UK Offence Report

False statements

regulation 17 of The Set-Aside Regulations 1988

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 If any person, for the purposes of obtaining for himself or any other person any aid under these Regulations, knowingly or recklessly makes

a statement which is false in

a material particular, that person shall be guilty of an offence and liable, on summary conviction, to

a fine not exceeding £2,000.

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 This is the text as originally made; later amendments are not shown here.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 (knowingly, knowingly or recklessly, recklessly).

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, recklessly, knowingly or recklessly.

What would breach regulation 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. Entering a figure on a form or return that is known to be wrong under the Set-Aside Regulations 1988.
  2. Leaving out something the form asks for, where the omission is what makes the answer misleading.
  3. Producing a document to an official that has been altered since it was issued.

Penalty

Mode of trial
Summary only — tried in a magistrates’ court
Maximum fine
£2,000
Maximum prison (summary)
Not determined

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
28 July 1988
In force from
29 July 1988
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 in part Council Regulation (EEC) No. 797/85 (OJ No. L93, 30.3.85, p.l) on improving the efficiency of agricultural structures, as amended by Council Regulation (EEC) No. 1760/87 (OJ No. L167, 26.6.87, p.1) and Council Regulation (EEC) No. 1094/88 (OJ No. L106, 27.4.88, p.28) as regards the set aside of arable land, and Commission Regulation (EEC) No. 1272/88 (OJ No. L121, 11.5.88, p.36), which laid down detailed rules for the set aside of arable land. The Regulations, which apply to Great Britain, provide for payment of aid to farmers who undertake for a period of five years (“the set-aside period”) to withdraw from agricultural production an area of land equal in size to at least 20 per cent of the area of land on the holding used in the reference period for producing relevant arable crops (as defined in regulation 2(1)). Set-aside land must be left fallow (either for the whole of the set-aside period, or as part of the arable rotation), or used for woodland or for non-agricultural purposes. In addition, farmers entering the scheme must undertake to restrict the area of land used for growing relevant arable crops during the set-aside period (regulation 3(1)). Fallowed set-aside land and land awaiting conversion to woodland or to use for non-agricultural purposes must be managed in accordance with the requirements in Schedule 2 with a view to keeping it in good agronomic condition and to protecting the environment (regulations 7(1), 8(1) and 9(1)). Farmers who opt to plant woodland on an area of set-aside land greater than 0.25 hectares must either apply for a planting grant under the Forestry Commission’s Woodland Grant Scheme or apply for grant under the Farm Woodland Scheme (regulation 6(4)). The classes of person eligible for aid are landowners and tenants who enjoy sufficient security of tenure to take on a five-year commitment (regulation 2(1)). Tenants must notify their landlord if they intend to fallow set-aside land, and must obtain the consent of the landlord to the use of set-aside land for woodland or for non-agricultural purposes (regulation 6(1) and (2)). To benefit from aid, farmers must submit an application for acceptance by the appropriate Minister (regulation 5). A farmer who has set-aside land may change the use of that land (with the exception of land already planted with woodland) at any time within three years of entering the scheme (regulation 11). Where a holding or part of a holding changes hands, the new occupier may assume the set-aside obligations of the previous occupier (regulation 12). Aid under the Regulations is payable by way of five annual instalments based on the hectarage of set-aside land, and the rate varies according to the use of set-aside land and to whether it is situated in a less-favoured area (“LFA”) or elsewhere. Annual payments are to be at the rate per hectare of £200 (£180 in LFAs) in respect of land used for permanent fallow or for woodland (except where woodland is planted under the Farm Woodland Scheme): £180 (£160 in LFAs) in respect of land used for rotational fallow; and £150 (£130 in LFAs) in respect of land used for non-agricultural purposes. Where a farmer plants woodland on set-aside land under the Farm Woodland Scheme, he will receive annual payments at the same rate as under that Scheme (regulation 13). Less-favoured areas are defined by reference to designated maps which are available for inspection during normal office hours at the addresses specified in the definition of designated maps (regulation 2(1)). Copies of the maps may also be inspected during normal office hours at any Regional or Divisional Office of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, at any Divisional Office of the Welsh Office Agriculture Department and at any Area Office of the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries for Scotland. The regulations also— a impose certain requirements as regards the determination of the set-aside area and the minimum size and configuration of that area (regulations 3(4) and 4); b impose certain restrictions on the acceptance of applications for aid (regulation 6); c impose certain restrictions on the use of set-aside land for non-agricultural purposes (regulation 9(2)); d provide for termination of set-aside undertakings by the farmer after three years (regulation 10); e provide for the withholding or recovery of aid in certain circumstances (regulations 12(6) and 16); f provide for an obligation to permit entry and inspection (regulation 15); g create an offence, punishable on summary conviction with a maximum fine of £2,000, of knowingly or recklessly making a false statement in order to obtain aid (regulation 17).

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