(1)

Regulation (EU) 2016/429 lays down disease-specific rules for the diseases listed in accordance with Article 5(1) thereof and lays down how those rules are to be applied to different categories of listed diseases. Regulation (EU) 2016/429 provides for the Member States to establish compulsory eradication programmes for the listed diseases referred to in Article 9(1), point (b), thereof, and for optional eradication programmes for listed diseases referred to in Article 9(1), point (c), thereof, and for the approval of such programmes by the Commission. That Regulation also provides for the approval or withdrawal by the Commission of the disease-free status of Member States or zones or compartments thereof with regard to certain listed diseases referred to in Article 9(1), points (b) and (c), thereof.

(2)

Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/689 (2) supplements Regulation (EU) 2016/429 and lays down the criteria for granting, maintaining, suspending and withdrawing disease-free status for Member States or zones or compartments thereof, and the requirements for the approval of compulsory or optional eradication programmes for Member States or zones or compartments thereof.

(3)

Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/620 (3) lays down implementing rules for the listed diseases referred to in Article 9(1), points (a), (b) and (c), of Regulation (EU) 2016/429 of animals, as regards the disease-free and non-vaccination status of certain Member States or zones or compartments thereof, and the approval of eradication programmes for those listed diseases. More particularly, it lists in the Annexes thereto, the Member States or zones or compartments thereof with disease-free status and it also lists the existing approved compulsory or optional eradication programmes. The changing epidemiological situation of certain diseases makes it necessary to list new disease-free Member States or zones thereof, to delete from the lists areas where disease outbreaks have been confirmed or where the conditions for maintaining the disease-free status are no longer met, and to approve certain compulsory or optional eradication programmes submitted to the Commission.

(4)

In accordance with the Agreement on the withdrawal of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland from the European Union and the European Atomic Energy Community (Withdrawal Agreement), and in particular Article 5(4) of the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland in conjunction with Annex 2 to that Protocol, Regulation (EU) 2016/429, as well as the Commission acts based on it, such as Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/620, apply to and in the United Kingdom in respect of Northern Ireland after the end of the transition period provided for in the Withdrawal Agreement.

(5)

For infection with Brucella abortus, B. melitensis and B. suis, infection with Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (Mycobacterium bovis, M. caprae and M. tuberculosis) (MTBC), infection with the rabies virus (RABV), infection with bovine viral diarrhoea (BVD), and infection with bluetongue virus (serotypes 1-24) (BTV), several Member States have recently applied to the Commission to have disease-free status or eradication programmes approved for the whole or for part of their territory.

(6)

It is opportune to list bovine animals, and ovine and caprine animals, separately for those diseases. Accordingly, Part II of Annex I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/620, as amended by this Regulation, will have different Chapters for bovine animals and for caprine and ovine animals, and accordingly it is necessary to also amend Article 2 of that Implementing Regulation which refers to that Annex.

(7)

For infection with Brucella abortus, B. melitensis and B. suis in bovine animals, Spain has submitted to the Commission information demonstrating that the conditions for the recognition of disease-free status laid down in Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/689 are fulfilled in the Province of Cáceres in the Autonomous Community of Extremadura. Therefore, that zone should be listed as a zone free from Brucella abortus, B. melitensis and B. suis in bovine animals in Part I, Chapter 1, of Annex I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/620.

(8)

For infection with Brucella abortus, B. melitensis and B. suis in bovine animals, Bulgaria, Greece, Hungary, Italy and Portugal, and for infection with Brucella abortus, B. melitensis and B. suis in ovine and caprine animals, Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Italy, and Portugal, have submitted to the Commission applications to have their compulsory eradication programmes approved. Following the assessment by the Commission, those applications have been shown to comply with the criteria laid down in Chapter 2 of Part II of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/689 for the approval of eradication programmes. Therefore, the Member States or zones thereof covered by those eradication programmes should be listed in Annex I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/620, as having an approved eradication programme for those diseases in those animal populations.

(9)

For infection with MTBC, Spain has submitted to the Commission information demonstrating that the conditions for recognition of disease-free status from infection with MTBC laid down in Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/689 are fulfilled in the Autonomous Community of País Vasco. Therefore, that Autonomous Community should be listed as a zone free from MTBC in Annex II, Part I, to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/620.

(10)

For infection with MTBC, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Malta, Portugal, Romania, Spain and the United Kingdom in respect of Northern Ireland have submitted to the Commission applications to have their eradication programmes approved. Following the assessment by the Commission, those applications have been shown to comply with the criteria laid down in Chapter 2 of Part II of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/689 for the approval of eradication programmes. Therefore, the Member States or zones thereof covered by those eradication programmes, as well as the United Kingdom in respect of Northern Ireland, should be listed in Annex II, Part II, to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/620, as having an approved eradication programme for infection with MTBC.

