Attempting to commit an offence

article 3 of The Criminal Attempts and Conspiracy (Northern Ireland) Order 1983

Revoked, but still prosecutable
Requires proof of a state of mind
Summary only
Miscellaneous

The provision has been revoked, but a saving provision keeps it prosecutable for conduct before a stated date. A person can still be charged with something it is no longer an offence to do.

What the provision says

3 1 If, with intent to commit an offence to which this Article applies, a person does an act which is more than merely preparatory to the commission of the offence, he is guilty of attempting to commit the offence. 1A Subject to section 8 of the Computer Misuse Act 1990 (relevance of external law), if this paragraph applies to an act, what the person doing it had in view shall be treated as an offence to which this Article applies. 1B Paragraph (1A) above applies to an act if— a it is done in Northern Ireland; and b it would fall within paragraph (1) as more than merely preparatory to the commission of an offence under section 3 of the Computer Misuse Act 1990 but for the fact that the offence, if completed, would not be an offence triable in Northern Ireland.

Text as made, from legislation.gov.uk. © Crown copyright, reused under the Open Government Licence v3.0. This is the text as originally made; later amendments are not shown here.

Who it binds, and what has to be proved

Binds: a person
Conduct: breaching the provision
Fault element: Requires proof of a state of mind
Burden of proof: No statutory defence — prosecution proves everything

The prosecution must prove both that the conduct happened and that it was done with the state of mind the provision names (with intent to).

The provision states no defence, so the prosecution bears the burden on every element of the offence.

Classifier’s reasoning: mens rea word in the offence-creating words: with intent to.

What would breach article 3?

These are illustrations, not law. They are generated from the provision’s own words to show the shape of the offence. Whether any particular conduct is caught depends on the full text, on any amendment since, and on the facts.

Doing what the provision prohibits, or failing to do what it requires under the Criminal Attempts and Conspiracy (Northern Ireland) Order 1983.

Penalty

Mode of trial: Summary only — tried in a magistrates’ court
Maximum fine: £500
Maximum prison (summary): 3 months

Sentencing

Offences of this kind are usually sentenced under the guidelines below. This is a mapping by subject, not a finding about this provision, and the links go to a search of the Sentencing Council’s own site.

Reduction in sentence for a guilty plea: definitive guideline All courts in England and Wales · in force from 1 June 2017
The sliding scale of credit for pleading guilty, from one third at the first stage of proceedings downwards.
General guideline: overarching principles All courts in England and Wales · in force from 1 October 2019
The guideline a court uses when there is no offence-specific guideline, which is the position for the overwhelming majority of offences created by statutory instrument. It sets out how culpability and harm are assessed from first principles.
Totality: definitive guideline All courts in England and Wales
How to sentence more than one offence at once so that the total is just and proportionate - frequently in point here, because regulatory prosecutions commonly charge several breaches of the same instrument.

Prosecution figures

No published per-offence figure was found for this provision, and it could not be matched to a Ministry of Justice offence code. Offences created by statutory instrument very largely do not have one. Absence of a figure is not evidence that the offence is unused.

Status and lifecycle

Current status: Revoked, but still prosecutable
Revoked by: The Criminal Justice (Serious Fraud) (Northern Ireland) Order 1988
Made: 27 July 1983
In force from: Not determined
Extent: N.I.

How this was established: revoked, but a saving provision keeps the offence prosecutable for conduct before the stated date.

Other offences in the same instrument

Penalties for conspiracyarticle 11(1)
Penalties for conspiracyarticle 11(2)
Penalties for conspiracyarticle 11(2)(c)
Penalties for conspiracyarticle 11(3)
Penalties for conspiracyarticle 11(4)
Restrictions on the institution of proceedings for conspiracyarticle 12(1)
Abolitions, savings, transitional provisions and amendmentsarticle 13(7)
Abolitions, savings, transitional provisions and amendmentsarticle 13(7)
If, with intent to commit an offence to which this Article applies, a person does an act which is more than…article 3(1)
Subject to section 8 of the Computer Misuse Act 1990 (relevance of external law), if this paragraph applies…article 3(1A)
A person may be guilty of attempting to commit an offence to which this Article applies even though the…article 3(2)
In any case where— a apart from this paragraph a person's intention would not be regarded as having amounted…article 3(3)

How this was identified as an offence

Everything above rests on the judgement that this provision creates a criminal offence, rather than mentioning one. That judgement is made by rule, from the words of the provision, and this is the rule that made it — with a confidence of 0.61.

Basis: the provision says a person “commits an offence”; c11_treated_as_offence
Confidence: 0.61 of 1.00

A provision that states a penalty for an offence created elsewhere can read very like one that creates an offence, and the rules can mistake the one for the other. If the text quoted above sets a penalty for something made an offence by another provision, treat the classification on this page with that in mind, and read the instrument.

Check the source

This provision on legislation.gov.uk The authoritative text. Check it before relying on anything here.
The Criminal Attempts and Conspiracy (Northern Ireland) Order 1983 Every offence this instrument creates, and its explanatory note
MiscellaneousOther offences on the same subject
Offences created in 1983