The Poultry Meat, Farmed Game Bird Meat and Rabbit Meat (Hygiene and Inspection) Regulations 1995

UK Statutory Instrument 1995 No. 540 — creates 2 criminal offences.

2offences created

0recorded in force

0revoked

Made: 28 February 1995
In force from: 1 April 1995
Extent: Not stated
Subject: Food, consumer protection, trading standards, product safety and age-restricted sales
Made under: European Communities Act 1972, Schedule 1 to, the Food Safety Act 1990

Explanatory note

(This note is not part of the Regulations) — published with the instrument by the department that made it. © Crown copyright, reused under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

These Regulations, which apply to Great Britain, give effectto the provisions of Council Directive 71/118/EEC, and Council Directive 91/495/EEC (both defined in regulation 2(1)), and in part to the provisions of Council Directive 91/494/EEC on animal health conditions governing intra-Community trade in and imports from third countries of freshpoultrymeat (OJ No. L268, 24.9.91, p.35), as amended by Council Directive 93/121/EEC (OJNo. L340, 31.12.93, p.39). They replace the Poultry Meat, Farmed Game Bird Meat andRabbit Meat (Hygiene and Inspection) Regulations 1994 (“the 1994 Regulations”) which are revoked from 1st April 1995 (regulation 26). The Regulations transfer responsibility for their execution and enforcement in relation to licensed premises from local authorities to the Minister. Regulations do not apply to premises where fresh meat is cut up, stored or re-wrapped for sale direct to the final consumer; slaughterhouses with an annual production of less than 10,000 birds or rabbits and cold stores (subject to specified restrictions); fresh meat intended for exhibitions, special studies or analysis, or for sale to international organisations; and fresh meat not intended for human consumption (regulation 3). The Regulations— a prohibit the use of any premises as a slaughterhouse, cutting premises, a cold storeor a re-wrapping centre unless they are licensed and make provision for the issue, on application, of licences by the Minister (regulation 4); b provide for the revocation of licences (regulation 5); c provide for an Appeals Tribunal to hear appeals against refusals to license, conditions imposed on the grant of licences, and revocations of licences (regulation 6); d subject to a specified exemption, prohibit the use of a slaughterhouse for slaughtering a bird or rabbit not intended for sale for human consumption (regulation 7); e enable the Minister to designate, and require him to appoint, official veterinary surgeons and require him to appoint inspectors to supervise licensed premises (regulation 8); f provide for the revocation and suspension of such designations, and specify the powers of official veterinary surgeons (regulations 9 and 10); g provide for the authorisation by the Minister of persons as plant inspection assistants and for the revocation and suspension of such authorisations (regulation 11); h require the Minister to arrange for the carrying out of pre-slaughter health inspections and post-mortem health inspections of birds and rabbits and also make provision in relation to the application of the health mark, and prohibit the use of a mark resembling a health mark likely to deceive (regulation 12); i prohibit the operation of licensed premises without giving the Minister at least 72 hours, or other shorter period as agreed with the Minister, advance notice except where such slaughter is at a fixed time and day in accordance with a regular practice (regulation 13); j specify the conditions to be complied with in relation to the sale of fresh meat for human consumption and, subject to specified exceptions, prohibit the sale of such meat unless those conditions are complied with (regulation 14); k specify the documents necessary when transporting fresh meat (regulation 15); l enable an official veterinary surgeon or inspector to prohibit slaughter in specified circumstances and provide for authorisation of slaughter subject to conditions (regulation 16); m require official veterinary surgeons to keep specified records and also require them to notify the presence of specified diseases (regulation 17); n specify the duties of occupiers and producers (regulations 18 and 19); o create offences and prescribe penalties (regulation 20); p enable the Minister to recover specified costs from producers (regulation 21); q require food authorities to supply specified information to the Minister (regulation 22); r specify the enforcement authorities and make provision for the application of various provisions of the Food Safety Act 1990 (regulations 23 and 24); s make provision for fresh meat imported from Northern Ireland, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man (regulation 25); and t amend specified Regulations (regulation 27). A Compliance Cost Assessment in relation to these Regulations has been placed in the libraries of both Houses of Parliament and copies can be obtained from the Meat Hygiene Division of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Government Buildings, Hook Rise South, Tolworth, Surbiton, Surrey KT6 7NF.

Offences created by this instrument

If any person contravenes regulation 10(1), 11(2), 13(1) or 19(1), he shall be guilty of an offence and shall be… regulation 20(1) · Status not determined · Strict liability
If any person contravenes— a regulation 3(3) or (4), 4(1), 7, 12(3), (4), (5) or (7), 14(1), (2) or (3), 15(1) or (2),… regulation 20(2) · Status not determined · Strict liability

What Parliament said about it

Contributions, debates and written statements mentioning this instrument by name. Parliamentary material is reused under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0.

Meat (Hygiene And Inspection) Commons · Commons Chamber · 24 March 1995
That the Poultry Meat, Farmed Game Bird Meat and Rabbit Meat (Hygiene and Inspection) Regulations 1995 (S.I., 1995, No. 540) be referred to a Standing Committee on Statutory Instruments, &c.— [Mr. Andrew Mitchell.]
Poultry Meat, Farmed Game Bird Meat And Rabbit Meat (Hygiene And Inspection) Regulations 1995 Lords · Lords Chamber · 18 April 1995
House Of Lords Reform Lords · Lords Chamber · 23 February 1999 · Lord Carter
My Lords, this has certainly been a wide-ranging debate. A number of noble Lords kindly referred to my patience in sitting through the two days of debate. It is more fun than farming is at present—just! I have to admit that at a certain point I had that familiar feeling that all that needed to be said had been said, but, as always, not every noble Lord who needed to say it had said it. It would be invidious of me to suggest when that point was reached. I shall leave it to your Lordships to make that choice. In the time available it would be impossible to mention all the contributors by name.…

How Parliament handled it

Parliament's Statutory Instruments service records procedure from May 2017 onwards, and this instrument predates it. That is a limit of the source, not a statement that nothing happened.

Check the source

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