Regina (Seahawk Marine Foods Limited) v The Southampton Port
Health Authority
Before Lord Justice Mummery, Lord Justice Buxton
and Lord Justice Longmore, Court of Appeal, The Times, 5 February
2002
This case concerned a cargo of frozen cooked
shrimps from Vietnam, brought by Seahawk Marine Foods Limited and
intended for human consumption, which were refused entry into the
UK by Southampton Port Health Authority.
The Court of Appeal held that it was not necessary,
when refusing permission to allow entry into the UK of imports, to
show that foodstuffs constitute an actual risk to public
health.
The wording of Regulation 25 of the Products of
Animal Origin (Import and Export) Regulations (SI 1996 No 3124) was
examined, the Regulation provides:
“(1) … where checks at the border
inspection post reveal that a consignment of products of animal
origin does not comply with animal or public health conditions
relating to import or, in the opinion of the official veterinary
surgeon, constitutes a risk to animal or human health, an official
veterinary surgeon or person acting under his supervision, after
consulting the importer or his representative, may serve on the
importer or his agent a notice – (a) permitting the use of
the products for purposes other than human consumption … (b)
ordering the re-dispatch of the consignment outside the European
Community (c) ordering the destruction of the consignment.
The latitude implicit in the words “in the
opinion of the official veterinary surgeon was held to mean that it
was not a necessary condition of any action against particular
goods that they had to be shown to constitute an actual risk to
public health.
The wording of Regulation 25(1) could therefore be
used to undermine the prohibition on quantitative restrictions and
the complete code of Community legislation re hygiene control of
fisheries and other products. In order to appeal against any such
opinion under Regulation 25(1) the emphasis should be placed on the
argument that the relevant health authority should not rely on an
independent assessment of actual danger to public health over and
above the Community legislation as opposed to arguing that the
authority can only act when such a danger has been
demonstrated.
For further information please contact Jessica Burt
on +44 (0)20 7367 3589 or e-mail jessica.burt@cms-cmck.com.