Moved by
That the draft Regulations laid before the House on 25 October be
approved.
Relevant document: 2nd Report from the Secondary Legislation
Scrutiny Committee (special attention drawn to the
instrument)
The Minister of State, Department for Environment, Food and Rural
Affairs, and Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office () (Con)
My Lords, leaving the EU gives us a unique opportunity to review
our retained EU wine law to ensure that it better suits our
domestic needs. The UK wine market was worth more than £10
billion in 2022 in off-trade and on-trade sales and the UK’s
developing domestic production sector has attracted significant
global investment. It is therefore vital to reform retained EU
laws to give us the opportunity to boost growth and development
in our domestic industry and to give it the capacity to tackle
future environmental and economic challenges. To do this, the
reforms that I am setting out to the House today will address a
number of issues faced by our wine businesses. They will remove
barriers, support innovation and simplify regulations to help to
support growth in our wine trade and production industry, giving
them the freedom to meet new and evolving demands while
maintaining the high standards that consumers have come to
expect.
First, the regulations will amend current importer labelling
requirements. The instrument will remove a stipulation that
imported wine must show the prefix “Importer” or “Imported by”
before the address of the business responsible for importing that
wine to England. It will mean that the general food law
provisions relating to the identification of the responsible food
business operator will apply to wine in the same way as they
apply to other food products, without any additional importer
labelling requirements in wine law on top of that. Changing
importer labelling provisions means that businesses do not have
to face unnecessary costs and bureaucratic administrative
burdens. With approximately 1.3 billion litres of wine being
imported into the UK in the 12 months leading up to December
2022, these burdens from inherited EU labelling rules must be
removed. This Government will always stand with businesses to
create growth opportunities.
Secondly, we will allow wines with a protected designation of
origin to be produced from any permitted grape variety or hybrid
variety rather than just the species Vitis vinifera. Permitting
the use of non-Vitis vinifera species and hybrid varieties in PDO
wines can bring significant benefits to both the industry and to
the environment. Hybrid varieties often exhibit higher disease
resistance compared to traditional Vitis vinifera varieties. The
use of hybrid grape varieties can contribute to greater crop
consistency and thus supply chain resilience. These hybrid grapes
are often bred to withstand various climatic conditions and soil
types, leading to more predictable yields. That predictability
can mitigate the impacts of climate-related fluctuations and
contribute to a stable supply of grapes, supporting both
producers and consumers.
Thirdly, the instrument will remove the ban on the production of
piquette, a wine-based beverage produced by adding water to grape
pomace. Ending this ban will allow wine producers to create a new
product offering using a by-product of the wine production
process. This is an exciting and interesting opportunity that the
Government want to provide to our wine producers.
The Government will also continue to support the thriving wine
industry by enabling the blending of imported wine in England.
This reform is permissive in nature, so take-up from the sector
is voluntary. Our aim of allowing the blending of any wine in
England will enable the wine industry to blend different
varieties of wine from the same or various origins to achieve
greater consistency in their products and to create entirely new
products that suit consumer tastes. The Government are delighted
that this measure also offers the opportunity for more British
jobs in English wineries and bottling plants.
The Government are also keen to make the recycling of wine
bottles easier in line with collection and packaging reforms. The
instrument therefore intends to remove the mandatory requirements
for foil caps and mushroom-shaped stoppers to be used in the
marketing of sparkling wine. In addition to reducing waste, our
aim is to make the production of sparkling wine more
competitive.
The instrument will remove the wine certification scheme. The
Government have listened to our wine industry and acted to remove
unnecessary bureaucracy. The Government opposed the wine
certification scheme policy as an EU member; now that we have
left, we can seize the opportunity to determine our own laws. The
instrument therefore intends to remove the wine certification
arrangements. The current cost of the application process is £15
plus VAT per varietal wine. By removing the scheme, the relevant
wine producers are avoiding that unnecessary cost.
I recognise that a majority of these first-phase reforms will
apply only in England. However, the Welsh Government and Defra
have agreed to pursue future reforms together, allowing these
benefits to flow to the wine industry across both nations. As we
have done from the outset, we continue to encourage Scotland to
make similar reforms.
