S.I. No. 12/1996 - European Communities (Trade in Animals and Animal Semen, Ova and Embryos) Regulations, 1996.

I, IVAN YATES, Minister for Agriculture, Food and Forestry, 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 No. 92/65/EEC⁽¹⁾ of 13 July 1992, as last amended by Commission Decision No. 95/176/EC⁽²⁾ of 6 April 1995, hereby make the following Regulations:

⁽¹⁾ O.J. No. L268 of 14.9.1992, p. 54.

⁽²⁾ O.J. No. L117 of 24.5.1995, p. 23.

1 Citation and commencement.

1. (1) These Regulations may be cited as the European Communities (Trade in Animals and Animal Semen, Ova and Embryos) Regulations, 1996.

(2) These Regulations shall come into operation on the first day of February, 1996.

2 Scope.

2. These Regulations apply to—

( a ) the import into the State from another Member State of animals, semen, ova or embryos to which the Council Directive applies, other than those which originated in a third country and in relation to which all the checks provided for in Council Directive No. 90/675/EEC⁽³⁾ of 10 December 1990, as amended, or Council Directive No. 91/496/EEC⁽⁴⁾ of 15 July 1991, as amended, have been carried out, and

⁽³⁾ O.J. No. L373 of 31.12.1990, p. 1.

⁽⁴⁾ O.J. No. L268 of 24.9.1991, p. 56.

( b ) the export from the State to another Member State of animals, semen, ova or embryos to which the Council Directive applies,

and "import" and "export" and cognate words, unless the context otherwise requires, shall be construed accordingly.

3 Definitions

3. (1) In these Regulations—

"animal" means an animal to which the Council Directive applies;

"authorised officer" means a person who, for the time being, stands appointed under Regulation 17, or an inspector;

"the Council Directive" means Council Directive No. 92/65/EEC of 13 July 1992, as last amended by Commission Decision No. 95/176/EC of 6 April 1995;

"embryos" means embryos to which the Council Directive applies;

"inspector" means an inspector within the meaning of the Diseases of Animals Act, 1966 (No. 6 of 1966);

"Member State" means a Member State of the European Communities;

"the Minister" means the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Forestry;

"ova" means ova to which the Council Directive applies;

"semen" means semen to which the Council Directive applies;

"third country" means a country which is not a Member State.

(2) In these Regulations—

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

( b ) a reference to a paragraph or subparagraph is to the paragraph or subparagraph of the provision in which the reference occurs, unless it appears 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 some other provision is intended.

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

4 Requirement to originate in registered holdings or businesses.

4. A person shall not export or import, or attempt to export or import—

( a ) apes (simiae and prosimiae),

( b ) ungulates of species other than those referred to in Council Directive No. 64/432/EEC⁽⁵⁾ of 26 June 1964, as amended, Council Directive No. 90/426/EEC⁽⁶⁾ of 26 June 1990, as amended, or Council Directive No. 91/68/EEC⁽⁷⁾ of 28 January 1991, as amended,

⁽⁵⁾ O.J. No. 121 of 29.7.1964, p. 1977.

⁽⁶⁾ O.J. No. L224 of 18.8.1990, p. 42.

⁽⁷⁾ O.J. No. L46 of 19.2.1991, p. 19.

( c ) birds other than those referred to in Council Directive No. 90/539/EEC⁽⁸⁾ of 15 October 1990, as amended,

⁽⁸⁾ O.J. No. L303 of 31.10.1990, p. 6.

( d ) bees (Apis melifera),

( e ) lagomorphs,

( f ) carnivores, primates, bats and other animals susceptible to rabies,

unless they have, in addition to the relevant requirements set out in Regulations 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11—

(i) in the case of export, come from a holding or business which stands registered, for the time being, by the Minister in accordance with Regulation 5, or

(ii) in the case of import, come from a holding or business which stands registered, for the time being, by the competent authority of the Member State of export in accordance with Article 4 of the Council Directive.

