What would breach article 7 of The Liberia (United Nations Sanctions) Order 2004?

Entering a figure on a form or return that is known to be wrong under the Liberia (United Nations Sanctions) Order 2004. Leaving out something the form asks for, where the omission is what makes the answer misleading. Producing a document to an official that has been altered since it was issued.

Offences in connection with application for licences, conditions attaching to licences, etc

Q: Is article 7 of The Liberia (United Nations Sanctions) Order 2004 a strict liability offence?

The prosecution must prove the conduct, and - for those elements the provision qualifies (for the purpose of obtaining, recklessly) - the state of mind it names. The remaining elements carry no fault requirement, so they are strict.

article 7 of The Liberia (United Nations Sanctions) Order 2004

Revoked
Mixed — some elements strict, some not
Either way
International sanctions, export control and trade restrictions

The provision has been revoked and no saving provision preserving liability for earlier conduct was found.

What the provision says

Provided that no person shall be guilty of an offence under this paragraph where he proves that the condition with which he failed to comply was modified, otherwise than with his consent, by the Secretary of State after the doing of the act authorised by the licence.

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 This is the text as originally made; later amendments are not shown here.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: Mixed — some elements strict, some not
Burden of proof: No statutory defence — prosecution proves everything

The prosecution must prove the conduct, and - for those elements the provision qualifies (for the purpose of obtaining, recklessly) - the state of mind it names. The remaining elements carry no fault requirement, so they are strict.

The provision states no defence, so the prosecution bears the burden on every element of the offence.

Classifier’s reasoning: no fault word in the offence-creating words, but the surrounding provision uses recklessly, for the purpose of obtaining - which element it governs was not determined.

What would breach article 7?

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.

Entering a figure on a form or return that is known to be wrong under the Liberia (United Nations Sanctions) Order 2004.
Leaving out something the form asks for, where the omission is what makes the answer misleading.
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: Not determined
Standard scale: Level 5
Maximum prison (summary): 6 months
Maximum prison (on indictment): 2 years

the level is stated but no money value is given: this instrument extends outside the United Kingdom, where the standard scale set by s.122(1) of the Sentencing Act 2020 does not run.

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.

Sentencing organisations: fines and the means of a corporate defendant All courts in England and Wales
How a fine on a company is arrived at from its turnover. Relevant far beyond the guidelines that state it, because a very large share of the offences in this corpus can only be committed by an organisation.
Fraud, bribery and money laundering offences: definitive guideline Magistrates' courts and the Crown Court in England and Wales · in force from 1 October 2014
Covers fraud, false accounting, bribery and money laundering, including offences committed by organisations.
Imposition of community and custodial sentences: definitive guideline All courts in England and Wales
When a community order or custody is justified at all, and the presumption against short custodial sentences.
Reduction in sentence for a guilty plea: definitive guideline All courts in England and Wales · in force from 1 June 2017
The sliding scale of credit for pleading guilty, from one third at the first stage of proceedings downwards.
General guideline: overarching principles All courts in England and Wales · in force from 1 October 2019
The guideline a court uses when there is no offence-specific guideline, which is the position for the overwhelming majority of offences created by statutory instrument. It sets out how culpability and harm are assessed from first principles.
Totality: definitive guideline All courts in England and Wales
How to sentence more than one offence at once so that the total is just and proportionate - frequently in point here, because regulatory prosecutions commonly charge several breaches of the same instrument.

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: Revoked
Revoked by: The Liberia (United Nations Sanctions) (Revocation) Order 2016
Revoked on: 10 August 2016
Made: 11 February 2004
In force from: 13 February 2004
Extent: E+W+S+NI

How this was established: the instrument was revoked by a later instrument found in this corpus.

What the instrument is for

This Order, made under the United Nations Act 1946, implements the prohibition of the sale or supply of arms and related materiel to Liberia pursuant to decisions of the Security Council of the United Nations in resolution 1521 of 22nd December 2003. It replaces The Liberia (United Nations Sanctions) Order 2001 (S.I. 2001/947) which ceased to have effect by virtue of the cancellation of the relevant parts of United Nations Security Council resolution 1343 of 7th March 2001.

Read the full note and every offence in this instrument

Other offences in the same instrument

Provisions supplementary to articles 9 to 11article 12(3)
Supply of restricted goodsarticle 3(1)
Use of ships, aircraft and vehicles: restricted goodsarticle 5(3)
Customs powers to demand evidence of destination which goods reacharticle 6
If for the purpose of obtaining any licence under this Order any person makes any statement or furnishes any…article 7(1)
Any person who has done any act under the authority of a licence granted by the Secretary of State under…article 7(2)
Declaration as to goods: powers of searcharticle 8(2)
Declaration as to goods: powers of searcharticle 8(3)
Any person who — a without reasonable excuse, refuses or fails within the time and in the manner specified…paragraph 5 of SCHEDULE 2

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

This provision on legislation.gov.uk The authoritative text. Check it before relying on anything here.
The Liberia (United Nations Sanctions) Order 2004 Every offence this instrument creates, and its explanatory note
International sanctions, export control and trade restrictionsOther offences on the same subject
Offences created in 2004