9 minute read
Business Support
Since 1st January 2021 the United Kingdom has operated a full, external border as a sovereign nation
Plant health update: An explanation of post-Brexit arrangements
Since 1st January 2021 the United Kingdom has operated a full, external border as a sovereign nation. New controls have been placed on the movement of goods between the EU and UK, and all UK businesses involved in the movement of plant material were advised to review their working practices.
Also from the 1st January 2021, imports into the UK from the EU which previously arrived with an EUformat Plant Passport now require a phytosanitary certificate upon departure from the EU. Phytosanitary certificates are issued by the plant health authority in the country where a supplier is based.
Border Control Posts (BCP) are being built, and plant health inspectors recruited throughout Great Britain (GB), with the aim of performing physical checks on regulated goods - which include all plants for planting - upon entry into GB from January 2022.
BCPs will be positioned throughout England, Wales and Scotland, meaning once physical checks have been performed and material cleared, goods can be transported throughout GB.
From 1st January 2022 physical and identity checks of high priority plants and plant products will no longer be permitted at Places of Destination (PoD) and instead moved to BCPs. The requirement for pre-notification and phytosanitary certificates will be extended to all regulated plants and plant products (i.e., not just those which are ‘high-priority’).
From 1st March 2022, the UK’s Border Operating Model will be fully operational, with physical and identity checks on all regulated plants and plant products carried out at BPCs.
Until BCPs are fully commissioned, a system of site or premisesbased physical inspections will be performed on high priority plants and plant products. This means that, from 1st January 2021 until 31st December 2021, businesses must notify the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) of imports and register a PoD for plant(s) or plant material(s) where physical and identity checks - undertaken by a Defra plant health inspector - can take place.
The inspection may be carried out on plants or plant materials arriving from the EU and are either: a) being delivered to a yard/compound b) going direct to a UK site and being planted at this same site.
Defra have permitted EU-based operators to attach UK Plant Passports to consignments destined for the UK for the first 6 months of 2021 only APHA inspectors will aim to inspect consignments within four working hours of the inspection ready time provided by the importer in their pre-notification
The phytosanitary certificate issued in the EU can accompany the consignment to this PoD without a UK Plant Passport being required, providing the PoD is registered with the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA).
Movement of materials in this way is subject to pre-notification via an internet-based Defra tool called ‘Procedure for Electronic Application for Certificates’ (PEACH).
APHA inspectors will aim to inspect consignments within four working hours of the inspection ready time provided by the importer in their pre-notification. APHA can carry out inspections of consignments at registered PoDs seven days a week, 7am to 7pm. Where this is not possible the goods should be held over to the following day for the inspection and clearance of goods to be completed.
Whilst importers can only register a PoD in their own name if they have ownership of that site, it is likely that importers may wish to send some consignments to addresses which belong to their client or customer. In this situation, importers and PoD must confirm their business relationship to ensure their accounts are linked in PEACH and valid applications can be completed. This can be completed via email to the PoD registration email address:
PODRegistrations@apha.gov.uk
Phytosanitary certificates must be replaced with a UK Plant Passport at the PoD if the operator meets any of the below criteria: • Moving material to another professional operator
• Selling material to final users (those buying for personal use) by means of distance contract, e.g., online
• Moving material to another of their own premises which is more than 10 miles from the premises to which the consignment arrived
• If the phytosanitary status of the consignment changes, for example, if it has been grown on or if they have been reconfigured (e.g., two plants in separate pots have been planted up in a new pot together)
Note:
To help ease the transition to the new UK Plant Passport process in 2021, Defra have permitted EUbased operators to attach UK Plant Passports to consignments destined for the UK for the first 6 months of 2021 only. This decision is to help the onward movement of plants and plant material once cleared at the First Place of Destination (FPoD) and will help operators.
UK Plant Passports attached by EUbased operators must be generated by UK-based operators authorised to issue UK Plant Passports and will have no legal status until they reach their FPoD in the UK. A phytosanitary certificate will still be required on all material entering the UK from the EU.
Owen Baker - Technical Officer (Policy & Research)
Many businesses still struggle to understand their role and responsibilities
Written by Richard Gardiner
Technical Officer (Quality Assurance)
Still struggling with CDM?
