The Fluorinated Greenhouse Gases (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2018

The Fluorinated Greenhouse Gases Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2015^f1 are amended in accordance with regulations 3 to 23.

In regulation 1(2), the words “and Northern Ireland offshore installations” are omitted.

After regulation 5 (competent authority), insert—

“Service of notices

5A.

(1)

Section 24 (service of documents) of the Interpretation Act applies to the service of notices subject to this regulation and any specific provision made in these Regulations for a particular type of notice.

(2)

A notice takes effect when served.

(3)

A notice may, subject to paragraph (8) and without prejudice to the application of section 24(2) of the Interpretation Act, be served on a person by sending it to the person by electronic means.

(4)

A notice to a partnership may be given to a partner or a person who has the control or management of the partnership business at the address of the principal office of the partnership.

(5)

For the purposes of this regulation, the principal office of a company registered outside the United Kingdom, or of a partnership undertaking business outside the United Kingdom, is its principal office within the United Kingdom.

(6)

If a person has specified an address in the United Kingdom, other than the person’s address within the meaning of paragraph (4) or section 24 of the Interpretation Act, as the one at which the person or someone on the person’s behalf will accept notices of the same description as a notice, that address is also treated for the purposes of this regulation and section 24 of the Interpretation Act as the person’s address by which service may be effected.

(7)

A notice may be sent to a person by electronic means only if—

(a)

the person has indicated that notices of the same description as the notice may be given to the person by being sent to an electronic address and in an electronic form specified for that purpose; and

(b)

the notice is sent to that address in that form.

(8)

A notice sent to a person by electronic means is, unless the contrary is proved, to be treated as having been given at 9am on the working day immediately following the day on which it was sent.

(9)

In this regulation—

(a)

“electronic address” means any number or address used for the purposes of sending or receiving documents or information by electronic means; and

(b)

“notice” means an information notice served under regulation 22 or an enforcement notice.”.

For regulation 6, substitute—

“Appointment of certification, attestation and evaluation bodies

6.

(1)

The Department, after consulting the Scottish Ministers, the Welsh Ministers and the Secretary of State, may appoint such person and on such terms as the Department thinks fit to be—

(a)

in relation to Commission Regulation 304/2008—

(i)

a certification body for the purposes of Article 5 (personnel certificates);

(ii)

an evaluation body for the purposes of Article 5; and

(iii)

a certification body for the purposes of Article 8 (company certificates);

(b)

for the purposes of Commission Regulation 306/2008—

(i)

a certification body; and

(ii)

an evaluation body;

(c)

for the purposes of Commission Regulation 307/2008, an attestation body;

(d)

for the purposes of Commission Regulation 2015/2066—

(i)

a certification body; and

(ii)

an evaluation body;

(e)

in relation to Commission Regulation 2015/2067—

(i)

a certification body for the purposes of Article 4 (certificates for natural persons);

(ii)

an evaluation body for the purposes of Article 4; and

(iii)

a certification body for the purposes of Article 6 (company certificates).

(2)

The Department may charge such fees as it considers will enable the recovery of any reasonable expenses incurred in reviewing an application to be appointed as a certification, evaluation and/or attestation body under paragraph (1).

(3)

The Department may, after consulting the Scottish Ministers, the Welsh Ministers and the Secretary of State, decide to terminate the appointment of a person appointed under paragraph (1) by giving that person notice of the decision, with reasons, in writing.”.

In regulation 7, for “Article 5 or 8 of Commission Regulation 303/2008”, for each time that it appears, substitute “Article 4 or 6 of Commission Regulation 2015/2067”.

Regulations 8 (certification and evaluation bodies: fire protection systems and fire extinguishers) and 10 (certification and evaluation bodies: high-voltage switchgear) are omitted.

Regulations 12 (certification and evaluation body: fluorinated greenhouse gas-based solvents) and 14 (attestation bodies: air conditioning systems in certain motor vehicles) are omitted.

In regulation 16—

In regulation 17—

After regulation 17, insert—

“Publication of details of certification bodies, attestation bodies and evaluation bodies

17A.

(1)

The Department, after consulting the Scottish Ministers, the Welsh Ministers and the Secretary of State, must publish the following information about any person appointed as a certification body, attestation body or evaluation body under regulation 6—

(a)

name;

(b)

company number, where relevant;

(c)

postal address;

(d)

telephone number; and

(e)

e-mail address.

(2)

Publication under this regulation is to be in such a manner as the Department considers appropriate.”.

In regulation 22, for “authorised person”, substitute “enforcing authority”.

After regulation 24(5), insert—

“(6)

The grounds for an appeal brought under this regulation are that a decision to serve the enforcement notice was—

(a)

based on an error of fact;

(b)

wrong in law;

(c)

wrong for any other reason; or

(d)

unreasonable.”.

In regulation 27(1)(a), the words “(Northern Ireland) 1954” are omitted.

Schedule 1 is omitted.

In Schedule 2, in the table, after the entry entitled “Article 8(3)”, insert—

“

Article 10(11)

Requirement on undertakings assigning tasks referred to in Article 10(1) to another undertaking to take reasonable steps to ascertain that the latter holds the necessary certificates for the required tasks.

”.

(This note is not part of the Regulations)