European Communities (Identification and Registration of Bovine Animals) Regulations. 1999

• Jurisdiction: Ireland

I, Joe Walsh, Minister for Agriculture and Food, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by section 3 of the European Communities Act, 1972 (No. 27 of 1972) and for the purpose of giving effect to Council Directive 97/12(EC)(1) of 17 March 1997, Council Regulation (EC) No. 820/97(2) of 21 April 1997, Commission Regulation (EC) No. 2628/97(3) of 29 December 1997, Commission Regulation (EC) No. 2629/97(4) of 29 December 1997, Commission Regulation (EC) No. 2630/97(5) of 29 December 1997, Commission Regulation (EC) No. 494/98(6) of 27 February 1998 and Commission Regulation (EC) No. 1678/98(7) of 29 July 1998 insofar as they relate to the identification and registration of births of animals and the issue of animal passports and keeping of registers, hereby make the following Regulations:—

1. (1) These Regulations may be cited as the European Communities (Identification and Registration of Bovine Animals) Regulations, 1999.

(2) These Regulations shall come into force on 13 September, 1999.

2. (1) In these Regulations—

“the 1989 Order” means the Bovine Tuberculosis (Attestation of the State and General Provisions) Order, 1989 ( S.I. No. 308 of 1989 );

“the 1996 Order” means the Bovine Tuberculosis (Attestation of the State and General Provisions) Order, 1996 ( S.I. No. 103 of 1996 );

“the 1999 Order” means the Bovine Tuberculosis (Attestation of the State and General Provisions) Order, 1999 ( S.I. No. 277 of 1999 );

“the 1996 Regulations” means the European Communities (Registration of Bovine Animals) Regulations, 1996 ( S.I. No. 104 of 1996 );

“the Act” means the Diseases of Animals Act, 1966 (No. 6 of 1966);

“The Commission Regulations” means Commission Regulation (EC) No. 2628/97 of 29 December 1997, Commission Regulation (EC) No. 2629/97 of 29 December 1997, Commission Regulation (EC) No. 2630/97 of 29 December 1997, Commission Regulation (EC) No. 494/98 of 27 February 1998 and Commission Regulation (EC) No. 1678/98 of 29 July 1998;

“the Council Regulation” means Council Regulation (EC) No. 820/97 of 21 April 1997;

“animal” means a bovine animal;

“application form” means the document in the format set out in the First Schedule or in the First Schedule to the 1996 Regulations;

“approved ear-tag” has the meaning assigned to it by the 1989 Order;

“authorised person” means:—

(i) a person who stands appointed for the time being under Regulation 6 of the 1996 Regulations, or

(ii) an authorised person within the meaning of the Act, including any person authorised to exercise the powers of an authorised person under section 25, paragraph (3), of the Act, or

(iii) a person appointed under Regulation 25, paragraph (1);

“business of a livestock mart” has the meaning assigned to it by the Livestock Marts Act, 1967 (No. 20 of 1967);

“ear-tags” means the ear-tags referred to in the 1996 Order or in the 1999 Order;

“herd” has the meaning assigned to it by the 1989 Order;

“herd number” means the number allocated for the time being to a herd by the Minister;

“holding means any establishment, construction or in the case of an open air farm, any place situated within the country in which animals are kept;

“keeper” means any natural or legal person responsible for animals, whether on a permanent or on a temporary basis, including during transportation or at a market;

“mart” has the meaning assigned to it by the Livestock Marts Regulations, 1968 ( S.I. No. 251 of 1968 );

“mart official” means a person who carries on the business of a livestock mart or any person holding a responsible position of management at the mart or any person so assigned by the mart;

“Member State” means a Member State of the European Communities;

“passport” means a passport issued in accordance with Regulation 4 unless the contrary intention appears;

“the Minister” means the Minister for Agriculture and Food;

“third country” means a country which is not a member of the European Communities.

(2) The competent authority in the State for the purposes of the Council Regulation and the Commission Regulations shall be the Minister.

(3) A word or expression that is used in these Regulations and is also used in the Council Regulation or the Commission Regulations has unless the contrary intention appears, the meaning in these Regulations that it has in the Council Regulation or Commission Regulations.

