Published on: 03 December 2020
Brexit will bring changes to timber regulations and depending on where you source your timber, this could mean your responsibilities on due diligence checks which suppliers must carry out might change from January 2021.
The UK has up until now been governed by the EU timber regulations. These regulations have now been transposed into UK law for the UK marketplace. These regulations look at the responsibilities for each party of the supply chain with the most onerous responsibility and burden of proof placed on the party first placing the timber on the market. This has been, up until now, the EU marketplace but from January 1 2021, this will change to the UK marketplace (with the exception of Northern Ireland which will still be controlled by the EU timber regulations).
The importing operator, which from January 2021 is the person placing the timber or timber product on the GB market, must gather information from the supply chain to ensure the timber has not been illegally harvested, including a full due diligence process.
A full due diligence documented process tracing the timber back to stump includes:
If you have been sourcing your timber from an EU supplier and intend to carry on doing so after January 1 2021, you will be the responsible party first placing the timber on the UK market. Checks will be carried out by the Office for Product Safety and Standards and you must have the right due diligence and documented proof in place.
It is equally important to look at vessels being exported into the EU. If the timber has not been placed on the EU market prior to the vessel being placed on the market, the responsible person placing the vessel on the EU market will also have to carry out a full diligence process as at that point the timber is being first placed on the EU market.
To better understand how your responsibilities will change in January, join us on Thursday 10 December at 11am where our expert panellists discuss the changes to timber regulations and the new due diligence checks which suppliers must carry out from January 2021.
To register for
Timber imports from January: Understanding the changing legal responsibilities for Boat Builders, the marine industry and its supply chain, click here.
- Ed Tuite, Technical Manager at British Marine
- Phil Matthews, Enforcement Officer at the Office for Product Safety and Standards
British Marine would also advise its members to visit our Brexit
microsite for further information on the changes coming into effect at the end of the transition period and for details of sector-specific guidance.
Members can also email Brexit related enquiries to brexit@britishmarine.co.uk.