I thank noble Lords who have contributed to this debate. I will endeavour to answer all the questions that have been asked.
My noble friend Lady McIntosh referred to the sentence in the Explanatory Memorandum that relates to whether we used the European Union (Withdrawal) Act powers for this statutory instrument. I can confirm that we did not. I think she and others also asked why, given that the egg sector opposes the proposal—or so it was deemed from five out of the six responses—the Government are moving ahead with it.
In response to the consultation, Defra and the Welsh and Scottish Governments held a round table, as has been said, on 24 September to address the concerns raised by the industry. Invited to the meeting were the checking authorities responsible for egg marketing standards checks across Great Britain—the APHA egg marketing inspectors, who operate in England and Wales, and the Scottish Government poultry officers. In response to concerns expressed by the industry that imported eggs should be subject to the same standard of checks as domestic eggs and produced to the same high health, welfare and food standards, Defra explained that the checks will continue to be made on a risk basis, as well as randomly, in line with Article 24.2 of Regulation 589/2008, and that food quality will not be impacted by this SI.
My noble friend Lady McIntosh also asked about the nature of the survey, noting that it was online. All relevant industry representatives responded and were at the round table, so it is fair to say that a pretty full consultation has happened. She asked about UK exports to the EU. I can confirm that UK exports are checked at the border for both hygiene and marketing quality.
A number of noble Lords asked about resources at the APHA. This statutory instrument changes the current legislation, requiring marketing standards checks to take place at the border to allow the continuation of a current practice. We have the resources to do this now. I am quite open that, if we were not to pass this and require those checks to take place at the border, it would put considerable resource demands on the APHA. It would require a border control post to have a very large chilled space, so that every lorry that came in with its 28 pallets of eggs could be safely unpacked and those eggs moved into a chiller space. If they were not, they would risk deteriorating in quality, so that would have to take place. They would then have to be reloaded and taken to a distribution point where we had the resources to check them. I hope noble Lords remember this important point.
The noble Baroness, Lady Ritchie, raised a very well-made point about the implications of this SI for Northern Ireland eggs entering the UK and whether they will be treated differently, with Northern Ireland continuing to follow EU rules. Eggs produced in Northern Ireland are not considered to be entering GB from a third country. The statutory instrument does not change the way eggs moved from GB to Northern Ireland will be checked. Northern Ireland eggs will continue to have unfettered access to the GB market, as at present, and will continue to be checked in the same way as domestic eggs from England, Scotland and Wales. In any case, the checks on third-country eggs are identical to those performed on domestic eggs. They will continue to be checked by egg marketing inspectors on a risk-assessed and random basis at the point of destination, at packing centres, at distribution centres and at wholesale premises.
I think she asked whether eggs from GB can be put on the market in Northern Ireland. Class A eggs imported into Northern Ireland from third countries will continue to be checked at the time of customs clearance and prior to their release for free circulation, in accordance with Article 24.3 of Regulation 589/2008, as it has effect in the EU. I think I have said whether eggs have to be checked before they can be put on the market in GB.
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My noble friend Lord Cathcart made an impassioned plea on behalf of egg producers. I say to him and the noble Lord, Lord Rooker, that Defra is absolutely determined and passionate about promoting British food. I know that nobody here would say that we want a ban on imports—I know noble Lords understand that that would cause a very difficult situation in our trade with our closest and most important partners—but we are now at nearly 90% self-sufficiency on eggs and it seems perfectly possible that we can improve on that still further. Nevertheless, there will be a free flow as supply chains dictate, but I can absolutely assure my
noble friend that we want to see eggs sold in the country being produced to our high welfare standards. Any eggs that come in must remain produced to our clear, high standards in a state of equivalence. I will come on to talk about that a bit more.
Imported eggs are subject to exactly the same level of checks as domestic eggs. These checks are conducted by APHA egg marketing inspectors on a random and risk basis. They check quality, weight, grading, labelling, marking and packaging, as well as farming methods such as free range, barn and caged. I have been fascinated to learn how they do this: using ultraviolent light, they can detect by looking at an egg how it has been produced. So the eggs that are being checked cannot be ones produced in battery cages that we would not allow here.
Fraud, which the noble Lord, Lord Rooker, raised, is an important point. I cannot stand here and guarantee that every egg coming into—or, indeed, produced in—this country is produced to the standard that it says on the box, but we have a very strict checking system. We currently import class A eggs only from EU member states. We recognise that eggs from the EU are produced to an equivalent standard. The EU has reciprocated on this and recognised the equivalence of our eggs. We have regular contact with our friends in the EU, and we will make sure that we continue to do so, so that the standard and quality of any eggs that come into this country do not put our producers at risk.
As I said, in 2020, the UK was 89% self-sufficient in eggs. A staggering 11.2 billion eggs are eaten in this country; we import 1.7 billion and export 315 million of them. Eggs are imported on commercial documentation, and importers are not currently required to pre-notify the authorities before the import of eggs under marketing standards or SPS rules, but, as I say, the Government will continue to promote British produce. We have not imported non-EU, third-country eggs for many years. At present, we only import equivalent, third-country, class A eggs from the EU. If dodgy eggs coming from appalling producing circumstances—both for the livestock and those operating the production—are coming into this country as class A eggs, they will be found and discovered by our inspectors. In the UK, all imported class A eggs are required to undergo marketing standards checks. I hope I have reassured my noble friend Lord Cathcart. He is obviously on the front line of this issue, but I want to get across to him and to other producers the message that we are on their side.
The noble Lord, Lord Rooker, talked about the origins of eggs. The regulations require the country of origin to be stamped on the egg itself, not just on the packaging. Eggs will also be accompanied by an export health certificate signed off by a vet—probably a measure introduced by the noble Lord himself when he was at Defra. The APHA will check the stamping on those eggs.
The noble Baroness, Lady Bakewell, made an important point. A relatively small number of imported class A eggs do not pass via packing and distribution centres. In this case, the eggs go straight to retail, but it is a small percentage. There is a possibility of further checks by trading standards officers from local authorities.
The noble Baroness asked whether eggs which are non-UK standard or non-EC standard can be sold in the UK. Eggs which are not of an equivalent standard to those produced domestically and which are deemed to be produced to non-UK/non-EU standards may still be sold in Great Britain. However, the packaging of such eggs must be marked with the country of origin and the farming method as non-UK standard. No eggs currently imported into the UK require such a label, as we do not receive eggs from countries that do not have equivalent standards. The Explanatory Memorandum to the SI states that if any third country—that is, non-EU country—wanted to export eggs to the UK, the Secretary of State would be required to sign that off to make absolutely sure that those standards were being maintained.
Defra explained in the round table and in the consultation that checks will continue to be made on a risk basis as well as randomly and that food quality will not be impacted by this amendment. I hope that has gone some way to reassure the important people whom we want to continue to support in the production of eggs in this country.
There were broader questions about egg marketing standards. I have to say from the six months that I have been in this role that the APHA is one of the most impressive organisations that I have dealt with. I have full confidence in it. Are there enough people? No, we need more. The noble Baroness, Lady Jones, made a very important point. It is well known that we are short of vets and other people, but we are able to manage this if this SI passes; if it does not, we would be short of the resources we need.
I think that I have answered all the questions on Northern Ireland.