EU Directive 2013/0137 Plant reproductive material: production and making available on the market
				On the face of it, this proposal to consolidate a number of directives into a single ruling seems a sensible move. However, there are a number of major ambiguities in the wording, which are cause for concern among many in the horticulture business. The proposal includes the formation of national and EU centralised registers of all varieties of plant. Only registered varieties can be legally sold, which means any new plant will need to be registered before it can be sold and this could cost several hundreds of pounds per registration. Not only would the cost be prohibitive to small, independent nurseries, there is the risk the registration process would be lengthy and any advantage to being the first to introduce a new variety could be lost. It is the view of the HEA, and its members, that this proposal will seriously undermine the diversity of plant varieties currently available. It will discourage the development of new, and improved, cultivars and effectively put the future of our horticultural industry under threat. Consumers' will be left with a much reduced range of plants they can purchase within the EU. A full summary of the proposal can be found on the EU legislative website The links below include correspondence between various HEA members and MEPs on the subject. Most of the replies were copied to individuals, so rather than list duplicate letters, they have been linked chronologically with a note to who else received the same replies.
				Links, letters & articles Latest news Agriculture Committee reject proposal - 11/2/14 Update from Jill Evans MEP - 24/1/14 EU Plant Reproductive Materials deadline extended What is this Directive? Full Proposal Summary of the proposal What does it mean? EU Q&A paper addressing key points UK parliamentary European Scrutiny Committee report Industry concerns Article by Plant Heritage - with a draft letter to send. Horticulture Week - Growers urged to lobby MEPs. Article in The Telegraph 'Save Our Nurseries' Article in Daily Mail - EU bid to ban plants RHS article: Plant Choice Compromised Plants for Europe article What can I do to get involved? Sign the Global Citizens' Declaration for Seed Freedom and Food Democracy				HEA member letters and replies Cath Sanderson to HEA members Cath Sanderson to MEPs Update from Jill Evans - 24/1/14 Reply from Robert Sturdy This reply was also sent to Heather Godard-Key and Mickfield Hostas following their letters Reply from Brian Simpson This reply was also sent to Chris Ireland-Jones following his communication to MEPs on the subject Reply from Alyn Smith This reply was also sent to Chris Ireland-Jones following his communication to MEPs on the subject Reply from Vicky Ford This reply was also sent to Chris Ireland-Jones following his communication to MEPs on the subject Reply from Struan Stevenson This reply was also sent to Chris Ireland-Jones following his communication to MEPs on the subject Sue Beesley Letter to Chris Davies MEP Chris Ireland-Jones letter to MEPs Reply from Stuart Agnew This reply was also sent to Mickfield Hostas following their letter Reply from Anthea McIntyre This reply was also sent to Malcolm Dickson, Heather Godard-Key and Chris Ireland-Jones following their communications on the subject Heather Godard-Key to Robert Sturdy and Anthea McIntyre Heather Godard-Key to Julie Girling This letter seeks clarification on points raised in Robert Sturdy's replies directed to Julie Girling as lead on this subject. Heather has received a note from Julie's PA to say "The issues you raise will be brought to Mrs Girling’s attention". Julie also sent this email to Chris Irelenad-Jones in reply to his letter. Mickfield Hostas to MEPs Reply from Richard Howitt
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