Together, the changes I have set out will liberalise the growing
domestic wine industry and address several issues that our wine
businesses face. They will remove barriers, support innovation
and simplify regulations to help support growth in our wine trade
and production industries. These proposed reforms give them the
freedom to meet new and evolving demands while also maintaining
the high standards that consumers have come to expect.
Our wine industry and producers support the changes set out in
this instrument and welcome the flexibility it provides. The
Government intend to bring further changes to allow the wine
industry the benefits of leaving the European Union. This
instrument is part of a broader package of reforms giving our
thriving wine and alcoholic drinks sector greater flexibilities
that will support it in the future. I beg to move.
(Con)
My Lords, I thank my noble friend the Minister for presenting the
regulations before us this afternoon; overall, they are a very
positive contribution to the wines and spirits industry. I
declare my interest: I chair the Proof of Age Standards Scheme
board, of which the wines and spirits trust is a member. I was
very grateful for its briefing as part of my preparations for
this afternoon.
I have just a couple of questions for my noble friend. While it
is welcome that the regulations will benefit both consumers and
indeed the wine industry, my noble friend mentioned that there
are one, if not two, further statutory instruments to come before
the House in the next six months. Would it not have been better
to do all three statutory instruments together? I understand that
the Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee, which prepared a
report in advance of the regulations being laid before us this
this afternoon, expressed concern about the lack of a uniform
approach and level playing field across Great Britain, and the
way the department has introduced and promoted the
instrument.
I welcome my noble friend’s having reached an agreement between
the department and the Welsh Government. Can he tell us the
status of the agreement between his department and the Scottish
Government in that regard? Also, it is particularly welcome that,
as my noble friend said, only one label will be required, so we
are in fact restoring the situation that existed before Brexit.
It looked at one time as though two labels would be required on
one bottle, one for consumption in the EU and one for consumption
in the UK, and it is very good news indeed that these labelling
changes have gone ahead in such a sensible way.
With those few remarks, can my noble friend explain the thinking
behind having one statutory instrument before the House now, with
two to follow in short order? Also, can he explain the precise
situation with the Scottish Government regarding the instrument
before us this afternoon? However, I welcome these
regulations.
of Ullock (Lab)
My Lords, we have spoken previously about similar reforms. There
was an SI in 2021, for example, and during that debate we on
these Benches said that it was important that the Government work
with, rather than against, the industry as they continued to make
the reforms. So, these regulations are welcome, and it is good
that the Minister in his opening remarks confirmed that the
department has been working constructively with the industry. We
note that the industry has been very supportive of the
regulations before us today. Clearly, that support is good and
welcome, and there are many positives in what the regulations lay
out.
However, the Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee laid out
pretty lengthy concerns, which need addressing. They were largely
about the operation of the internal market and, as the noble
Baroness, Lady McIntosh of Pickering, mentioned, in particular
the Welsh and Scottish Governments, who signalled opposition to
the changes. I note that the Minister talked about moving forward
with the Welsh Government, but the noble Baroness made important
points about the situation regarding Scotland, so I would be
interested to hear his response to those concerns.
4.45pm
The committee’s report also referred to the potential negative
impact on consumer confidence, and in particular labelling. The
report says that
“it will be important that all products are labelled clearly so
that consumers can make an informed choice of what they are
buying”.
Can the Minister clarify exactly what the labelling requirements
will be, to ensure consumer confidence? The report also expressed
concerns about the timing of the reforms, given that the
Government are undertaking a broader review of wine regulations
with a view to consolidating them in early 2025. Again, the noble
Baroness mentioned further SIs coming forward, so it would be
helpful to have a better understanding of the timing.
I also draw attention to the consultation section of the
Explanatory Memorandum. Interestingly, it does not cite specific
details but is quite broad and vague. For example, it says that
of the 96 responses to the consultation,
“many … were supportive of the changes”.
