§ Baroness Byfordasked Her Majesty's Government:
Which division of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs has taken over responsibility from the former Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Arable Crops Division for issuing export certificates for animal health products; whether the target turnaround period is still five working days from receipt of the application to issue of the certificate; and what proportion of certificates are issued within this period. [HL1636]
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Lord Whitty)Within Defra a number of divisions, including the Arable Crops Division, are responsible for issuing certificates of free sale for a wide range of food and feed products. Defra's agencies are responsible for issuing similar certificates for pesticide and veterinary medicinal products. This service is offered free of charge to assist exporters in meeting the needs of importing countries for official statements on the status of products in the UK.
In addition, Defra's International Animal Health Division is responsible for the preparation of export health certificates for live animals and products of animal origin. It is sometimes the case that an export health certificate in respect of a non-EU country is not available. In these instances it can take some time to obtain the import conditions from the country concerned and agree the detail of the certificate. Once an export health certificate is available, the State Veterinary Service is in most cases responsible for issuing it to an exporter.
Over 97 per cent of relevant certificates are processed within five working days of receipt of applications.