UK Offence Report

Indictable offences

article 17 of The Rabies (Importation of Dogs, Cats and Other Mammals) Order 1974

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

17 Without prejudice to section

80 of the Act (summary proceedings), any person who knowingly, and with intent to evade any provision of this order, or any provision of

a licence granted hereunder,—

a lands or attempts to land an animal in Great Britain the landing of which is prohibited by Article 4(1) above, or causes or permits the landing or attempted landing of any such animal, or

b lands or attempts to land an animal in Great Britain in contravention of any provision of this order, or of

a licence granted hereunder, or in respect of the landing of an animal in Great Britain, fails to comply with any such provision, or causes or permits any such contravention or non-compliance, or

c with respect to an animal which has been landed in Great Britain, does or omits to do anything relating to the detention and isolation in quarantine of the animal in contravention of any provision of this order, or of

a licence granted hereunder, commits an offence against the Act, and shall be liable to prosecution on indictment.

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 This is the text as originally made; later amendments are not shown here.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
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 (knowingly, with intent to).

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: knowingly, with intent to.

What would breach article 17?

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 the thing the provision prohibits under the Rabies (Importation of Dogs, Cats and Other Mammals) Order 1974, whatever the reason for doing it.
  2. Where the requirement is a positive duty, letting the time for performing it pass without performing it.

Penalty

Mode of trial
Not determined
Maximum fine
Not determined
Maximum prison (summary)
Not determined

no penalty is stated in this instrument; it may be in the enabling Act, or in a general penalties provision this pass did not connect to the offence.

No penalty was determined from this instrument. It may be in the enabling Act, or in a general penalties provision this pass did not connect to the offence. Absence of a figure here is not evidence that the offence carries no penalty.

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
31 December 1974
In force from
5 February 1975
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.

For the purpose of preventing the introduction of rabies into Great Britain, this order controls the landing in this country of any animal (other than man) belonging to the ten orders of mammals specified in Parts I and II of Schedule 1. It revokes and replaces the Rabies (Importation of Mammals) Order 1971 and the Importation of Dogs and Cats Order of 1928, together with the four orders of 1969 and 1970 which amended the latter, and it also includes new provisions derived from the powers of the Diseases of Animals Act 1950 as extended by the Rabies Act 1974. In respect of the animals to which it applies, the order prohibits their landing in Great Britain except under the authority of, and in compliance with the conditions imposed by, a licence previously granted by the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food in England and Wales and the Secretary of State in Scotland. However, licences are not required in respect of animals coming from Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man, provided such animals have not been outside the British Isles within the preceding six months. Nor is a licence necessary in respect of an animal which is landed at a British port or airport for the purpose of re-exportation from the same port or airport within a period of 48 hours, although in this case, the animal is made the subject of stringent controls with regard to its movement, detention and isolation, etc. Except where exceptional circumstances exist, animals may only be licensed to be landed at prescribed ports and airports, and they must be moved as soon as practicable after landing to authorised quarantine premises at which they are to be kept for the prescribed period of quarantine. The order provides for the majority of animals to which it applies to be detained in quarantine for a period of six calendar months from the date of landing, but in the case of vampire bats, their entry into the country is only permitted on the basis of their being quarantined for life. Moreover, vampire bats which are born in this country are also made subject to quarantine for life. The order contains detailed provisions relating to the movement of animals during quarantine, the licensing of carrying agents and of quarantine premises, and the control of animals which are passing through Great Britain or which are on board a vessel in a British port. The Ministers are also given power to deal with animals (including animals belonging to the additional orders of mammals specified in Part III of Schedule 1) which have been in contact with animals from abroad, and other provisions relate to the keeping of records, the conditions which may be inserted in licences, and other ancillary matters. With regard to contraventions of the order, power is given to an inspector of the Ministry or of the local authority to destroy an animal which is landed illegally, or in respect of which there has been a breach of a licence granted under the order. As an alternative he may require such an animal to be re-exported or detained and isolated in quarantine. In addition, a person who knowingly and with intent to evade the provisions of the order or of a licence lands or attempts to land, or causes or permits the landing or attempted landing, of an animal in contravention of the order or a licence, or contravenes any provision thereof with regard to quarantine, is made liable at the option of the prosecuting authority to prosecution on indictment, and accordingly to imprisonment for a maximum term of twelve months or to an unlimited fine, or to both.

Read the full note and every offence in this instrument

What Parliament said

Mentions of this instrument in Hansard. Parliamentary material is reused under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0.

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