5 Registration of holdings or businesses.

5. (1) The Minister may, on application to him in that behalf by the owner or person in charge (in this Regulation referred to as "the owner") of a holding or business, if he is satisfied that—

( a ) the holding or business complies with the provisions of the Council Directive, where appropriate, for the class, species or type of animal concerned,

( b ) the application is a bona fide application and the holding or business has not been previously registered by him, and

( c ) the owner has given, in writing, the undertaking provided for in Article 4 of the Council Directive,

register the holding or business for the purposes of Article 4 of the Council Directive which may be limited to such class, species or type of animal as he considers appropriate.

(2) When the Minister registers a holding or business in accordance with paragraph (1), he shall allocate a registration number to it and shall notify the owner of—

( a ) the registration and the registration number;

( b ) any terms or conditions attached to the registration and, if he amends any terms or conditions of the registration, of the amendments;

( c ) the class, species or type of animal to which registration refers.

(3) The Minister may specify the format of the application and the undertaking referred to in paragraph (1) and, where he does so, it shall be a requirement of this Regulation to furnish the application and the undertaking in the format so specified.

(4) A person who applies for registration shall furnish the Minister with such information as he may reasonably require for the purposes of his functions under these Regulations and the Council Directive.

(5) The Minister may, if he is not satisfied that—

( a ) the provisions of these Regulations or of the Council Directive, or

( b ) a term or condition referred to in paragraph (2),

are being or have been complied with by the owner as respects the holding or business concerned, revoke the registration and, if he does so, he shall notify the owner in writing of the revocation.

(6) Where the Minister proposes to—

( a ) refuse to grant, or revoke, a registration,

( b ) attach a term or condition to a registration or amend such a term or condition,

he shall—

(i) notify the owner concerned in writing—

(I) of the proposal and of the reasons therefor, and

(II) that he, or a person acting on his behalf, may make representations to the Minister in relation to the proposal within 14 days of the receipt by him of the notification,

and

(ii) consider any such representations duly made before deciding whether to proceed with the proposal or not.

(7) A person shall not export or attempt to export animals of a class, species or type from a holding or business registered under this Regulation other than those referred to in the registration and notified to the owner in accordance with paragraph (2).

6 Trade in apes.

6. (1) A person shall not export or import, or attempt to export or import, apes (simiae and prosimiae) unless they are—

( a ) in the case of export—

(i) consigned from a body, institute or centre approved by the Minister for that purpose in accordance with Regulation 15 and consigned to a body, institute or centre approved for that purpose in the Member State of import, and

(ii) accompanied by a health certificate relating to the apes concerned which corresponds to the specimen in Annex E to the Council Directive and which has been signed by an inspector;

( b ) in the case of import—

(i) consigned from a body, institute or centre approved for that purpose in the Member State of export and consigned to a body, institute or centre within the State which has been approved for that purpose by the Minister in accordance with Regulation 15, and

(ii) accompanied by a health certificate relating to the apes concerned which corresponds to the specimen in Annex E to the Council Directive and which has been signed by an official veterinarian approved for that purpose in the Member State of export.

(2) Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (1), the Minister may authorise the importation of apes consigned to a body, institute or centre approved for that purpose by the Minister under Regulation 15 which belong to a person upon a request being made in that behalf by the body, institute or centre concerned.

7 Trade in ungulates.

7. (1) A person shall not export or import, or attempt to export or import, ungulates of species other than those referred to in Council Directive No. 64/432/EEC, as amended, Council Directive No. 90/426/EEC, as amended, or Council Directive No. 91/68/EEC, as amended, unless they—

( a ) are identified in accordance with Article 3 (1) (c)of Council Directive No. 90/425/EEC⁽⁹⁾ of 26 June 1990, as amended;

⁽⁹⁾ O.J. No. L224 of 18.8.1990, p. 29.

( b ) are not intended for slaughter under a programme for the eradication of an infectious disease;

( c ) have not been vaccinated against foot-and-mouth disease and satisfy the relevant requirements of Council Directive No. 85/511/EEC⁽¹⁰⁾ of 18 November 1985, as amended, and Article 4a of Council Directive No. 64/432/EEC, as amended;

⁽¹⁰⁾ O.J. No. L315 of 26.11.1985, p. 11.