(11)

As regards infection with RABV, France has submitted to the Commission information demonstrating that the conditions for recognition of disease-free status laid down in Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/689 are fulfilled in French Guiana. Therefore, French Guiana should be added to the territory of France which is already listed as free from RABV in Annex III, Part I, to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/620.

(12)

Poland has notified to the Commission outbreaks of infection with RABV in several regions of the Voivodship Mazowieckie and Voivodship Świętokrzyskie, which are currently listed as disease-free status zones in Part I of Annex III to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/620. Therefore, the affected regions should be deleted from that list and the entry for that Member State in that list should be amended accordingly.

(13)

For infection with RABV, Poland and Romania have submitted to the Commission applications to have their eradication programmes approved. Following the assessment by the Commission, those applications have been shown to comply with the criteria laid down in Chapter 2 of Part II of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/689 for the approval of eradication programmes. Therefore the Member States or zones thereof covered by those eradication programmes should be listed in Part II of Annex III to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/620, as having an approved eradication programme for infection with RABV.

(14)

For infection with BVD, Austria, Finland and Sweden have submitted to the Commission information demonstrating that the conditions for recognition of disease-free status from BVD laid down in Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/689 are fulfilled for the whole of their territories. In addition, Germany has submitted to the Commission information demonstrating that the conditions for recognition of disease-free status from BVD are fulfilled for certain zones of its territory. Germany has also submitted to the Commission applications to have eradication programmes approved for other zones of its territory. Following the assessment by the Commission, those applications have been shown to comply with the criteria laid down in Chapter 2 of Part II of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/689 for the granting of disease-free status or for approval of eradication programmes for BVD, respectively. Therefore, those Member States or zones thereof should be listed accordingly in Annex VII to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/620, as having respectively disease-free status from BVD or an approved eradication programme for BVD.

(15)

Spain has notified to the Commission outbreaks of infection with BTV serotype 4 in the Autonomous Community of Castilla-La Mancha, which affected the regions of Peñarroya-Pueblonuevo, Hinojosa del Duque (Pedroches II), Pozoblanco (Pedroches I), Villanueva de Córdoba (Pedroches III), Montoro (Alto del Guadalquivir), Andújar and Linares in the Autonomous Community of Andalucia, The outbreaks have also affected the regions of Almadén, Almodóvar del Campo and Piedrabuena in the Autonomous Community of Castilla-La Mancha, as well as the Province of Badajoz and the regions of Coria, Valencia de Alcántara, Cáceres and Trujillo y Logrosán (Zorita) in the Autonomous Community of Extremadura. Those affected regions, which are located in the Autonomous Community of Andalucia, in the Autonomous Community of Extremadura, and in the Autonomous Community of Castilla-La Mancha, respectively, are currently all listed as having disease-free status for infection with BTV, in Part I of Annex VIII to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/620. The disease-free status of those regions for infection with BTV should be withdrawn, and the entry for Spain in that list should be amended accordingly.

(16)

In addition, Portugal has notified to the Commission outbreaks of infection with BTV serotype 4 in the Castelo Branco and Setubal districts. Since Castelo Branco and Setubal districts, as part of Portugal, are located in the disease-free status areas listed in Part I of Annex VIII to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/620, their disease-free status for infection with BTV should be withdrawn, and the entry for Portugal in that list should be amended accordingly.

(17)

Furthermore, as regards infection with BTV, Spain has submitted to the Commission an application to have an optional eradication programme approved. Following the assessment by the Commission, that application has been shown to comply with the criteria laid down in Chapter 2 of Part II of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/689. Therefore the zones covered by that eradication programme should be listed in Part II of Annex VIII to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/620, as having an approved eradication programme for infection with BTV.

(18)

As regards the aquatic disease infectious haematopoietic necrosis (IHN), Denmark has informed the Commission that the conditions to maintain disease-free status for its whole territory are no longer met. Denmark is listed in Part I of Annex XIII to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/620. The entry for Denmark should therefore be deleted from that list.

(19)

Finland has notified to the Commission several outbreaks of IHN in the Åland Islands, in an area which is listed as having disease-free status in Annex XIII to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/620. The disease-free status of the infected area should therefore be withdrawn and the zone should be deleted from Part I of that Annex, and the entry for that Member State in that list should be amended accordingly.

(20)

Annexes I, II, III, VII, VIII and XIII to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/620 should therefore be amended accordingly.

(21)

The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Standing Committee on Plants, Animals, Food and Feed,

(1)

Article 2(3), is replaced by the following:

(2)

Annexes I, II, III, VII, VIII and XIII are amended in accordance with the Annex to this Regulation.