Contribution
My Lords, this instrument extends to Northern Ireland only and is being brought through Westminster, working closely with the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs, or DAERA. The Government note the regret amendment tabled by the noble Lord, Lord Dodds of Duncairn, which raises concerns about the implementation of EU-derived plant health and seed legislation in Northern Ireland without public consultation and about the broader implications of the Windsor Framework.
This is a necessary measure to update Northern Ireland’s domestic legislation and plant health enforcement provisions, ensuring the continued protection of Northern Ireland’s biosecurity and fulfilment of our Windsor Framework obligations. As noble Lords will be aware, under the terms of the Windsor Framework, limited parts of European Union law falling under Annex 2 to the framework continue to apply in Northern Ireland. These include the movement of goods, agri-food standards, and animal and plant health. It is important to note that this instrument makes no changes to the Windsor Framework. The instrument will amend existing Northern Ireland plant health legislation, introducing changes to six Northern Ireland statutory rules. The instrument will also update Northern Ireland legislation in line with EU legislative changes which are directly applicable in Northern Ireland. The majority of these changes update obsolete and outdated references in respect of Northern Ireland, Great Britain and EU member states following the UK’s exit from the EU.
I will now outline the changes being made by this instrument. Three of the pieces of marketing legislation being amended are: first, the Marketing of Vegetable Plant Material Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1995; secondly, the Marketing of Ornamental Plant Propagating Material Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1999; and thirdly, the Marketing of Fruit, Plant and Propagating Material Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2017. These set out conditions relating to plant varieties, documentation requirements, and plant health and quality for an array of fruit, vegetables and propagating materials. They protect buyers and growers by outlining compulsory standards for products.
Also being amended are the Forest Reproductive Material Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2002, which implement rules for marketing forest seeds, plants and cuttings, ensuring that material is from approved sustainable sources and is identifiable from seed to the final user, protecting Northern Ireland’s biosecurity traders and growers.
The fifth piece of legislation being amended is the Seed Potatoes Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2016. As you will possibly be aware, seed potatoes are one of the notable good news stories resulting from the introduction of the Windsor Framework. The Windsor Framework permitted the movement of seed potatoes from Great Britain to Northern Ireland and their growing on, which had been prohibited during EU exit.
The final piece of domestic legislation for Northern Ireland that this instrument will amend is the Plant Health (Official Controls and Miscellaneous Provisions) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2020. This is a central piece in setting out the overarching rules and requirements for plant health. These amendments are primarily technical in nature to update references and terms that are related to Northern Ireland, the UK and the EU.
The amendments will also update domestic legislation to include EU biosecurity legislative changes that are already applicable and implemented, including some relating to disease control. A number of the pests and diseases covered in these technical updates pose similar risks to us here in Great Britain, and controls have already been introduced in legislation here. This instrument ensures that similar control measures to protect against these pests and diseases that are already in place in Northern Ireland will be fully enforceable.
The instrument moves beyond the existing ability of rejecting consignments and provides for full enforcement of non-compliance, including pursuing penalties and prosecution where necessary. While no formal public consultation was undertaken for the instrument, we have worked closely with stakeholders through webinars, publication of guidance, roundtables and the Horticultural Working Group as well as one-to-one meetings, particularly on the implementation of the Windsor Framework. From these ongoing stakeholder engagement mechanisms and the technical nature of this instrument, we determined that a consultation was not required.
In conclusion, I emphasise that it is essential that the amendments in this instrument update the Northern Ireland statute book and enable effective compliance with plant health requirements to uphold our commitment to full and faithful implementation of the Windsor Framework. The instrument does not impede Northern Ireland’s constitutional position or grant any additional powers to the European Union, nor does it introduce any additional impositions for stakeholders. So, by approving it, we reaffirm our solid commitment to protect our agrifood, forestry and horticultural sectors and deliver on our international obligations. I beg to move.
Amendment to the Motion