( d ) come from a holding referred to in Article 3 (2) (b)and (c) of Council Directive No. 64/432/EEC, as amended, which is not the subject of animal health measures and have been kept therein permanently since birth or for the last thirty days before the date of export;

( e ) if imported from a third country—

(i) came from a third country included for the time being in the column entitled "other ungulates" in the list drawn up in accordance with Article 3 of Council Directive No. 72/462/EEC⁽¹¹⁾ of 12 December 1972, as amended, and

⁽¹¹⁾ O.J. No. L302 of 31.12.1972, p. 28.

(ii) met, at the time of importation from the third country concerned, the specific animal health conditions for such imports from that third country laid down in accordance with the procedure provided for in Article 26 of the Council Directive; and

( f ) are accompanied by a health certificate relating to the animals concerned which corresponds to the specimen in Annex E to the Council Directive, which bears the declaration specified in Article 6 (A) (1) (f) of the Council Directive and which has been signed—

(i) in the case of import, by an official veterinarian approved for that purpose in the Member State of export, or

(ii) in the case of export, by an inspector.

(2) A person shall not export or import, or attempt to export or import, ungulates referred to in paragraph (1) that are ruminants unless, in addition to the requirements laid down in that paragraph, they—

( a ) come from an officially tuberculosis-free and officially brucellosis-free herd in accordance with Council Directive No. 64/432/EEC, as amended, or Council Directive No. 91/68/EEC, as amended, and satisfy, as regards animal health rules, the relevant requirements laid down for the bovine species in Article 3 (2) (c), (d), (f), (g) and (h) of Council Directive No. 64/432/EEC, as amended, or Article 3 of Council Directive No. 91/68/EEC, as amended; or

( b ) where they do not come from a herd meeting the requirements of subparagraph (a), come from a holding in which no case of brucellosis or tuberculosis has been recorded in the 42 days preceding loading of the animals and in which the ruminants have, in the 30 days prior to their dispatch, undergone with negative results—

(i) a tuberculosis reaction test approved by the Minister, and

(ii) a test approved by the Minister designed to show the absence of antibodies to brucellosis.

(3) A person shall not export or import, or attempt to export or import, ungulates referred to in paragraph (1) that are suidae unless, in addition to meeting the requirements laid down in that paragraph, the suidae—

( a ) come from an area which is not the subject of prohibition measures associated with the presence of African swine fever in accordance with Article 9a of Council Directive No. 64/432/EEC, as amended;

( b ) come from a holding which is not subject to any of the restrictions laid down in Council Directive No. 80/217/EEC⁽¹²⁾ of 22 January 1980, as amended;

⁽¹²⁾ O.J. No. L47 of 21.2.1980, p.11.

( c ) come from a brucellosis-free holding in accordance with Council Directive No. 64/432/EEC, as amended, and satisfy the relevant animal health requirements for swine laid down in that Directive; and

( d ) where they do not come from a herd meeting the conditions laid down in subparagraph (c), have, in the 30 days prior to their dispatch, undergone with negative results a test approved by the Minister designed to show the absence of antibodies to brucellosis.

8 Trade in birds.

8. (1) A person shall not export or import, or attempt to export or import, birds other than those to which Council Directive No. 90/539/EEC, as amended, applies unless they—

( a ) come from a holding in which avian influenza has not been diagnosed in the 30 days preceding their dispatch;

( b ) come from a holding or an area not subject to restrictions under Council Directive No. 92/66/EEC⁽¹³⁾ of 14 July 1992 introducing Community measures for the control of Newcastle disease; and

⁽¹³⁾ O.J. No. L260 of 5.9.1992, p. 1.

( c ) if imported from a third country, have been quarantined in the holding to which they were taken after they entered the territory of the European Communities in accordance with Article 10 (1), third indent, of Council Directive No. 91/496/EEC, as amended.

(2) A person shall not export or import, or attempt to export or import, psittacidae unless, in addition to meeting the requirements of paragraph (1), the psittacidae—

( a ) come from a holding on which psittacosis (Chlamydia psittaci) has not been diagnosed for at least two months;

( b ) have not been in contact with animals from a holding on which psittacosis (Chlamydia psittaci) has been diagnosed for at least two months;

( c ) are identified by leg-bands bearing individual numbers unique to each bird; and

( d ) are accompanied by a commercial document relating to the birds concerned which bears the numbers of the leg-bands referred to in subparagraph (c) and which has been signed—

(i) in the case of export, by an inspector, or

(ii) in the case of import, by an official veterinarian or veterinarian responsible for the holding or business of origin approved for that purpose by the competent authority of the Member State of export.