(4) In these Regulations—

(a) a reference to a Regulation is to a Regulation of these Regulations, unless it appears that reference to some other enactment is intended;

(b) a reference to a paragraph is to a paragraph of the provision in which the reference occurs, unless it is indicated that reference to some other provision is intended;

(c) a reference to a Schedule is to a Schedule to these Regulations unless it appears that reference to another Schedule is intended.

3. A keeper shall, in the case of an animal born on his holding and identified in accordance with the 1999 Order after the date of coming into force of these Regulations, within seven days of the date on which the animal has been so identified—

(a) complete an application form in respect of that animal.

(b) sign the application form at the place indicated therefor, and

(c) return the application form by post to the address indicated thereon.

4. (1) The Minister may issue or cause to be issued—

(a) a passport in the format set out in the Second Schedule in respect of each animal whose birth has been notified in accordance with Regulation 3 or Regulation 3, paragraph (1), of the 1996 Regulations, or otherwise, on which shall be stated in writing at least the following—

(i) the number on the ear-tags attached to the animal pursuant to the 1999 Order or the 1996 Order,

(ii) the sex of the animal,

(iii) the date of birth of the animal,

(iv) the breed of the animal in accordance with the breed codes set out in the Second Schedule to the 1996 Regulations as amended by Regulation 28, paragraph (3), of these Regulations,

(v) the number on the ear-tags or approved eartag attached to the dam,

(vi) the date of issue of the passport,

(vii) the herd number allocated to the herd in which the animal was born, and

(viii) the name and address of the keeper;

(b) a replacement passport in the format set out in the Third Schedule containing the information in paragraph (a) where he is satisfied that it is in order to do so;

(c) a passport in the format set out in the Third Schedule in respect of an animal inported from a third country or from another Member State.

(2) Where an animal is imported from another Member State, the passport that had been issued by the competent authority in that Member State and accompanying that animal on its arrival, shall be surrendered at that time by the new keeper to the Minister for the purposes of Article 6, paragraph 1, of the Council Regulation.

(3) Where a passport has been issued for an animal in accordance with paragraph (1)(b), a keeper shall surrender to the Minister any other passport relating to that animal, or purporting to be relating to that animal, in his possession or which may subsequently come into his possession.

5. A passport which has been issued in acordance with—

(a) Regulation 4, paragraph (1) (a), shall be signed by the keeper to whom the passport is issued in the space provided on receipt of the passport;

(b) Regulation 4, paragraph (1)(b) or (1)(c), shall—

(i) in the case of an animal born on his holding, be signed by the keeper to whom the passport was issued in the space provided, or

(ii) in other cases, be completed and signed by the keeper of the animal to whom the passport is issued at the first available line of the section titled “record of owners/keepers (to be completed by each new owner/keeper on arrival of animal at holding)”.

6. (1) Without prejudice to the generality of Article 5 of the 1999 Order, any requirement in the 1989 Order or the Brucellosis in Cattle (General Provisions) Order, 1991 ( S.I. No. 114 of 1991 ) for an animal to be accompanied by an appropriately completed identity card shall, in the case of an animal in respect of which a passport has been issued, be construed as a like requirement for that animal to be accompanied by that passport.

(2) Without prejudice to the generality of paragraph (1), a keeper shall not move an animal to which these Regulations apply from a holding unless the animal is accompanied by the passport relating to that animal.

(3) Notwithstanding paragraphs (1) and (2), an authorised person who is an officer of the Minister may issue a permit for an animal to be moved without being accompanied by the passport relating to that animal where he is satisfied that it is appropriate to do so.

7. The provisions of Article 6, paragraph (3), of the 1996 Order shall not apply in the case of an animal in respect of which a passport has issued or is required to be issued in accordance with Regulation 4.

8. A keeper shall not transfer responsibility for an animal unless the passport relating to that animal, which has been signed and completed as appropriate in accordance with Regulation 5 and where appropriate in accordance with Regulation 12, is transferred at the same time to the new keeper.

9. A keeper shall not accept responsibility for an animal unless it is accompanied by the passport relating to that animal, which is signed and completed as appropriate in accordance with Regulation 5 and where appropriate in accordance with Regulation 12.

10. Where an animal arrives at a mart, a mart official at that mart shall complete, as a keeper of that animal, the first line available in the section of the passport relating to that animal titled “Record of Transactions at Marts (to be completed by Mart Official)” with the date of arrival at the mart, the code no. of the mart, the lot no. and signature of the mart official.

11. No person shall remove an animal from a mart unless the...