UK Offence Report

Penalties for non-compliance with enforcement notices

regulation 21(1) of Environmental Impact Assessment (Forestry) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2000

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 carries out work in relation to a relevant project in contravention of a requirement to discontinue that work in an enforcement notice served on him in accordance with regulation 19 shall be guilty of an offence and liable— a on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum; or b on conviction on indictment to a fine.

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 This is the text as originally made; later amendments are not shown here.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
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 regulation 21(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 carries out work in relation to a relevant project in contravention of a requirement to discontinue that work in an enforcement notice served on him in accordance with regulation 19.
  2. Doing the thing the provision prohibits under the Environmental Impact Assessment (Forestry) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2000, 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
Either way — magistrates’ court or Crown Court
Maximum fine
£5,000
Maximum prison (summary)
Not determined

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
14 March 2000
In force from
1 May 2000
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.

The Environmental Assessment (Forestry) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1998 (S.R. 1998 No. 437 – “the 1998 Regulations”) provided for the implementation in relation to forestry projects of Council Directive 85/337/EEC (“the Directive”) on the assessment of the effects of certain public and private projects on the environment. The Environmental Impact Assessment (Forestry) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2000 amend the 1998 Regulations to implement changes to the Directive made by Council Directive 97/11/EEC. They also implement the extension of both Directives to the Contracting Parties of the European Economic Area (EEA) under Article 74 and Annex XX paragraph 1.1 of the Agreement on the European Economic Area, as given effect by Decision No. 20/1999 of the EEA Joint Committee adopted on 26th February 1999 (not yet published). These Regulations restate the provisions in the 1998 Regulations with revisions and amendments and the 1998 Regulations are therefore revoked. Regulation 2 defines terms used in the Regulations. As in the 1998 Regulations, there is a prohibition on carrying out any work or operations in relation to a project which is a “relevant project” (as defined) unless consent has been obtained from the Department. A further new provision gives the Department power, in accordance with Directive 85/337/EEC, as amended, to exempt particular projects from the application of the Regulations (regulation 4). “Relevant project” is defined in regulation 3 as one of four types of project relating to forestry which does not constitute development regulated by the legislation on town and country planning but which is likely to have substantial effects on the environment. In a new provision, a project which covers an area falling below certain thresholds specified in Schedule 2 to the Regulations is to be treated as not likely to have substantial effects on the environment. However, the Department has power to treat such a project as a relevant project requiring consent where, in its opinion, exceptional circumstances make it likely that the project will have substantial effects on the environment. A person who proposes to carry out a project may apply to the Department for an opinion as to whether the project is a relevant project. If dissatisfied with that opinion he may apply to the Department to reconsider its opinion. In determining that issue account must be taken of the environmental criteria set out in Schedule 3. A new provision enables the Department to issue an opinion without receiving an application. An opinion that the project is not a relevant project will lapse if the project is not completed within five years (regulations 5 to 8). The proposer of a project may also seek an opinion from the Department as to the information that should be included in the environmental statement attached to an application for consent (regulation 9). Applications to the Department for consent for a relevant project must be accompanied by an environmental statement which must contain the information required by Schedule 1 to the Regulations. The Department may request further information and any other bodies holding relevant information are required to make it available. There are requirements to publish the application and any further information and to invite representations. Where it appears that the project may be likely to have significant effects on the environment in another State of the European Economic Area, provision is made for the authorities of that State to be consulted before a decision is made. In making its decision the Department is required to have regard to the environmental statement and the direct and indirect effects on environmental factors specified in Schedule 4. The Department’s decision must be notified in writing (regulations 10 to 16). Where consent is refused the person proposing the project may request the Department to reconsider its decision (regulation 17). There is a requirement that any consent granted by the Department be subject to specified conditions (regulation 18). The Department is given powers to serve enforcement notices where relevant projects are carried out without consent or in breach of conditions. The person served with such a notice may request the Department to review an enforcement notice. Penalties are specified for breach of an enforcement notice. A power of entry and certain default powers are conferred on officers authorised by the Department (regulations 19 to 22). The Department is required to keep a register of directions, opinions, and determinations for public inspection (regulation 23). Transitional provisions apply, including treatment of ongoing applications etc. under the 1998 Regulations as if they had been made under these Regulations (regulation 24).

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 0.92.

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