9 Trade in bees.

9. A person shall not export or import, or attempt to export or import, bees (Apis melifera) unless they—

( a ) (i) come from an area which is not the subject of a prohibition order associated with an occurrence of American foulbrood, or

(ii) where American foulbrood has previously occurred in the area, the prohibition order has not been lifted until a period of at least 30 days has elapsed since the last recorded case and until all hives within a radius of three kilometres have been checked and all infected hives burned or treated to the satisfaction, in the case of exports, of an authorised officer and, in the case of imports, of the competent authority of the Member State of export; and

( b ) are accompanied by a health certificate relating to the bees concerned which corresponds to the specimen in Annex E to the Council Directive, which bears a declaration stating that the requirements laid down in subparagraph (a) have been met, and which has been signed—

(i) in the case of export, by an authorised officer, or

(ii) in the case of import, by a person authorised so to do by the competent authority of the Member State of export.

10 Trade in lagomorphs.

10. (1) A person shall not export or import, or attempt to export or import, lagomorphs unless they—

( a ) come from a holding on which rabies is not present nor is suspected of having been present within a period of one month prior to the date of their export;

( b ) come from a holding in which no animal shows clinical signs of myxomatosis; and

( c ) are accompanied—

(i) in the case of import from a Member State, other than the United Kingdom, by a health certificate relating to the lagomorphs concerned which corresponds to the specimen in Annex E to the Council Directive, which states that the requirements of subparagraph (a) have been met, and which has been signed by an official veterinarian approved for that purpose in the Member State of export; or

(ii) in the case of export and where required by the Member State of import, by a health certificate relating to the lagomorphs concerned which corresponds to the specimen in Annex E to the Council Directive, which bears the declaration specified in Article 9 (2) of the Council Directive, and which has been signed by an inspector.

11 Trade in certain carnivores.

11. (1) A person shall not export or import, or attempt to export or import, ferrets, mink or foxes unless they come from a holding on which rabies has not been present nor is suspected of having been present within a period of six months prior to the date of export.

(2) A person shall not export, or attempt to export, a dog or cat which is more than three months old to a Member State, other than the United Kingdom, unless—

( a ) it shows no sign of disease, and particularly of contagious diseases of the species concerned, on the day it is dispatched from the holding of origin;

( b ) it is tattooed or has a micro-chip identification system implanted pursuant to the rules laid down in accordance with the procedure provided for in Article 26 of the Council Directive;

( c ) it has, after the age of three months, been vaccinated against rabies with an annual booster injection or, at such intervals as may be authorised by the Minister for the purposes of the Council Directive for the vaccine concerned, by injection of an inactivated vaccine of at least one international antigenic unit (WHO standard) measured in accordance with the activity test by the method described by the European Pharmacopoeia and recognised for that purpose in accordance with the procedure provided for in Article 26 of the Council Directive;

( d ) the vaccination referred to in subparagraph (c) is certified by an inspector or a veterinary surgeon authorised for the time being by the Minister for that purpose;

( e ) in the case of a dog, it has been vaccinated against canine distemper; and

( f ) it is accompanied by—

(i) an individual passport allowing the animal to be clearly identified and which shows the dates on which the vaccinations referred to in subparagraph (c) and, where appropriate, subparagraph (d) have been carried out, or

(ii) a health certificate relating to the animal concerned which corresponds to the specimen in Annex E to the Council Directive, which bears the declaration specified in Article 10 (2) (a), fifth indent, of the Council Directive, and which has been signed by an inspector or by a veterinary surgeon responsible for the holding of origin authorised for the time being by the Minister for that purpose.

