Hansard

I would like to make some introductory remarks. The purpose of the draft regulations is to ensure that the safeguards against invasive non-native species that are set out in regulation (EU) 1143/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of the European Union are maintained in Scotland when the UK leaves the EU. The regulations achieve that by setting out the rules to prevent, minimise and mitigate the adverse impact on biodiversity of the introduction and spread of invasive non-native species in Scotland, whether intentional or unintentional. Although the EU regulations have direct effect in Scotland, certain aspects of the INNS management regime, such as enforcement and licensing measures, have already been implemented in domestic legislation, through amendments to the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. The regulations that are being considered today apply only to Scotland, and a separate UK instrument covers the remainder of the UK. The UK regulations also apply in respect of areas that the UK Government considers reserved as they apply to invasive non-native species, including imports to and exports from the EU. The Scottish Government’s position remains that the content of the EU regulation on invasive alien species is devolved. However, in order to ensure legal certainty for stakeholders and to have a functioning statute book at the end of the transition period, we have decided to adopt a pragmatic approach. Therefore, the draft Scottish statutory instrument contains an application provision to ensure that the legislation is as clear as possible to the reader, and, in particular, sets out when the UK instrument applies and when the Scottish rules apply. The Scottish Government will produce guidance for stakeholders to assist their understanding of the legislation and the application of the two codes. The main effect of the 2020 regulations is to adopt the EU list of invasive species of concern as the Scottish list of species of special concern and to enable the Scottish ministers to amend that list by regulation. The policy intention is to maintain the content of that list so that it matches as closely as possible the list of species of special concern that will apply in the rest of the UK, while retaining the flexibility to list the species of particular concern in Scotland. The regulations also provide that emergency measures can be introduced where the Scottish ministers have evidence concerning the presence or imminent risk of the introduction of invasive non-native species. Those emergency measures are a rapid way of introducing restrictions as a precautionary measure while a risk assessment is undertaken to consider whether it is necessary to add a species permanently to the list of species of concern. Any emergency measures that are introduced would be time limited for a period of up to two years. The effect of that would be to allow the Scottish ministers to take all necessary steps to prevent invasive non-native species from being kept, bred, placed on the market, used or exchanged, permitted to reproduce, released into the environment or transported within Scotland. The regulations further provide that the Scottish ministers will be assisted on invasive non-native species by a committee and a scientific forum. They do that by referring to the Invasive Non-native Species (Amendment etc) (EU Exit) Regulation 2019, which will make provision for the relevant articles of EU regulation 1143/2014 to have effect for the UK as a whole. That will enable the Scottish ministers to appoint representatives to the new UK statutory bodies, the committee and the scientific forum that will be created after EU exit. The amendments made by the 2020 regulations do not amount to a change in policy from the way in which the EU regulation currently operates. They correct deficiencies that arise as a result of EU exit to ensure that the legislation continues to operate effectively. In addition to the issues that are covered in this statement, the amendments include removing or replacing EU terminology—for example, replacing references to member states and the European Commission with references to Scotland and the Scottish ministers, as appropriate—and revoking provisions with no relevance to the operation of the invasive non-native species regime in the Scottish context. My officials and I will be happy to take questions from the committee.