Open call for evidence

Plant health civil sanctions draft guidance: stakeholder engagement

From:
Animal and Plant Health Agency
Published
1 December 2025

Applies to England and Wales

Summary

Inviting your comments on the proposed guidance document for plant health civil sanctions.

This call for evidence closes at

Call for evidence description

We are inviting your comments on the proposed guidance document setting out how the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) intend to use civil sanctions.

Civil sanctions for plant health were introduced into legislation in 2020 but have not yet been implemented by APHA. This guidance, once published, will allow APHA to use civil sanctions for the plant health offences that it has an enforcement role for within England and Wales.

Civil sanctions provide a wider range of enforcement options that can be used in addition to existing tools. This will allow APHA to be more proportional in their enforcement of plant health regulations and allows them to better fit any sanction or enforcement action to the offence.

You will find more detail and the 4 questions we are asking within our cover letter.

Welsh version/Fersiwn Cymraeg

Documents

Cover letter with questions

PDF, 148 KB, 2 pages

This file may not be suitable for users of assistive technology.

Request an accessible format.
If you use assistive technology (such as a screen reader) and need a version of this document in a more accessible format, please email defra.helpline@defra.gov.uk. Please tell us what format you need. It will help us if you say what assistive technology you use.

Draft guidance on the use of Civil Sanctions by the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) in England and Wales

PDF, 321 KB, 18 pages

This file may not be suitable for users of assistive technology.

Request an accessible format.
If you use assistive technology (such as a screen reader) and need a version of this document in a more accessible format, please email defra.helpline@defra.gov.uk. Please tell us what format you need. It will help us if you say what assistive technology you use.

Ways to respond

Email to:

planthealth@defra.gov.uk

Updates to this page

Published 1 December 2025

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