(3) A person shall not export, or attempt to export, a cat or dog which is less than three months of age to a Member State, other than the United Kingdom, unless—

( a ) it shows no sign of disease, and particularly of contagious diseases of the species concerned, on the day it is dispatched from the holding of origin;

( b ) it has come from a holding which is not the subject of restrictions on the movement of animals on animal health grounds;

( c ) it has been born on the holding of origin and has remained in captivity there since birth; and

( d ) it is accompanied by—

(i) an individual passport allowing the animal to be clearly identified, or

12 Trade in semen, ova and embryos.

12. (1) A person shall not export or import, or attempt to export or import, semen of the caprine, equine or ovine species unless the semen—

( a ) is collected and processed with a view to artificial insemination in a centre which stands approved—

(i) in the case of export, for the time being by the Minister in accordance with Regulation 13, or

(ii) in the case of import, for the time being by the competent authority of the Member State of export;

( b ) in the case of semen of the caprine or ovine species, by way of derogation from subparagraph (a), comes from a holding which satisifies the requirements of Council Directive No. 91/68/EEC, as amended;

( c ) has been collected from animals which met the conditions laid down in Annex D, Chapter II, to the Council Directive;

( d ) has been collected, processed and preserved in accordance with Annex D, Chapter III, to the Council Directive;

( e ) is accompanied during transport by a health certificate relating to the semen concerned which corresponds to the specimen determined in accordance with the procedure provided for in Article 26 of the Council Directive and which has been signed—

(i) in the case of export, by an inspector, or

(ii) in the case of import, by an official veterinarian authorised for that purpose in the Member State of export.

(2) A person shall not export or import, or attempt to export or import, ova or embryos of the caprine, equine or ovine species or of swine unless the ova or embryos—

( a ) have been removed by a collection team which stands approved—

(i) in the case of export, for the time being by the Minister in accordance with Regulation 13, or

(ii) in the case of import, for the time being by the competent authority of the Member State of export;

( b ) have been processed in an appropriate laboratory from donor females meeting the conditions laid down in Annex D, Chapter IV, to the Council Directive;

( c ) have been treated and stored in accordance with Annex D, Chapter III, to the Council Directive;

( d ) in the case of embryos, the semen used for the insemination of the donor females complied with the provisions of paragraph (1) in the case of equines, goats and sheep and with the provisions of Council Directive No. 90/429/EEC⁽¹⁴⁾ of 26 June 1990, as amended, in the case of swine; and

⁽¹⁴⁾ O.J. N. L224 of 18.8.1990, p. 62.

( e ) are accompanied during transport by a health certificate relating to the embryos or ova concerned which corresponds to the specimen determined in accordance with the procedure provided for in Article 26 of the Council Directive and which has been signed—

(i) in the case of export, by an inspector, or

(ii) in the case of import, by an official veterinarian authorised for that purpose in the Member State of export.

13 Approval of semen collection centres and embryo collection teams.

13. (1) The Minister may, on application to him in that behalf by the owner or person in charge (in this Regulation referred to as "the owner") of a semen collection centre or embryo collection team, if he is satisfied that—

( a ) in the case of a semen collection centre—

(i) it complies with the conditions governing their approval in Annex D, Chapter I, paragraph (I), to the Council Directive,

(ii) the conditions for the supervision of semen collection centres in Annex D, Chapter I, paragraph (II), to the Council Directive and the conditions applicable in collection centres in Annex D, Chapter II, to the Council Directive will be complied with,

( b ) in the case of an embryo collection team, the embryos will be collected from donor females which meet the requirements of Annex D, Chapter IV, to the Council Directive,

( c ) the requirements for the collection, processing and preserving of semen, ova and embryos, as the case may be, in Annex D, Chapter III, to the Council Directive will be complied with,

( d ) the application is a bona fide application and the collection centre or team has not been previously registered by him,

grant approval to the semen collection centre or embryo collection team concerned for the purpose of these Regulations and the Council Directive.

(2) When the Minister grants approval to a semen collection centre or embryo collection team in accordance with paragraph (1), he shall allocate an approval number to it and shall notify the owner of—

( a ) the approval and the approval number;

( b ) any terms or conditions attached to the approval and, if he amends any terms or conditions of the approval, of the amendments.

(3) The Minister may specify the format of the application referred to in paragraph (1) and, where he does so, it shall be a requirement of this Regulation to furnish the application in the format so specified.

(4) A person who applies for approval shall furnish the Minister with such information as he may reasonably require for the purposes of his functions under these Regulations and the Council Directive.

