The HGCA Cereals Levy Scheme made in 1987 was amended by a Variation Scheme approved by Parliament in June 1990 and has been further amended by a Variation Scheme approved by Parliament in June 1991. For ease of reference, the Authority has compiled the following composite text which updates the scheme approved in 1987 with the amendment coming into effect from 1st July 1990 and 1st July 1991.
(Under Section 16 of the Cereals Marketing Act 1965 for the imposition of levy.)
Title and commencement
Interpretation
Register of dealers, processors and intermediaries
Dealer levy
Grower Levy
Processor levy
Payment of levy
Recovery of levy and contribution to dealer levy
Returns and information
1. This Scheme may be cited as the HGCA Cereals Levy Scheme 1987 and shall come into force on 1st August 1987 [Amendments introduced by the HGCA Levy (Variation) Schemes of 1990 and 1991 shall come into force on 1st July 1990 and 1st July 1991 respectively].
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2.– (1) In this Scheme:-"
the Act" means the Cereals Marketing Act 1965;
"agent intermediary" means any person with a place of business in the United Kingdom acting as agent for a grower, dealer, processor or overseas purchaser;
"animal" includes any bird or fish but does not include man;
"animal feed" means any product produced to be fed to animals;
"animal feed process" means an industrial process applied to cereals the primary purpose of which is that the processed cereals produced by it shall be used for animal feed;
"the Authority" means the HGCA as established under Part I of the Act;
"cereals" means cereals grown in the United Kingdom being wheat (including durum wheat), barley, oats, rye, maize, triticale or any two or more of such cereals grown as one crop;
"dealer" means any person (other than an overseas purchaser or the Intervention Board) who is a wholesale buyer of cereals from a grower;
"dealer levy" means the levy imposed by paragraph 4;
‘’financial intermediary" means any person other than a grower, dealer, processor overseas purchaser or agent intermediary who in the course of his business acts as an intermediary in the buying and selling of cereals;
"grower" means any person who grows cereals;
"grower levy" means the levy imposed by paragraph 5;
"Intervention Board" means the Intervention Board for Agricultural Produce established under the European Communities Act 1972 (a);
"levy’’ means a levy imposed by this Scheme;
"month" means a calendar month;
"overseas purchaser" means any person who is a wholesale buyer of cereals from grower and who does not have a place of business in the United Kingdom;
"processed cereals" means cereals (whether or not mixed with other ingredients but excluding cereals grown by him) to which a processor has applied an industrial process in the course of a business carried on by him;
(a) 1972 c.68.
"processor" means a person who applies an industrial process to cereals (other than cereals grown by him) in the course of a business carried on by him;
"processor levy" means reduced-rate processor levy or standard-rate processor levy, as the case may be;
"quarter" means a period of three consecutive months ending on 30th September, 31st December, 31st March and 30th June;
"reduced-rate processor levy" means the levy imposed by paragraph 6 (1);
"registrable person" means a dealer, a processor, an agent intermediary, a financial intermediary or a grower who sells cereals direct to an overseas purchaser;
"standard-rate processor levy" means the Levy imposed by paragraph 6 (2);
"year" means a period of twelve months beginning with 1st July in any year and ending on 30th June in the subsequent calendar year.
(2) Any reference in this Scheme to a numbered paragraph shall be construed as a reference to the paragraph bearing that number in the Scheme.
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3.– (1) From 1st August 1987, the Authority shall keep a register of registrable persons and shall enter therein the name and address of any person who is a registrable person.
(2) Subject to paragraph 3 (3), every registrable person shall, within one month of 1st August 1987, apply to the Authority to be registered.
(3) Every person who on or after 1st August 1987 commences trading as a registrable person shall, within one month of the date on which he commenced trading, apply to the Authority to be registered.
(4) Every application for registration shall be made in such form and manner as the Authority may prescribe.
(5) As soon as practicable after registration the Authority shall provide the applicant with a certificate of registration bearing the date of registration and a registration number.
(6) Any registrable person may apply to the Authority for removal of his name from the register and the Authority shall, if satisfied that such person has ceased to be a registrable person, remove his name from the register.
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4.– (1) Dealer levy shall be payable to the Authority in respect of cereals sold by a grower (directly or through an agent intermediary acting on his behalf) to a dealer or to a processor (directly or through an agent intermediary acting on behalf of the dealer or processor) or to an overseas purchaser (directly or through an agent intermediary acting on behalf of the purchaser).
(2) In the case of sales by a grower to a dealer or to a processor, dealer Levy shall be imposed on the purchaser except that if the purchaser buys through an agent intermediary acting on his behalf, dealer Levy shall be imposed on such agent intermediary.
(3) In the case of sales by a grower to an overseas purchaser, dealer Levy shall be imposed as follows:
(a) if the overseas purchaser buys through an agent intermediary acting on his behalf, on such agent intermediary;
(b) subject to paragraph 4 (3) (a), if the grower sells through all agent intermediary acting on his behalf, on such agent intermediary;
(c) otherwise, on the grower.
(4) A person upon whom dealer levy is imposed by paragraph 4 (2) or 4 (3) (a) shall be entitled to recover a contribution equal to the grower Levy as follows:
(a) if the grower has sold through an agent intermediary acting on his behalf, from such agent intermediary;
(b) otherwise, from the grower.