It also contains a number of very vague statements,
including:
“Changes to importer-labelling requirements received strong
support”,
when 36 respondents said it would have a positive impact, but 24
said it would have a negative one.
Paragraph 10.3 is on allowing wines
“to be registered as Protected Designation of Origin … where
those wines are produced from hybrid-grape varieties”.
That apparently “received solid support”, but the consultation
document notes that some responses indicated there would be a
risk of lower-quality wine damaging the reputation of domestic
wines. That is also in the report from the Secondary Legislation
Scrutiny Committee.
Paragraph 10.4 states:
“The production and sale of piquette received positive responses
from respondents representing single businesses in the industry
who intend to make use of the change. Other respondents noted
that it would have no impact or that they would not intend to
make use of the change”.
In fact, of the 85 organisations that responded, 32 anticipated a
negative impact and only 18 a positive one.
Paragraph 10.5 states:
“The proposal to allow for the blending of imported wine received
a broad range of responses. Many respondents indicated that they
felt positively about the change and intend to make use of
it”.
However, it is all a bit vague and can be a little
misleading.
I wonder what the Government are doing to address the concerns
that emerged from the consultation. Although it was positive
overall, there were sufficient negative responses and issues
raised for the Government to need to give a more detailed
response. I will be interested to hear what the Minister has to
say about that.
(Con)
I am grateful to my noble friend and the noble Baroness for their
views on this instrument. I believe we all recognise the
importance of the wine industry. These changes support this aim
and will ensure greater flexibility. I recognise that a majority
of these first-phase reforms will apply only in England. As I
said earlier, the Welsh Government and Defra have agreed to
pursue reforms together, allowing these benefits to flow to the
wine industry in both nations.
We are working with Scotland. Of the wine we drink in this
country, I think only 1% is produced here. Most of that is
produced in the south-east of England but a wine industry is now
emerging across the United Kingdom. We want to encourage this. It
shows farmers and land managers adapting to a changing climate
and opportunities for a home-grown industry that we want to see
flourish. The changes to importer labelling are required to
ensure that the industry avoids unnecessary costs. Revoking
importer labelling provisions in wine law will result in the
application of the general food law provisions relating to food
business operator labelling. This is a change I assure noble
Lords that both this Government and the wine industry wish to
see.
I hope that it will get the support of the House. Our desire is
to improve the sustainability and innovation of the wine sector
through enabling PDOs to be applied for in relation to wines made
from hybrid grape varieties. This brings long-term benefits to
both industry and the environment as well as increasing consumer
choice. Blending wine also offers this opportunity, in addition
to improving consistency and reducing waste. A serious point made
by the Wine and Spirits Trade Association is that the blending of
wine is something that the industry wants to do. It is in the
consumers’ interest, it reduces waste and it improves quality. It
allows for the same flexibility that vineyards have to supply
wine that the consumer wants.
The Government also wish to free our wine industry from inherited
EU bureaucracy by removing the certification arrangements for
non-GI wine marketed with a variety and/or vintage indication.
Again, these reforms aim to remove additional costs and
administrative burdens on producers. The improvements this
Government have made on wine will provide consumer confidence and
sustainable growth, encourage frictionless trade, improve our
environmental impact and, most importantly, remove unnecessary
burdens.
My noble friend Lady McIntosh asked why we are doing this now and
then tabling a further two statutory instruments later. The
answer is that it is important to get this one agreed before the
end of the year, when otherwise the transitional labelling rules
will end. We want all food business-operated rules to be in place
by 1 January. The other two statutory instruments are slightly
more technical in nature and require a bit more work. We are
working at pace to bring those forward in the new year.
The noble Baroness, Lady Hayman, also referred to labelling. We
want to make sure that labelling is simple and straightforward.
We have sought to reduce the burden on producers but still offer
the correct labelling. This requirement will allow, for example,
the words “a blend of wines from Australia” or “a blend of wines
from Chile and Argentina” to be on the bottle. That gives enough
information to the consumer, but also secures what we believe is
a proportionate requirement on the industry.
I think I have addressed all the points raised. I hope the House
will approve this instrument.
Motion agreed.
