2013 No. 889 (W. 101)

SEEDS, WALES

The Seed Marketing (Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 2013

Made

Laid before the National Assembly for Wales

Coming into force

The Welsh Ministers make these Regulations in exercise of the powers in sections 16(1), (1A), (2), (3), (4), (5) and (5A) and 36 of the Plant Varieties and Seeds Act 19641, after consultation in accordance with section 16(1) of that Act with representatives of such interests as appear to be concerned, and in exercise of the powers in paragraph 1A of Schedule 2 to the European Communities Act 19722.

These Regulations make provision for a purpose mentioned in section 2(2) of the European Communities Act 19723 and it appears to the Welsh Ministers that it is expedient for the reference in these Regulations to Council Decision 2003/17/EC on the equivalence of field inspections carried out in third countries on seed-producing crops and on the equivalence of seed produced in third countries4 to be construed as a reference to that Decision as amended from time to time.

Title, application and commencement1

The title of these Regulations is the Seed Marketing (Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 2013. They apply in relation to Wales and come into force on 10 May 2013.

Amendment of the Seed Marketing (Wales) Regulations 20122

The Seed Marketing (Wales) Regulations 20125 are amended as follows.

Regulation 3 (interpretation of other terms)3

In regulation 3(2)—

a

at the end of sub-paragraph (g), omit “and”;

b

after sub-paragraph (h), insert—

and

i

Council Decision 2003/17/EC on the equivalence of field inspections carried out in third countries on seed-producing crops and on the equivalence of seed produced in third countries,

c

for “those Directives”, substitute “those instruments”.

Licences for temporary experiments4

After regulation 21, insert—

Licences for temporary experiments21A

The Welsh Ministers may by licence exempt any person or class of person from compliance with any provision of these Regulations for the purposes of a temporary experiment organised under—

a

Article 19 of Council Directive 2002/54/EC on the marketing of beet seed6;

b

Article 13a of Council Directive 66/402/EEC on the marketing of cereal seed7;

c

Article 13a of Council Directive 66/401/EEC on the marketing of fodder plant seed8;

d

Article 16 of Council Directive 2002/57/EC on the marketing of seed of oil and fibre plants9; or

e

Article 33 of Council Directive 2002/55/EC on the marketing of vegetable seed10.

Alun DaviesMinister for Natural Resources and Food, one of the Welsh Ministers

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations amend the Seed Marketing (Wales) Regulations 2012 (S.I.2012/245) (“the principal Regulations”).

Regulation 3 adds Council Decision 2003/17/EC on the equivalence of field inspections carried out in third countries on seed-producing crops and on the equivalence of seed produced in third countries (OJ No L 8, 14.1.2003, p. 10) to the list of EU instruments in respect of which references in the principal Regulations are to be construed as references to those instruments as amended from time to time.

Regulation 4 allows the Welsh Ministers to license exemptions for temporary experiments organised under any of the five European Directives on the marketing of, respectively, beet seed, cereal seed, fodder plant seed, seed of oil and fibre plants and vegetable seed. Other provisions of these Directives are already implemented (in relation to Wales) by the principal Regulations.

The Welsh Ministers' Code of Practice on the carrying out of Regulatory Impact Assessments was considered in relation to these Regulations. As a result it was not considered necessary to carry out a regulatory impact assessment as to the likely costs and benefits of complying with these Regulations.