(5) The Minister may, if he is not satisfied that—

( a ) the provisions of these Regulations or of the Council Directive, or

( b ) a term or condition referred to in paragraph (2),

are being or have been complied with by the owner as respects the semen collection centre or embryo collection team concerned, revoke the approval and, if he does so, he shall notify the owner in writing of the revocation.

(6) Where the Minister proposes to—

( a ) refuse to grant, or revoke, an approval,

( b ) attach a term or condition to an approval or amend such a term or condition,

he shall—

(i) notify the owner concerned in writing—

(I) of the proposal and of the reasons therefor, and

(II) that he, or a person acting on his behalf, may make representations to the Minister in relation to the proposal within 14 days of the receipt by him of the notification,

and

(ii) consider any such representations duly made before deciding whether to proceed with the proposal or not.

14 Trade between approved bodies, institutes or centres.

14. (1) Notwithstanding Regulations 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11, a person shall not import, or attempt to import

( a ) animals of species susceptible to the diseases listed in the Schedule, or

( b ) semen, ova and embryos of such animals,

which are consigned from a body, institute or centre approved for that purpose in the Member State of export to a body, institute or centre approved by the Minister in accordance with Regulation 15 unless—

(i) they are accompanied during transport by a transport document relating to the animals, semen, ova or embryos concerned which corresponds to the specimen in Annex E to the Council Directive, and

(ii) the transport document referred to in subparagraph (i) above has been completed and signed by the veterinarian responsible for the body, institute or centre of origin and states that the animals, semen, ova or embryos concerned come from a body, institute or centre approved in the Member State of export in accordance with Annex C to the Council Directive.

(2) Notwithstanding Regulations 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11, a person shall not export, or attempt to export—

( a ) animals of species susceptible to the diseases listed in the Schedule, or

( b ) semen, ova and embryos of such animals,

which are consigned from a body, institute or centre approved by the Minister in accordance with Regulation 15 to a body, institute or centre approved for that purpose in the Member State of export unless—

(i) they are accompanied during transport by a transport document relating to the animals, semen, ova or embryos concerned which corresponds to the specimen in Annex E to the Council Directive, and

(ii) the transport document referred to in subparagraph (i) above has been completed and signed by a veterinary surgeon responsible for the body, institute or centre of origin who has been authorised by the Minister for that purpose and states that the animals, semen, ova or embryos concerned come from a body, institute or centre approved by the Minister for that purpose.

15 Approval of bodies, institutes and centres.

15. (1) The Minister may, on application to him in that behalf by the owner or person in charge (in this Regulation referred to as "the owner") of a body, institute or centre for the purposes of Article 5 or 13 of the Council Directive, if he is satisfied that—

( a ) it is a permanent, geographically limited establishment where one or more species of animal are habitually kept or bred, whether or not for commercial ends, and exclusively for one or more of the following purposes—

(i) display of the animals and education of the public,

(ii) conservation of the species,

(iii) basic or applied scientific research or the breeding of animals for the purposes of such research,

( b ) it complies with the conditions set out in Annex C to the Council Directive, and

( c ) the application is a bona fide application and the body, institute or centre concerned has not been previously approved by him,

grant approval to the body, institute or centre concerned for the purposes of these Regulations and the Council Directive.

(2) When the Minister grants approval to a body, institute or centre in accordance with paragraph (1), he shall allocate an approval number to it and shall notify the owner of—

( a ) the approval and the approval number;

( b ) any terms or conditions attached to the approval and, if he amends any terms or conditions of the approval, of the amendments.

(4) A person who applies for approval under this Regulation shall furnish the Minister with such information as he may reasonably require for the purposes of his functions under these Regulations and the Council Directive.

(5) The Minister may, if he is not satisfied that—

( a ) the provisions of these Regulations or of the Council Directive, or

( b ) a term or condition referred to in paragraph (2), are being or have been complied with by the owner as respects the body, institute or centre concerned, revoke the approval and, if he does so, he shall notify the owner in writing of the revocation.

(6) Where the Minister proposes to—

( a ) refuse to grant, or revoke, an approval,

( b ) attach a term or condition to an approval or amend such a term or condition,

he shall—

(i) notify the owner concerned in writing—

(I) of the proposal and of the reasons therefor, and

(II) that he, or a person acting on his behalf, may make representations to the Minister in relation to the proposal within 14 days of the receipt by him of the notification,

and

(ii) consider any such representations duly made before deciding whether to proceed with the proposal or not.