(5) A person who, pursuant to paragraph 4 (4), has a right to recover part of the levy payable by him, shall, in respect of expenses incurred by him in exercising that right, be entitled to deduct from the levy payable by him in relation to any period in respect of which he is required by the Authority to make returns hereunder an amount equal to 5 per cent of the levy or £1 whichever is the greater and to retain any benefit received by him as a result of having recovered from the grower or the agent intermediary acting on behalf of the grower before making payment to the Authority.
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5.– (1) Grower levy shall be payable to the Authority in respect of cereals sold to the Intervention Board other than cereals in respect of which dealer levy has been imposed.
(2) Grower levy shall be imposed on the grower, agent intermediary or financial intermediary who makes the offer to the Intervention Board.
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6.– (1) Reduced-rate processor levy shall be payable to the Authority in respect of cereals sold and delivered by any person to a processor who declares, in a return relating to those cereals submitted to the Authority pursuant to paragraph 9 (3) or 9 (4), that he has applied, or intends to apply, an animal feed process to those cereals and shall be imposed on the processor in respect of the quantity of cereals delivered.
(2) Standard-rate processor levy shall be payable to the Authority in respect of cereals sold and delivered by any person to a processor who has not made in relation to those cereals a declaration pursuant to paragraph 6 (1) and shall be imposed on the processor in respect of the quantity of cereals delivered.
(3) If a processor applies an industrial process, other than an animal feed process, to cereals in respect of which he has made a declaration pursuant to paragraph 6 (1), he additionally shall be liable to pay to the Authority in respect of those cereals an amount equal to the difference between the reduced-rate processor levy and the standard-rate processor levy.
(4) If a processor applies an animal feed process to cereals in respect of which he has paid standard-rate processor levy, he shall be entitled to claim from the Authority in respect of those cereals a rebate equal to the difference between the reduced-rate processor Levy and the standard-rate processor levy.
(5) If a processor sells or otherwise ceases to own the cereals in respect of which be has paid processor levy without applying an industrial process to them, he shall be entitled to claim from the Authority a rebate equal to the processor Levy paid by him in respect of such cereals.
(6) The right to claim a rebate pursuant to paragraph 6 (5) shall arise when property in the cereals passes to the purchaser from the processor or when the processor otherwise ceases to own the cereals.
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7.– (1) In the case of grower levy and dealer Levy, liability thereto shall arise when property in the cereals passes to the purchaser and the levy shall be paid to the Authority within 49 days of the end of the period in respect of which the return relating to the cereals is required to be submitted pursuant to paragraph 9 (2).
(2) In the case of dealer levy, the right to recover a contribution equal to the grower levy pursuant to paragraph 4 (4) shall arise when property in the cereals passes to the purchaser.
(3) In the case of processor levy, liability thereto shall arise when the cereals are delivered to the processor and the levy shall be paid to the Authority within 49 days of the end of the period in respect of which the return relating to the cereals is required to be submitted pursuant to paragraph 9 (2).
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8.– (1) In the event of any default in respect of any payment in relation to:-(a) levy required to be paid to the Authority under this Scheme, or (b) contribution to dealer levy pursuant to paragraph 4 (4), any such payment shall be recoverable by the Authority or by the person entitled to recover such contribution, as the case may be, as a civil debt.
(2) Where a person, who is liable in respect of dealer levy and is entitled to recover a contribution from an agent intermediary or a grower pursuant to paragraph 4 (4), defaults in respect of such dealer levy, any unpaid contribution due to him in respect of that dealer levy shall be recoverable from the agent intermediary or grower, as the case may be, by the Authority, as a civil debt.
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9.– (1) For the purposes of determining the liability of registrable persons to levy under this Scheme the following provisions of this paragraph shall apply.
(2) The Authority may require any registrable person to keep or cause to be kept records as follows:
(a) the name and address of persons who have purchased cereals from or through him and, where the registrable person is a processor, who have purchased processed cereals from or through him;
(b) the name and address of persons who have sold cereals to or through him and, where the registrable person is a processor, who have sold processed cereals to or through him;
(c) the quantity and kind of cereals or processed cereals referred to in (a) and (b) above and the date of purchase or sale, and, where the registrable person is a processor, the quantity and kind of cereals or processed cereals delivered to or by the processor and the date of delivery;
(d) where the registrable person is a processor, the quantity and kind of cereals processed by him in respect of which standard-rate processor levy is payable and, separately, in respect of which reduced-rate processor levy is payable;
(e) where the registrable person is an agent intermediary, the name and address of any principal.
(3) Subject to paragraph 9 (4) below each registrable person shall submit it to the Authority returns in respect of each quarter giving such information as the Authority may require, such returns to be submitted within 28 days of the end of the quarter to which the return relates.
(4) The Authority may permit a registrable person to make returns in respect of each year instead of each quarter, such returns to be submitted within 28 days of the end l of the year to which the return relates, where he establishes to the satisfaction of the Authority that both the annual quantity of cereals in respect of which dealer levy will be imposed upon him is less than 250 tonnes and the annual quantity of cereals in respect of which processor levy will be imposed upon him is less than 1000 tonnes.
(5) Each registrable person shall retain any records required to be kept under paragraph 9 (2) for six calendar years from the end of the year to which those records relate.
(6) Each registrable person shall produce for inspection on demand by an authorised officer of the Authority any records required to be kept under paragraph 9 (2). An authorised officer acting in exercise of the power conferred by this sub-paragraph shall carry a warrant of his authority so to act and shall produce the same on demand.
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