UK Offence Report

Interpretation

article 2(2) of The Criminal Justice (Confiscation) (Northern Ireland) Order 1990

This offence was read from the text as made, and no revised version was available, so a later revocation could not be ruled out. Check the current text at legislation.gov.uk.

What the provision says

“drug trafficking” means doing or being concerned in any of the following, whether in Northern Ireland or elsewhere— producing or supplying

a controlled drug where the production or supply contravenes section 4(1) of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 or

a corresponding law; transporting or storing

a controlled drug where possession of the drug contravenes section 5(1) of that Act or

a corresponding law; importing or exporting

a controlled drug where the importation or exportation is prohibited by section 3(1) of that Act or

a corresponding law; manufacturing or supplying

a scheduled substance within the meaning of section

12 of the Criminal Justice (International Co-operation) Act 1990 where the manufacture or supply is an offence under that section; and includes

a person doing the following, whether in Northern Ireland or elsewhere, that is entering into or being otherwise concerned in an arrangement whereby— the retention or control by or on behalf of another person of the other person’s proceeds of drug trafficking is facilitated, or the proceeds of drug trafficking by another person are used to secure that funds are placed at the other person’s disposal or are used for the other person’s benefit to acquire property by way of investment;

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 This is the text as originally made; later amendments are not shown here.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
selling or supplying something the instrument restricts
Fault element
Strict liability
Burden of proof
No statutory defence — prosecution proves everything

The prosecution must prove that the conduct happened. This is a strict liability offence as drafted: the provision uses no word of intention, knowledge, recklessness or negligence, so there is no need to show that a person meant to do it, knew about it, or was careless.

Intention, knowledge and carelessness are irrelevant to guilt. They may still matter a great deal to sentence.

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

Classifier’s reasoning: no word of intention, knowledge, recklessness or negligence in the offence or its provision.

What would breach article 2(2)?

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.

  1. Selling the goods under the Criminal Justice (Confiscation) (Northern Ireland) Order 1990 where the instrument prohibits the sale outright.
  2. Supplying without carrying out a check the instrument requires first, even where the sale would otherwise be lawful.
  3. Offering for sale counts as well as selling: displaying stock is enough where the provision reaches an offer.

Penalty

Mode of trial
Either way — magistrates’ court or Crown Court
Maximum fine
£5,000
Maximum prison (summary)
Not determined
Maximum prison (on indictment)
6 months

expressed as the statutory maximum (the prescribed sum): the same words mean £5,000 in England and Wales and £10,000 in Scotland.

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.

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
Status not determined
Made
19 December 1990
In force from
Not determined
Extent
Not stated

How this was established: read from the text as made; no revised version available, so later revocation could not be ruled out.

What the instrument is for

(This note is not part of the Order) This Order- — the explanatory note published with the instrument, © Crown copyright.

a provides for courts to order the confiscation of assets of offenders convicted of highly profitable crimes; b provides for courts to order the confiscation of proceeds of drug trafficking; c provides for certain enhancements of court enforcement powers in order to secure payment of confiscation orders; and d makes further provision in connection with drug trafficking.

Read the full note and every offence in this instrument

Other offences in the same instrument

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 0.62.

Basis
the provision says an offence is committed “if” something happens
Confidence
0.62 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