UK Offence Report

5 A person who intentionally makes a false entry in any record or register required to be kept by virtue of…

regulation 43(5) of The Hazardous Waste Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2005

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

5 A person who intentionally makes

a false entry in any record or register required to be kept by virtue of any of the foregoing provisions of these Regulations commits an offence.

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 This is the text as originally made; later amendments are not shown here.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
making a false or misleading statement
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 (intentionally).

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: intentionally.

What would breach regulation 43(5)?

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 intentionally makes a false entry in any record or register required to be kept by virtue of any of the foregoing provisions of these Regulations.
  2. Entering a figure on a form or return that is known to be wrong under the Hazardous Waste Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2005.
  3. Leaving out something the form asks for, where the omission is what makes the answer misleading.
  4. Producing a document to an official that has been altered since it was issued.

Penalty

Mode of trial
Either way — magistrates’ court or Crown Court
Maximum fine
£5,000
Standard scale
Level 5
Maximum prison (summary)
Not determined
Maximum prison (on indictment)
2 years

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
20 June 2005
In force from
16 July 2005
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 set out the regime for the control and tracking of the movement of hazardous waste for the purpose of implementing the Hazardous Waste Directive (Directive 91/689/EC) in Northern Ireland. The Waste Framework Directive (Directive 75/442/EEC) regulates, subject to the certain exclusions, the management of all types of waste (“Directive waste”). The Hazardous Waste Directive supplements the Waste Framework Directive by imposing additional requirements in relation to Directive waste, which displays certain hazardous properties. These requirements have previously been transposed by the Special Waste Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1998 through controls on “special waste”. These Regulations repeal the Special Waste Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1998 and replace the term “special waste” with “hazardous waste”. Parts 1 to 3 of the Regulations define hazardous waste and set out how the Regulations apply to that waste. The definition of hazardous waste in regulation 6 refers to the list of hazardous wastes set out in the List of Wastes (Northern Ireland) Regulations 2005 (S.R. 2005 No. 301). Regulations 9 to 11 permit the Department of the Environment to determine specific wastes to be classed as hazardous or non-hazardous within Northern Ireland. Part 3 of the Regulations includes an exemption from these controls for domestic waste, which displays hazardous properties but not if it comprises asbestos waste or is collected separately. In both cases, the Regulations do not impose obligations directly on householders. Part 4 bans the mixing of hazardous waste during disposal or recovery operation or by anyone who produces, collects or transports hazardous waste unless such activity is permitted or authorised in accordance with the Waste Framework Directive. It also imposes a duty to separate different categories of Hazardous Waste where technically and economically feasible. Part 5 requires documents to be completed whenever hazardous waste is removed from premises, (which includes removal from ships and removal by pipeline). The Regulations require that all hazardous waste produced in Northern Ireland must be accompanied by the appropriate documentation for transfer within the United Kingdom. The various types of form are set out in Schedules 4 to 7. The Regulations require an accurate description of consignments of waste accompanies them whenever they move and each consignment to be accompanied with a unique consignment code. This is in addition to any requirements to ensure hazardous waste is properly packaged and labelled (see in particular the Packaging (Essential Requirements) Regulations 2003 (S.I. 2003/1941)). Producers, holders, carriers, consignors and consignees are all required to complete various parts of the forms. There is provision for a schedule of the carriers to monitor the waste chain and a copy of the completed Schedule of Carriers must be sent to the Department of the Environment. If the consignee rejects the waste, suitable alternative arrangements, including a new consignment note, must be made. Schedule 7 deals with cross border transfers within the United Kingdom and Gibraltar. Part 6 requires producers, holders, carriers, consignors and consignees to keep records. These must be kept for no less than 3 years. The Department of the Environment retains a right of inspection. The Regulations require consignees to provide producers, holders or consignors with a return as set out in Schedule 8 or a copy of the consignment note within 30 days of accepting the consignment. Part 7 makes it an offence for failure to comply with the requirements of these Regulations. The maximum penalty for failure to comply with a requirement imposed by or under the regulations set out in regulation 45 is level 5 on the standard scale (currently £5000) or to a fine or imprisonment for a period not exceeding two years. The Department of the Environment may issue fixed penalty notices of £200 instead of seeking conviction in the courts in relation to such offences. Other offences under the Regulations (including the provision of false information) are subject to a maximum fine of level 5 if tried summarily and higher fines and also imprisonment if tried on indictment. It is a defence to any offence under these Regulations, that the accused took all reasonable precautions and exercised due diligence to avoid the offence. Part 7 also imposes duties on holders of hazardous waste in the event of an emergency or grave danger which arises from hazardous waste. Schedule 10, Part I omits references to special waste in the Waste and Contaminated Land (Northern Ireland) Order 1997 and replace them with references to hazardous waste. Schedule 10, Part II makes consequential amendments to secondary legislation so that references to special waste are omitted and references to hazardous waste are updated so that they are consistent with these Regulations.

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 “commits 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