UK Offence Report

Contravention of The Control of Explosives Regulations 1991

the instrument as a whole of The Control of Explosives Regulations 1991

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

Contravening this instrument is an offence under section 33(1)(c) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. The instrument itself contains no offence-creating words.

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 This is the text as originally made; later amendments are not shown here.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
Not determined

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.

Classifier’s reasoning: contravention offences of this kind are strict as to the breach; the fault position is governed by the parent Act and was not read from it.

What would breach the instrument as a whole?

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 Control of Explosives Regulations 1991.

Penalty

Mode of trial
Set by another provision — the instrument states the penalty by reference to an Act or to another regulation
Maximum fine
Not determined
Maximum prison (summary)
Not determined

The instrument does not state a penalty itself. It sets one by reference to section 33(1)(c) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.

the penalty is in the parent Act, not in this instrument.

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
5 July 1991
In force from
1 November 1991
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 make new provision for controllling the acquisition and keeping of explosives, replacing the instruments revoked by regulation 19(3). Regulation 2 defines expressions used in the Regulations, and makes further provision as to construction. Regulation 3 sets out how the Regulations apply in relation to different kinds of explosives and to persons of various descriptions. Regulation 7 prohibits, with the exceptions stated in regulation 3(1) to (4), the acquisition or keeping of explosives except in accordance with an explosives certificate. Regulation 4 provides for the issue of explosives certificates as set out in Schedule 2 by the chief officers of police, if satisfied as to the fitness of the applicant and the other matters specified in regulation 4(5) to (7); certificates for acquisition may be issued to non-residents on application by a resident (regulation 4(8)). Regulation 5 limits the duration of certificates and sets out the circumstances in which they either may or must be revoked. Appeals against decisions under regulations 4 and 5 lie to the Crown Court or, in Scotland, the sheriff (regulation 6). Regulation 8 restricts the transfer of explosives, except those mentioned in regulation 3(1) and (2). With thesame exceptions, and the further exception in regulation 3(9) (members of H.M. forces), regulation 9 precludes the handling etc. of explosives by, and related employment of, prohibited persons as defined in regulation 2(1). Regulation 10 limits the descriptions and quantities of explosives that may be kept for private use (as so defined) except as provided in paragraph (3) and in regulation 3(3) and (4). Regulation 11 requires the occupier of a factory or magazine licensed under the Explosives Act 1875 to appoint an individual to be responsible to him for security. Regulation 12, with Schedule 3, contains requirements as to recording information about, and regulation 13 contains requirements as to reporting losses of, explosives other than those listed in Schedule 1 (see regulation 3(1)). Regulation 14 extends the Regulations, with the exceptions stated, to, and to activities connected with, offshore installations, pipelines and mines. Under regulation 15(1) the Regulations are to be enforced by chief officers of police, except in the cases described in regulation 15(2) and (3) where the Health and Safety Executive (“the Executive”) is the enforcing authority. Regulation 16 empowers the Executive to revoke licenses granted under the Explosives Act 1875 in respect of factories and magazines. Regulation 17(1) and (2) empowers them to grant and to revoke excemptins from requirements or prohibitions imposed by the Regulations; under regulation 17(3) similar powers are exercisable in the interest of national security by the Secretary of State responsible for defence. Regulation 18 contains transitional provisions. Regulation 19, with Schedule 4, modifies provisions of the Explosives Act 1875 and wholly or partly revokes, with savings, a number of instruments made under that Act and under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.

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 0.70.

Basis
the penalty comes from the enabling Act rather than from this instrument
Confidence
0.70 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