16 Application of additional guarantees.

16. (1) Where a Member State applies additional guarantees in accordance with Article 14 or 15 of the Council Directive, a person shall not export, or attempt to export, animals, semen, ova or embryos to that Member State unless they comply with the relevant requirements of those additional guarantees.

(2) A person shall not import, or attempt to import, animals, semen, ova or embryos unless they comply with the additional guarantees in force in the State in accordance with Article 14 or 15 of the Council Directive.

17 Appointment of authorised officers.

17. (1) The Minister may appoint such and so many persons as he thinks fit to be authorised officers for the purposes of these Regulations.

(2) An authorised officer, when exercising any power conferred on him by these Regulations, shall, if so requested by any person affected, produce evidence in writing of his appointment as an authorised officer or inspector.

18 Powers of authorised officer.

18. (1) An authorised officer may, for the purposes of these Regulations and the Council Directive—

( a ) at all reasonable times, enter any premises or place, and any vehicle, wagon, vessel, aircraft or other means of transport (other than a premises, place, or means of transport, consisting of a dwelling or other than so much thereof as consists of a dwelling) where he reasonably suspects that there are or have been animals, semen, ova or embryos intended for export or which are being or have been imported,

( b ) there or at any other place, examine and inspect any animals, semen, ova or embryos,

( c ) take, without payment of compensation, such samples of any animals, semen, ova or embryos (including, in the case of animals, samples of blood, urine, faeces, milk, saliva, semen, tissue or other thing) or of any article, substance or liquid at the premises or place or on or in the means of transport as he may reasonably require for the purposes of his functions under these Regulations or the Council Directive and carry out or have carried out on the samples such analyses, examinations, checks and inspections as he considers necessary or expedient for the purposes of such functions,

( d ) there or at any other place, carry out or have carried out such examinations, checks and inspections of the premises, place or means of transport and any equipment, machinery or plant and any other article, substance or liquid found there as he reasonably considers necessary or expedient for the purposes of such functions,

( e ) require any person at the premises or place or on or in the means of transport and the owner or person in charge thereof and any person employed in connection therewith to give to him such information and to produce to him such books, certificates, documents and other records as he may reasonably require for the purposes of such functions,

( f ) examine and take copies of, or of extracts from, any such records as aforesaid,

( g ) require the production of, take up and retain, where required for the purposes of such functions, any health certificates or other documents which have accompanied or are accompanying animals, semen ova or embryos and which are within the power or procurement of a person referred to in subparagraph (e),

( h ) seize and detain any animals, semen, ova or embryos found there which he reasonably believes to be intended for export or which are being or have been imported and which he reasonably believes do not comply with the requirements of these Regulations or the Council Directive,

( i ) seize and detain anything found there which he reasonably believes to be evidence of an offence under these Regulations.

(2) A person shall not, in purported compliance with a requirement under paragraph (1) (e), give information to an authorised officer that he knows to be false or misleading in a material respect.

(3) The cost of the detention of any animals, semen, ova or embryos pursuant to paragraph (1) (h) may be recovered by the Minister from the person who was the owner thereof as a simple contract debt in any court of competent jurisdiction.

19 Application for search warrant.

19. (1) If a judge of the District Court is satisfied by information on oath of an authorised officer or member of the Garda Síochána that there is reasonable cause for suspecting that—

( a ) evidence of or relating to the commission or intended commission of an offence under these Regulations is to be found in, on or under any land or premises or in or on any vehicle,

( b ) there is or was or is intended to be in, on or under any land or premises or in or on any vehicle any animals, semen, ova or embryos in relation to which a contravention of these Regulations is being or has been or is intended to be committed, or

( c ) a document directly or indirectly relating to, or connected with, a transaction or dealing which was, or an intended transaction or dealing which would if carried out be, an offence under these Regulations, is in the possession or under the control of a person in, on or under any land or premises or in or on any vehicle,

and that such land, premises or vehicle or any part thereof consists of a dwelling, such judge may issue a search warrant under this Regulation.

