Title, commencement and interpretation

1.-(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Common Agricultural Policy Direct Payments and Support Schemes (Cross Compliance) (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2015 and shall come into operation on 1st August 2015.

(2) The Interpretation Act (Northern Ireland) 1954(3) shall apply to these Regulations as it applies to an Act of the Assembly.

Amendment of the Common Agricultural Policy Single Payment and Support Schemes (Cross Compliance) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2014

2.  The Common Agricultural Policy Single Payment and Support Schemes (Cross Compliance) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2014(4) are amended in accordance with regulations 3 to 5.

3.  For sub-paragraphs (a) and (b) of regulation 4(1) there shall be substituted the following sub-paragraphs-

"(a)the Department of the Environment is the specialist control body who shall bear the responsibility of carrying out the controls in respect of SMR 1 to 3 and paragraphs 1 to 3 of Schedule 1;

(b)the Health and Safety Executive for Northern Ireland is the specialist control body who shall bear the responsibility for carrying out the controls in respect of SMR 10; and".

4.  For paragraph (2) of regulation 5 there shall be substituted the following paragraph-

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

5.  In Schedule 1 (STANDARDS OF GOOD AGRICULTURAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITION)-

(a)in paragraph 4-

(i)for sub-paragraph (1) there shall be substituted the following sub-paragraph-

"4.-(1) A farmer shall ensure that after harvesting a crop that from harvest until 15^th January in the following year one of the following conditions is met on that land at any time-

(a)the stubble of the harvested crop remains in the land; or

(b)the land is sown with a crop which will take up nitrogen from the soil or, where soil or weather conditions prevent a subsequent crop from being sown, measures are put in place to prevent soil erosion.";

(ii)sub-paragraph (4) is revoked;

(iii)for sub-paragraph (5) there shall be substituted the following sub-paragraph-

"(5) Sub-paragraph (1) does not apply in relation to any land between harvest and 15^th January where-

(i)the land is used for a ploughing match and the farmer has received a Derogation from the Department; or

(ii)the land is ploughed as part of practice for a ploughing match.";

(b)after paragraph 9(8) there shall be substituted the following sub-paragraph-

"(8A) Sub-paragraph (8) shall not apply between 15^th August and 31^st August where the farmer has received a derogation from the Department.";

(c)in paragraph 11 for the definition of "invasive species" there shall be substituted the following definition-

""invasive species" means rhododendron (Rhododendron ponticum), Giant Hogweed (Heracleum mantegazzianum), Japanese Knotweed (Fallopia japonica) Himalayan Balsam (Impatiens glandulifera), wild oat (Avena fatua L, and Avena ludoviciana Durieu), dock (Rumex obtusifolius L and Rumex crispus L.), thistle (Cirsium vulgare (Savi) Ten. and Circium arvense (L.) Scop.) and ragwort (Senecio jacobaea L.);".

Sealed with the Official Seal of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development on 25th June 2015

Pauline Rooney

A senior officer of the

Department of Agriculture and Rural Development

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations amend the Common Agricultural Policy Single Payment and Support Schemes (Cross Compliance) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2014 (S.R. 2014 No. 291) ("the principal Regulations"). The principal Regulations supplemented and made provision for the administration and enforcement of Regulation (EU) No. 1306/2013 (O.J. No L347, 20.12.13, p. 549), Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) No 640/2014 and Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) No 809/2014 in relation to cross compliance under the revised system of direct support schemes under the common agricultural policy which came into force on 1st January 2015.

The Regulations amend the principal Regulations by-

(a)permitting a farmer to put measures in place to limit soil erosion where soil or weather conditions prevent a crop being sown (regulation 5(a)(i));

(b)removing the requirement that residues of crops harvested after 1st November are not disturbed until just before sowing the spring crop on the land (regulation 5(a)(ii));

(c)extending the period during which a derogation may be obtained for a ploughing match, providing for the derogation to be obtained by the farmer rather than by the organiser of the ploughing match and permitting ploughing as part of practice for a ploughing match (regulation 5(a)(iii)); and

(d)permitting the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development to authorise hedge, tree or scrub cutting, trimming or laying between 15^th August and 31^st August (regulation 5(b)).

The Regulations also make minor drafting changes and corrections (regulations 3, 4 and 5(c)).