UK Offence Report

Offences and penalties

regulation 23 of The Bluetongue Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2008

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

23 A person contravening any requirement or prohibition in or under these Regulations is guilty of an offence and liableon summary conviction to

a fine not exceeding level

5 on the standard scale or to imprisonment not exceeding three months or both.

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 This is the text as originally made; later amendments are not shown here.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
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 23?

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. Doing what the provision prohibits, or failing to do what it requires under the Bluetongue Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2008.

Penalty

Mode of trial
Not determined
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
30 June 2008
In force from
21 July 2008
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 implement Council Directive 2000/75/EC O.J.No.L327. 22.12.2000, p74 laying down specific provisions for the control and eradication of bluetongue and enforce Commission Regulation (EC) No. 1266/2007 O.J.No.L283. 27.10.2007, p37. They revoke and remake with changes the Bluetongue Order (Northern Ireland) 2008. The changes are that— a the Department may, within a restricted zone, declare any area around an infected premises to be a protection zone, and any area beyond such protection zone to be a surveillance zone (regulation 10(1)(b)). b a person is prohibited from moving an animal in a restricted zone if the animal shows clinical signs of bluetongue on the day of transport (regulation 10(5)). c the operator of a slaughterhouse in a surveillance zone must obtain a licence if that operator proposes to slaughter animals from a protection zone (regulation 13(3)). d if bluetongue is confirmed outside Northern Ireland, the Department may declare a protection zone and a surveillance zone in Northern Ireland (regulation 15). e unless in an excepted category, a person requires a licence to obtain bluetongue vaccine (regulation 18). Vaccination can only take place if authorised by the Department (regulation 19) or where vaccination is required either in a vaccination zone or by notice served on particular premises (regulation 20). f power is given to the Department to allow a person to take or avoid taking an action otherwise than in accordance with the other provisions of these Regulations for the purpose only of ensuring the health and welfare of any animal (regulation 28). Provision is made so that references to the Commission regulation are references to it as amended from time to time. Part I of the Regulations provides introductory provisions and exemptions (regulations 1 to 3). Part II of the Regulations provides for the reporting of symptoms of bluetongue (regulation 4), confirmation of bluetongue on premises (regulation 6). Provision is made for the establishment of temporary control zones (regulation 8), the establishment of restrictions on premises and the establishment of zones and controls on movements of animals within and out of those zones (regulations 9 and 10). Power is given to the Department to license or designate certain slaughterhouses (regulation 13(1)). Movement without a licence of an animal, semen, ovum or embryo from the restricted zone where a notice has been served on the occupier of the premises of destination is prohibited (regulation 14). This Part also provides for the Department to declare zones in Northern Ireland when bluetongue is confirmed outside Northern Ireland (regulation 15). Part III makes provision for vaccination (regulations 18 to 20) and compliance costs (regulation 21). Failure to comply with any requirement or to observe any prohibition in or under these Regulations is an offence (regulation 23). Interference with traps and marks is dealt with in (regulation 25). Regulation 28 gives the Department power to permit anything that would otherwise be prohibited or to exempt a person from any requirement under the Regulations, for the purpose of ensuring the health and welfare of any animal. Failure to comply with these Regulations is an offence under Article 52(1) of the Diseases of Animals Order (Northern Ireland) 1981.

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