that Regulation and later converted it out of permanent pasture.

Competent control authorities

5.—(1) The Secretary of State is the competent control authority for the purposes of Article 48(1) of Commission Regulation (EC) No 1122/2009 except as otherwise specified in this regulation.

(2) The Environment Agency is the competent control authority for—

(a) the statutory management requirements numbered 2, 3 and 4 in Annex II to Council Regulation (EC) No 73/2009,

(b) control of authorisation for abstraction for use in irrigation under Annex III to that Regulation; and

(c) control of requirements relating to the conditions for land application of fertiliser near watercourses under the footnote to Annex III to that Regulation.

(3) Natural England must carry out controls for the purposes of Article 8 and Chapters I and III of Title III of Part II of Commission Regulation (EC) No 1122/2009, if requested to do so by the Secretary of State.

(4) The Secretary of State and the Environment Agency enforce these Regulations, and they or Natural England (if Natural England are acting under paragraph (3)) may authorise in writing persons to enforce them.

Powers of authorised persons

6.—(1) An authorised person may exercise any of the powers specified in this regulation for the purpose of enforcing Council Regulation (EC) No 73/2009, Commission Regulation (EC) No 1122/2009, or these Regulations.

(2) A person so authorised, on producing, if so required, some duly authenticated document showing authority to do so, at all reasonable hours may enter any land, other than a building used only as a dwelling.

(3) An authorised person may—

(a) inspect the premises and any livestock, crops, machinery or equipment;

(b) carry out any inquiries, checks, examinations, measurements and tests;

(c) take samples;

(d) mark any animal or other thing for identification purposes;

(e) have access to, inspect and copy any documents or records (in whatever form they are held) or remove such documents or records to enable them to be copied;

(f) have access to, inspect and check the operation of, any computer and any associated apparatus or material which is or has been in use in connection with the documents or records; and for this purpose require any person having charge of, or otherwise concerned with the operation of, the computer, apparatus or material to afford such assistance as is reasonably required and, where a document or record is kept by means of a computer, require the document or record to be produced in a form in which it can be taken away;

(g) remove a carcase found on the land for the purpose of carrying out a post-mortem examination on it;

(h) take a photograph of anything on the land; and

(i) remove anything reasonably believed to be evidence of any non-compliance.

(4) An authorised person entering any premises by virtue of this regulation may be accompanied by—

(a) such other persons as are necessary; and

(b) any representative of the European Union acting for the purposes of the Community Regulations enforced by these Regulations.

(5) An authorised person who enters any unoccupied premises must leave them as effectively secured as they were before entry.

(6) An authorised person who enters any land under a power under other legislation may exercise any of the powers specified in this regulation for the purposes of enforcing these Regulations.

Obstruction

7.  Any person who—

(a) intentionally obstructs any person acting in the execution of these Regulations;

(b) without reasonable cause, fails to give to any person acting in the execution of these Regulations any assistance or information that that person may reasonably require under these Regulations;

(c) furnishes to any person acting in the execution of these Regulations any information knowing it to be false or misleading; or

(d) fails to produce a record when required to do so to any person acting in the execution of these Regulations,

is guilty of an offence and is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 3 on the standard scale.

Revocation

8.  The Agriculture (Cross compliance) Regulations 2009(3) are revoked.

Dan Norris

Parliamentary Under Secretary of State

Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs

20th December 2009