S.I. No. 503/2001 - Diseases of Animals Act, 1966 (Foot-And-Mouth Disease) (Import of Sheep For Fattening and Breeding From Northern Ireland) Order, 2001

I, Joe Walsh, Minister for Agriculture, Food and Rural Development, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by sections 3 and 30 of the Diseases of Animals Act, 1966 (No. 6 of 1966) (as adapted by the Agriculture and Food (Alteration of Name of Department and Title of Minister) Order, 1999 ( S.I. No. 307 of 1999 )), to prevent the spread of foot-and-mouth disease, hereby order as follows -

1.       This Order may be cited as the Diseases of Animals Act, 1966 (Foot-and-Mouth Disease) (Import of Sheep for Fattening and Breeding from Northern Ireland) Order, 2001 and shall come into operation on 12^th November, 2001.

2. (1)  In this Order -

“approved frontier post” means a frontier post specified in the schedule to this Order;

“authorised officer” means a person authorised under section 17A (inserted by section 2 of the Diseases of Animals (Amendment) Act, 2001 (No. 3 of 2001)) of the Diseases of Animals Act, 1966 (No. 6 of 1966);

“sell” includes offer, expose or keep for sale, invite an offer to buy, or distribute for reward and cognate words shall be construed accordingly;

“sheep” means an animal of the ovine species and, where the context so allows or permits, includes a consignment of one or more sheep;

“supply” includes give without reward.

(2)  A reference to an Article or Schedule is to an Article of, or Schedule to, this Order unless it is intended that reference to some other enactment is intended and a reference to a paragraph or sub-paragraph is to a paragraph or sub-paragraph in the provision where the reference occurs, unless it is indicated that reference to another provision is intended.

3. (1)  Subject to Article 4, a person shall not import a sheep for fattening or for breeding from Northern Ireland.

(2)  A person shall not have in his or her possession or under his or her control, sell or supply a sheep that has been imported in contravention of paragraph (1) or moved in contravention of Article 5.

4. (1)  A person may import a sheep from Northern Ireland if the sheep -

(a)      comes from a holding in Northern Ireland,

(b)      has never been on a holding in Great Britain since 1^st February, 2001,

(c)      is part of a consignment that comes from one holding and does not mix with or come into contact with animals from any other holding,

(d)      bears an ear-tag as prescribed in Part 1 of the Schedule,

(e)      is consigned directly from its holding of origin to the holding (within the State) to which it is consigned,

(f)       is accompanied -

(i)   in the case of a sheep for fattening, by a certificate as prescribed in Model II, or

(ii)  in the case of a sheep for breeding, by a certificate as prescribed in Model III

to Annex E of Council Directive 91/68/EEC, that relates to the sheep and bears the words specified in Article 1.3 of Commission Decision 2001/356/EC, issued by an official veterinarian in Northern Ireland who has examined the sheep,

(g)      is transported on a vehicle that has been disinfected immediately prior to loading the sheep,

(h)      is accompanied by evidence, issued by, or on behalf of, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development for Northern Ireland, that the vehicle referred to in sub-paragraph (g) has been disinfected,

(i)       enters the State at a point specified in Part 2 of the Schedule through the approved frontier post,

(j)       moves through the approved frontier post direct to the holding (within the State) to which it is consigned, and

(k)      subject to this Order, is imported in accordance with the conditions of Council Directive 91/68/EEC.

(2)     A person who, under and in accordance with this Order, proposes to import or who imports a sheep from Northern Ireland shall not import the sheep unless a minimum of 72 hours notification of the import has been received by -

(a)      the local veterinary authority at the District Veterinary Office in whose functional area the holding to which the sheep is consigned is situate and

(b)      the central veterinary authority at the Department of Agriculture, Food and Rural Development, Kildare Street, Dublin 2.

5.       A person shall not move or cause or permit another person to move a sheep, imported under and in accordance with this Order from the holding to which it is consigned for a period of thirty days commencing on the date of its arrival at the holding

6.       This Order is in addition to, and not in substitution for the Diseases of Animals Act, 1966 (Foot-and-Mouth Disease) (Import of Sheep from Northern Ireland) Order, 2001 ( S.I. No. 364 of 2001 ).

7.       The Import of Livestock Orders, 1970 to 1992 shall not apply to the import of a sheep that is imported under and in accordance with this Order or the Order specified in Article 5.

SCHEDULE

Part 1

A secure ear-tag on which shall be printed, in letters that are clearly legible, the unique identifier allocated to the flock of origin of the sheep by the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development for Northern Ireland and an individual number unique to the sheep.

Part 2

1.       Lifford, Co. Donegal having entered the State across the bridge over the River Foyle between Lifford and Strabane.

2.       Swanlinbar, Co. Cavan having entered the State along the road known as the N 87.

3.       Moybridge, Co. Monaghan having entered the State along the road known as the N2.

4.       Drumad, Co. Louth having entered the State along the road known as the N1.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Instrument and does not purport to be a legal interpretation.)

The effect of this Order is to permit the import of sheep for fattening and breeding from Northern Ireland under certain conditions.