Although the Construction Design Management Regulations (CDM) have been with us since 2007 and were revised in 2015, many businesses struggle to understand their role and responsibilities. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) have set out clear guidelines for Managing Health & Safety in Construction and a free copy of these guidelines can be downloaded by visiting their website hse.gov. uk/pubns/books/l153.htm. This publication is my go-to guide for all things CDM, but I’m going to attempt to highlight some key points to help you understand your responsibilities, or at the very least, encourage you to seek more clarification to be sure you are meeting your obligations.
To some extent, the confusion is understandable, as with many regulations there are lots of ‘ifs and buts’ which make it difficult to understand which aspects of the regulations apply to what projects. That said, if you spend a little time reading the guidance available, it really is not that bad.
The overarching principal of CDM is communication. Many of the other duties are wrapped up in other safety legislation. It just sets out more clearly who is responsible for what and introduces what is essentially good practice. That is to say that you should “plan” your work, “communicate” your plan, “co-ordinate” your activities with others on site and “review” this process regularly. In truth we all do this anyway, so CDM just formalises this process.
I have written before on the role of designers within the CDM regulations, therefore, for the purposes of this article I am focussing on the contracting roles, and primarily in the domestic environment.
CDM applies to all UK construction projects. There are a few exceptions but it’s unlikely that these apply to your project. If your project includes paving, walling the construction of structures such as pergolas and arbours, I recommend that you assume your project is in scope. After all, for all its bad press, CDM compliance is not onerous and helps glue all the various aspects of safety together. Projects that are purely soft landscaping are unlikely to be in scope of CDM.
The misunderstanding I referred to above, that I believe is responsible for many companies thinking that CDM doesn’t apply to their projects, is the fact that smaller projects are not notifiable to the HSE.
Regulation 6 (1) states that a project is notifiable if the construction work on a construction site is scheduled to a) last longer than 30 working days and have more than 20 workers working simultaneously at any point in the project; or b) exceed 500 person days.
This does not mean that the regulations do not apply to smaller projects, just that they are not notifiable. I still have companies quoting this clause to me, as if to absolve them of the need to comply to any of the regulations.
What role will you play in the project?
It is important that you ascertain your role in the project at the outset, this way you will better understand your responsibilities and can plan accordingly. This may include making financial allowances for fulfilling your duties. For most contractors, there are two roles that they are likely to be responsible for, that of “Contractor” or “Principal Contractor”.
Projects that will involve more than one contractor require a “Principal Contractor” (PC), so if you need a tree surgeon or electrician to help you fulfil the specification you might be the PC. Exceptions to this include situations where you are working alongside a construction company that are working on the property, where they are likely to have been on site before you and may or may not be engaging to deliver the landscape works. In these situations, the construction company are likely to be the PC, however this is not always the case, and this is why you should clarify your role at the outset. One issue relating to the latter situation is that many smaller construction companies do not understand (or choose to ignore) their responsibilities with regards to CDM, which makes for an interesting conversation, however the better informed you are or the stronger your hand in these conversations, I view this very much as an opportunity to demonstrate your professionalism.
If you find yourself working under a PC as described above, you assume the role of “Contractor”, this removes some responsibilities, but requires you to communicate effectively with the PC (and the Principal Designer (PD) if one is appointed).
If you are the only contractor on site, then you are “Contractor” (sometimes called “Sole-Contractor”), however as there is no PC above you, you hold very similar responsibilities to a PC, although there are a few aspects of the PC role that might not be relevant.
Responsibilities for each role
Once you have established your role within the project team, you need to understand your responsibilities. Below is a list of key responsibilities for each role, it is not exhaustive, and you should refer to the HSE Guidance document for more detail. You will also notice when reading the detail that responsibilities vary depending on the presence or otherwise of other duty holders, all of which unfortunately adds to the confusion.
The Principal Contractor must:
• Plan, manage, monitor and coordinate health & safety in the construction phase of a project.
This includes: • liaising with the client and principal designer • preparing the construction phase plan • organising cooperation between contractors and coordinating their work
They must also make sure:
• suitable site inductions are provided • reasonable steps are taken to prevent unauthorised access • workers are consulted and engaged in securing their health and safety • welfare facilities are provided
A contractor must:
• Plan, manage and monitor construction work under their control so it is carried out without risks to health & safety • For projects involving more than one contractor, coordinate their activities with others in the project team – in particular, comply with directions given to them by the principal designer or principal contractor • For single contractor projects, prepare a construction phase plan (PDF)
For more information visit the website
bali.org.uk/help-and-advice/
contracts-law-and-regulations or the HSE hse.gov.uk/construction/
