UK Offence Report

Offences and penalties

regulation 8(1) of The Smoke Control Areas (Sale or Delivery of Unauthorised Fuel) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1998

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

1 Any person who contravenes—

a regulation 3(1) or permits another person to contravene that regulation; or

b regulation 7(1); shall be guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to

a fine not exceeding level

5 on the standard scale.

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 This is the text as originally made; later amendments are not shown here.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
contravening a requirement of the instrument
Fault element
Mixed — some elements strict, some not
Burden of proof
Legal burden on the defendant

The prosecution must prove the conduct, and - for those elements the provision qualifies (intentionally) - the state of mind it names. The remaining elements carry no fault requirement, so they are strict.

The provision gives a defence the defendant must prove, on the balance of probabilities. A legal burden of that kind can be read down to a merely evidential one under section 3 of the Human Rights Act 1998 where placing it on the defendant would be disproportionate (R v Lambert [2001] UKHL 37; Sheldrake v DPP [2004] UKHL 43).

Classifier’s reasoning: the offence itself carries no fault word, but a duty it criminalises by cross-reference uses intentionally; which element that governs was not determined.

The defence, as drafted

le. 2 In proceedings for an offence under these Regulations it shall be a defence for the person charged to prove that he took all reasonable precautions and exercised all due diligence to avoid the commission of such an offence by himself or by any person under his control. 3 Where the commission by any person of an offence under these Regulations is due to an act or de

What would breach regulation 8(1)?

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. On these words an offence is committed where a person contravenes— a regulation 3(1) or permits another person to contravene that regulation; or b regulation 7(1).
  2. Doing the thing the provision prohibits under the Smoke Control Areas (Sale or Delivery of Unauthorised Fuel) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1998, whatever the reason for doing it.
  3. Where the requirement is a positive duty, letting the time for performing it pass without performing it.

Penalty

Mode of trial
Summary only — tried in a magistrates’ court
Maximum fine
£5,000
Standard scale
Level 5
Maximum prison (summary)
Not determined

in Northern Ireland a reference to a level is construed as referring to the standard scale as it currently stands (Fines and Penalties (NI) Order 1984 art.5(3)), not as it stood when the instrument was made.

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
16 September 1998
In force from
15 October 1998
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 Regulations.) — the explanatory note published with the instrument, © Crown copyright.

These Regulations contribute towards the implementation, as respects Northern Ireland, of Council Directive 80/779/EEC on air quality limit values and guide values for sulphur dioxide and suspended particulates (“the Directive”). Regulation 3 prohibits the retail sale or delivery, with certain exceptions, of solid fuel other than an authorised fuel in smoke control areas. Authorised fuels are those fuels prescribed by regulations made under the Clean Air (Northern Ireland) Order 1981 for use in smoke control areas. The current regulations are the Smoke Control Areas (Authorised Fuels) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1992 and the Smoke Control Areas (Authorised Fuels) (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1993. That regulation allows unauthorised fuels to be delivered to premises other than private dwellings in smoke control areas, and its possession in such areas for the purpose of sale or delivery outside smoke control areas. It may also be delivered for use in fireplaces exempted by regulations under Article 17(7) of the Clean Air (Northern Ireland) Order 1981. Such fireplaces may be used in smoke control areas for burning fuel other than an authorised fuel, and are listed in the Smoke Control Areas (Exempted Fireplaces) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1992. Regulation 4 permits the retail sale and delivery of existing stocks of solid fuel held on trade premises in smoke control areas on the date of commencement of the Regulations, and of sticks and paper for use in fireplaces for kindling purposes. Regulation 5 places a duty on district councils to enforce the Regulations. Regulation 6 enables authorised officers to enter trade premises, to inspect and to take samples of solid fuel, and to submit any such samples for testing to an approved laboratory. Authorised officers are also empowered to inspect any relevant information and to seize and detain any records held on such premises. Regulation 7 prohibits the obstruction of an authorised officer or the furnishing of false or misleading information, while regulation 8 creates offences and provides that a person guilty of an offence is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale (currently £5,000). Copies of the Directive may be obtained from the Stationery Office, 16 Arthur Street, Belfast BT1 4GD.

Read the full note and every offence in this 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 0.92.

Basis
the provision says a person is “guilty of an offence”
Confidence
0.92 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