# The Seed Marketing (CMS Wheat Hybrids) (Temporary Experiment) (Wales) Regulations 2024, Note: Explanatory note

Extent: E+W

(This note is not part of the Regulations)
These Regulations apply in relation to seed produced in Wales under a temporary experiment. The purpose of the temporary experiment is to seek alternative requirements for the certification of CMS wheat hybrids (defined in regulation 2 of these Regulations) falling within the basic or certified category of seed within the meaning of regulation 5 of the Seed Marketing (Wales) Regulations 2012 (“the 2012 Regulations”), which are more suitable than the requirements currently specified in the 2012 Regulations. Certification is one of the requirements for the marketing of seed under regulation 8 of the 2012 Regulations. The experiment is to run for a period of 7 years beginning with 7 October 2024. Licences granted under regulation 3(3) of these Regulations exempt participants in the experiment from compliance with specified provisions of the 2012 Regulations. These provisions currently effectively prevent the certification of CMS wheat hybrids, as they specify conditions which such hybrids are unable to satisfy. Regulation 21A of the 2012 Regulations permits such experiments where the experiment is organised in accordance with regulations made under section 16(5) of the Plant Varieties and Seeds Act 1964 (“the 1964 Act”).
Regulations 3 to 6 of these Regulations make provision concerning the purpose of the temporary experiment, the licensing procedure and the effect of the grant of a licence.
Regulations 7 and 8 permit the Welsh Ministers to vary, suspend or revoke a licence granted under regulation 3(1) in certain circumstances. Regulations 9 and 10 specify participants’ reporting and recording obligations.
Regulation 11 sets out the procedure for applying for certification of CMS hybrid seeds developed in accordance with these Regulations. Such an application is made under the 2012 Regulations, as modified by the Schedule to these Regulations.
Paragraph 7 of the Schedule modifies the existing appeal rights under the 2012 Regulations so that they apply in relation to a refusal to grant a licence to participate in the experiment, a variation of conditions attached to the licence, and a decision to suspend or revoke the licence.
Paragraph 8 makes transitory modifications to the 2012 Regulations, and to how Annexes 1 and 2 to Council Directive 66/402/EEC on the marketing of cereal seed are to be read for the purpose of paragraph 15 of Schedule 2 to the 2012 Regulations, to enable CMS wheat hybrids produced under the experiment to be certified and marketed on the basis that they meet the requirements in the 2012 Regulations, as so modified.
Under section 16(7) of the 1964 Act, breach of any provision of these Regulations, or the inclusion in a statutory statement of anything which is false in a material particular, is an offence punishable on summary conviction by a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale.
The Welsh Ministers’ Code of Practice on the carrying out of Regulatory Impact Assessments was considered in relation to these Regulations. As a result, a regulatory impact assessment has been prepared as to the likely costs and benefits of complying with these Regulations. A copy can be obtained by contacting the Landscapes, Nature and Forestry Division, Climate Change and Rural Affairs Department, Welsh Government, Cathays Park, Cardiff CF10 3NQ.

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Source: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/wsi/2024/953/note (the official version)
Page: https://openlegislation.uk/seed-marketing-cms-wheat-hybrids-temporary-experiment-wales-regulations-2024/note
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives.