(2) A search warrant issued under this Regulation shall be expressed and operate to authorise a named authorised officer or member of the Garda Síochána, accompanied by such authorised officers or members of the Garda Síochána as the named officer or member thinks fit, at any time or times within one month from the date of the issue of the warrant, on production if so requested of the warrant, to enter (if necessary by force) the land, premises or vehicle named in the warrant.

(3) Where any premises, land or vehicle is entered pursuant to a warrant issued under this Regulation, an authorised officer or member of the Garda Síochána so entering may—

( a ) stop and detain any person found in, on or under such land or premises, or in or on such vehicle, for the purpose of searching that person and may search the person or cause him to be searched, and

( b ) exercise all or any of the powers specified in Regulation 18.

20 Period during which animals, semen, ova and embryos may be detained.

20. Animals, semen, ova or embryos may be detained by or at the direction of an authorised officer pursuant to paragraph (1) (h) of Regulation 18 pending the outcome of any criminal proceedings which may be instituted in relation to the animals, semen, ova or embryos concerned, or—

( a ) in the case of animals, semen, ova or embryos intended for export, until such time as the authorised officer is satisfied either that they will not be exported or that they will be exported in accordance with these Regulations and the Council Directive.

( b ) in the case of animals, semen, ova or embryos which are being or have been imported, until such time as the authorised officer is satisfied that they are being or have been imported in accordance with these Regulations and the Council Directive or until they are exported from the State.

21 Offences.

21. (1) A person who contravenes a provision of these Regulations shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding £1,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months or to both.

(2) A person who obstructs or impedes an authorised officer or member of the Garda Síochána in the execution of these Regulations shall be guilty of an offence.

(3) Where an offence under these Regulations is committed by a body corporate and is proved to have been so committed with the consent or connivance of or to be attributable to any neglect on the part of any person, being a director, manager, secretary or other officer of the body corporate, or a person who was purporting to act in any such capacity, that person, as well as the body corporate, shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable to be proceeded against and punished as if he were guilty of the first-mentioned offence.

22 Prosecution of offences.

22. An offence under these Regulations may be prosecuted by the Minister.

23 Application of the Importation of Dogs and Cats Orders, 1929 to 1970, the Rabies (Importation, Landing and Movement of Animals) Orders, 1972 and 1976, and other provisions.

23. These Regulations are in addition to and not in substitution for—

( a ) the Importation of Dogs and Cats Orders, 1929 to 1970,

( b ) the Rabies (Importation, Landing and Movement of Animals) Orders, 1972 and 1976, and

( c ) such further provisions in relation to the import or export of animals, semen, ova and embryos in force for the time being in the State.

24 Amendment of the European Communities (Trade in Animals and Animal Products) Regulations, 1994.

24. The European Communities (Trade in Animals and Animal Products) Regulations, 1994 ( S.I. No. 289 of 1994 ) are hereby amended by the substitution in the Schedule to the Regulations for entry no. 21 of the following:

"21. Council Directive No. 92/65/EEC(29) of 13 July 1992, as last amended by Commission Decision No. 95/176/EC⁽³⁷⁾ of 6 April 1995."

⁽²⁹⁾ O.J. No. L268 of 14.9.1992, p. 54.

⁽³⁷⁾ O.J. No. L117 of 24.5.1995, p. 23.

SCHEDULE

Diseases	Species concerned
Newcastle disease	Birds
Avian influenza	Birds
Psittacosis	Psittacidae
American foulbrood	Bees
Foot-and-mouth disease	Ruminants
Brucellosis (Brucella ssp.)	Ruminants
Tuberculosis	Ruminants
Classical swine fever	Suidae
African swine fever	Suidae
Foot-and-mouth disease	Suidae
Rabies	All susceptible species

GIVEN under my Official Seal, this 16th day of January, 1996.

IVAN YATES,

Minister for Agriculture, Food and Forestry.

EXPLANATORY NOTE.

These Regulations implement Council Directive No. 92/65/EEC of 13 July 1992 laying down animal health requirements for animals, semen, ova and embryos not subject to animal health requirements laid down in other specific Community rules. They also (a) provide for the appointment of authorised officers by the Minister, (b) lay down the powers which may be exercised by such authorised officers, and (c) establish offences in the case of contravention of the Regulations.