Asked by: Lord Rogan (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans are in place to guarantee access to sufficient numbers of Official Veterinarians from outside the UK in the event of a no-deal Brexit.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
In the event of a no-deal Brexit, overseas vets already registered with the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) or in the process of registering by 30 October 2019 will continue to have their qualifications recognised. Government has legislated to ensure that new vets wishing to work here can also register with the RCVS if their qualification meets the required equivalent standards. Individuals with a degree that does not meet the RCVS equivalent will be able to apply to sit the RCVS statutory examination.
The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) is offering free training for Official Vets (OVs) to sign Export Health Certificates (EHCs) for food products: 830 have enrolled and 379 have qualified. The total number of OVs who can sign EHCs for food products has increased by more than 300 since 8 February to 972.
Meanwhile, the Food Standards Agency and Animal and Plant Health Agency have reviewed processes in order to maximise the effectiveness of staff, including recruiting and training more official auxiliary staff. APHA have created a new role of Certification Support Officer to handle a number of preparatory and administrative tasks for assuring UK EHCs, under vet management. The supervising vet will retain responsibility for the assurances provided.
Asked by: Lord Rogan (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to enact the provisions of the Official Controls (EU) Regulation 2017/625 when the UK leaves the EU.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
The Government continues to prepare responsibly for all EU Exit scenarios, and as part of that Defra and the Food Standards Agency are currently considering the impact an orderly exit will have on the application of the new Official Controls Regulation (OCR) 2017/625 and its associated legislation. The Government is working together with the devolved administrations to ensure that the UK is prepared for any outcome in this policy area.
However, if the UK leaves the EU without a deal, we would not be required to implement the new OCR in December. Any future changes to official controls legislation would be based on the Government’s key regulatory principles of proportionate and risk based policy making and would reflect devolved competences in this policy area.
Asked by: Lord Rogan (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what preparations they have made to deal with any outbreaks of exotic diseases in animals in the UK after Brexit, including improving access to vets and additional financial support for the agricultural sector; and whether they will publish their strategy for such preparations.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
The Government has comprehensive arrangements for dealing effectively with outbreaks of animal disease. In relation to exotic notifiable diseases, these arrangements are consistent with those set out by the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE). Defra’s plans are set out in the Contingency Plan for Exotic Notifiable Diseases of Animals in England which was laid before Parliament in November 2018 and is available via GOV.UK. After the UK leaves the EU the Government will retain the necessary powers required to tackle animal disease.
Defra engages closely with farmers and animal keepers to help prevent exotic disease outbreaks and if they do arise we work closely with them and their industry bodies to tackle the outbreaks quickly and effectively. Defra’s longstanding practice is that: farmers receive compensation for any healthy animals culled to control the spread of exotic animal diseases such as foot and mouth disease or swine fever; farmers do not receive any compensation for animals that die before they are culled or are not culled as part of official controls; farmers are not compensated for consequential losses (e.g. the income that the animal would have generated in the future, for example through laying eggs or producing offspring).
Defra is working with different veterinary sector stakeholders, including the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons and the British Veterinary Association, on the UK’s veterinary resourcing needs and ensure there are adequate numbers of vets after the UK’s departure from the EU, in the long term.
We are working on a variety of initiatives to build a sustainable and modernised UK veterinary infrastructure to ensure we have access to the right people with the right skills and knowledge to support animal health and welfare.
Asked by: Lord Rogan (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will agree to a transition period for veterinary graduates from other EU member states to continue to be registered to practise in the UK after the UK leaves the EU.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
Veterinary graduates from EU member states will still be able to register to practice in the UK after we leave the EU. The process for doing so will depend on the final outcome of the negotiations on our departure from the EU and will be subject to Parliamentary approval.
EU qualified vets who are already on the RCVS register will remain on the register, and those who apply for registration with RCVS by 29 March 2019 will be allowed to complete that process under existing rules.
Asked by: Lord Rogan (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Gardiner of Kimble on 16 January (HL12717, HL12718 and HL12719), what category of individual will be designated as an authorised signatory for export health certificates to enable products of animal origin, including (1) food for human consumption, and (2) animal by-products not intended for human consumption, to pass from the UK into the EU in the event of a no-deal Brexit.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
Only Official Veterinarians can sign certificates for animal products intended for the EU for human consumption, except in the case of fishery, shellfish and composite products, which can be signed by a non-veterinarian (referred to as an Official Inspector in the certificates for these products). Certificates for animal by-products (not for human consumption) have to be signed by an Official Veterinarian.
