Investigation etc. of suspected vehicles

article 23(4) of The Syria (Restrictive Measures) (Overseas Territories) Order 2012 (revoked)

• Status not determined
• Requires proof of a state of mind
• Corporate, financial services, company law, employment, charity, electoral and tax

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

4 An operator or driver of

a vehicle (“P”) commits an offence if P—

a fails without reasonable excuse to comply with

a request under paragraph (1),

b knowingly or recklessly provides information or

a document which is false in

a material particular in response to

a request under paragraph (1)(b), or

c wilfully obstructs an authorised person, or

a person acting under that person’s authority, in the exercise of any power conferred by this article.

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 This is the text as originally made; later amendments are not shown here.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

an operator

Conduct

obstructing an official exercising a power

Fault element

Requires proof of a state of mind

Burden of proof

An element of the offence, for the prosecution to prove

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, wilfully).

“Without reasonable excuse” here is an element of the offence rather than a defence, so its absence is for the prosecution to prove (R v Charles [2009] EWCA Crim 1570).

Classifier’s reasoning: mens rea word in the offence-creating words: knowingly, wilfully, recklessly, knowingly or recklessly; qualified by reasonable excuse (an element; prosecution disproves once raised).

The defence, as drafted

driver of a vehicle (“P”) commits an offence if P— a fails without reasonable excuse to comply with a request under paragraph (1), b knowingly or recklessly provides information or a document which is false in a material particular in response to a request under paragraph (1)(b), or c wilfully obstructs an authorised person, or a person actin

What would breach article 23(4)?

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. Refusing to let an inspector onto premises they are entitled to enter under the Syria (Restrictive Measures) (Overseas Territories) Order 2012.
2. Sending an official away, or telling staff to say nothing, where the power being exercised does not depend on anyone's consent.
3. Physically blocking an examination, or removing something an officer has said they intend to inspect.

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.

• 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.

• 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

Status not determined

Made

10 July 2012

In force from

12 July 2012

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 Order) — the explanatory note published with the instrument, © Crown copyright.

The Order, made under the Saint Helena Act 1833, the British Settlement Acts 1887 and 1945 and prerogative powers, gives effect in the specified Overseas Territories to the measures adopted by the European Union in Council Decision 2011/782/CFSP adopted on 1 December 2011 (“the Council Decision”) and EU Council Regulation No 36/2012 adopted on 18 January 2012 (“the Council Regulation”), as amended. The Council Decision and Council Regulation repealed and replaced EU sanctions measures in relation to Syria originally adopted in May 2011 (EU Council Decision 2011/273/CFSP and EU Council Regulation 442/2011, as amended), which were previously given effect in the specified Overseas Territories by The Syria (Restrictive Measures) (Overseas Territories) Order 2011 (“the 2011 Order”). The Order revokes the 2011 Order. The Order gives effect, in the specified Overseas Territories, to an asset freeze in relation to persons responsible for the violent repression against the Syrian population in Syria, persons and entities benefiting from or supporting the Assad regime, and associated persons and entities, as listed in Annexes II and IIa to the Council Regulation. The Order also gives effect to an arms embargo and trade restrictions (in relation to specified equipment, goods, technology, software, crude oil, petroleum products, Syrian banknotes and coins, gold, precious metals and diamonds and luxury goods) and to restrictions on financial services.

Read the full note and every offence in this instrument

Other offences in the same instrument

• A person to whom this Order applies (“P”) commits an offence if P knowingly — a sells, supplies, transfers…article 10(1)
• A person to whom this Order applies (“P”) commits an offence if P knowingly— a imports crude oil or…article 11(1)
• A person to whom this Order applies (“P”) commits an offence if P knowingly — a sells, supplies, transfers…article 12(1)
• A person to whom this Order applies (“P”) commits an offence if P knowingly sells, supplies, transfers or…article 13
• A person to whom this Order applies (“P”) commits an offence if P knowingly — a sells, supplies, transfers…article 14
• A person to whom this Order applies (“P”) commits an offence if P knowingly sells, supplies, transfers or…article 15(1)
• A person to whom this Order applies (“P”) commits an offence if P knowingly — a sells, supplies, transfers…article 16(1)
• A person to whom this Order applies (“P”) commits an offence if P knowingly — a grants any financial loan or…article 17(1)
• Circumvention of prohibitions in articles 4 to 17article 18
• Customs powers to demand evidence of destination of prohibited goodsarticle 19(3)
• Declaration as to goods: powers of searcharticle 20(2)
• Declaration as to goods: powers of searcharticle 20(5)

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

• This provision on legislation.gov.uk The authoritative text. Check it before relying on anything here.
• The Syria (Restrictive Measures) (Overseas Territories) Order 2012 (revoked) Every offence this instrument creates, and its explanatory note
• Corporate, financial services, company law, employment, charity, electoral and taxOther offences on the same subject
• Offences created in 2012