§ Mr. HayesTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on Directive 2002/36/EC (OJ L116, 3 May 2002) as it relates to measures in the United Kingdom; and in what circumstances, as per Recital 8,(a) applicant states and (b) OCTs are included as European states for political definitions. [77249]
§ Mr. MeacherDirective 2002/36/EC amends the technical annexes to the Plant Health Directive (2000/29/EC) to provide better protection against the introduction into, and spread within, the EC of a number of serious pests and disease of plants. Three new pests are added to the list of those which are prohibited. The scope of the plant passport regime, which governs movements of plants within the Community, and the scope of import controls on plants from outside the EC, are extended to reflect more accurately the wide range of host plants attacked by some listed pests. The amendment also strengthens measures to ensure that plants are free from Bemisia tabaci before entering the area recognised as a "protected zone" for that pest (which includes the whole of the UK). Directive 2002/700W 36/EC will be implemented in the UK by amendments to the Plant Health (Great Britain) Order 1993 and the Plant Health (Northern Ireland) Order 1993.
Decisions on listing countries and regions in the Annexes of the Plant Health Directive are based on their plant health status. In the case of Malta and Cyprus the ranges of plant pests and diseases which occur in those countries are known to be similar to those of continental Europe. Conversely the EC Overseas Countries and Territories are treated separately from European territories, according to Article 1.1 of the Plant Health Directive, because of the different pest risks in those territories.