Official Veterinarians authorised to sign certificates in Great Britain are trained and authorised by the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) and then employed privately. In Northern Ireland, Official Veterinarians are employed and trained by Department of Agriculture, Environment & Rural Affairs (DAERA).
Asked by: Lord Rogan (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assurances they have received from the EU that an authorised signatory other than an official vet will be deemed acceptable in signing export health certificates to enable live animals to pass from the UK into the EU in the event of a no-deal Brexit.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
We will continue to uphold the very highest international standards of food safety and animal welfare when we leave the EU. Veterinary checks, required by non-EU countries, are critical to these requirements and have been carried out for many years on live animals (farm, equines, pets, exotics and rodents).
European Commission regulations stipulate that third country imports of live animals must be accompanied by an export health certificate signed by an official vet and, for certain commodities, such as fish for human consumption, by an Environmental Health Officer.
No other category of individual is being proposed and therefore discussions have not been necessary.
Only Official Vets can sign EHCs for live animals, as they require a clinical examination, and this will continue when we leave the EU.
No other individual will be designated an authorised signatory for live animal exports.
In our technical guidance issued in September on exports of animals and animal products if we leave the EU without a deal, we said: “EHCs would need to be signed by an Official Veterinarian or authorised signatory following inspection of the consignment.”
The only other authorised signatories in this context are officials certified by The Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (Cefas) for live fish exports such as tropical fish; and Environmental Health Officers employed by local authorities to sign certificates for exports of fish for human consumption.
We are not proposing anyone other than an Official Vet will sign EHCs for live animals, therefore, assurances from the EU are not required.
Asked by: Lord Rogan (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the EU on which category of individual will be recognised as an authorised signatory for export health certificates to enable live animals to pass from the UK into the EU in the event of a no-deal Brexit.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
We will continue to uphold the very highest international standards of food safety and animal welfare when we leave the EU. Veterinary checks, required by non-EU countries, are critical to these requirements and have been carried out for many years on live animals (farm, equines, pets, exotics and rodents).
European Commission regulations stipulate that third country imports of live animals must be accompanied by an export health certificate signed by an official vet and, for certain commodities, such as fish for human consumption, by an Environmental Health Officer.
No other category of individual is being proposed and therefore discussions have not been necessary.
Only Official Vets can sign EHCs for live animals, as they require a clinical examination, and this will continue when we leave the EU.
No other individual will be designated an authorised signatory for live animal exports.
In our technical guidance issued in September on exports of animals and animal products if we leave the EU without a deal, we said: “EHCs would need to be signed by an Official Veterinarian or authorised signatory following inspection of the consignment.”
The only other authorised signatories in this context are officials certified by The Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (Cefas) for live fish exports such as tropical fish; and Environmental Health Officers employed by local authorities to sign certificates for exports of fish for human consumption.
We are not proposing anyone other than an Official Vet will sign EHCs for live animals, therefore, assurances from the EU are not required.
Asked by: Lord Rogan (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government which category of individual, other than an official vet, will be designated as an authorised signatory for export health certificates to enable live animals to pass from the UK into the EU in the event of a no-deal Brexit.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
We will continue to uphold the very highest international standards of food safety and animal welfare when we leave the EU. Veterinary checks, required by non-EU countries, are critical to these requirements and have been carried out for many years on live animals (farm, equines, pets, exotics and rodents).
European Commission regulations stipulate that third country imports of live animals must be accompanied by an export health certificate signed by an official vet and, for certain commodities, such as fish for human consumption, by an Environmental Health Officer.
No other category of individual is being proposed and therefore discussions have not been necessary.
Only Official Vets can sign EHCs for live animals, as they require a clinical examination, and this will continue when we leave the EU.
No other individual will be designated an authorised signatory for live animal exports.
In our technical guidance issued in September on exports of animals and animal products if we leave the EU without a deal, we said: “EHCs would need to be signed by an Official Veterinarian or authorised signatory following inspection of the consignment.”
The only other authorised signatories in this context are officials certified by The Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (Cefas) for live fish exports such as tropical fish; and Environmental Health Officers employed by local authorities to sign certificates for exports of fish for human consumption.
We are not proposing anyone other than an Official Vet will sign EHCs for live animals, therefore, assurances from the EU are not required.