UK Offence Report

Offences relating to information etc.

paragraph 3 of SCHEDULE 6 of The Eritrea (Sanctions) (Overseas Territories) Order 2012 (revoked)

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

3 It is an offence for

a person to—

a without reasonable excuse, refuse or fail within the time and in the manner specified (or, if no time has been specified, within

a reasonable time) to comply with any request made under this Schedule,

b knowingly or recklessly give any information, or produce any document, which is false in

a material particular in response to such

a request,

c destroy, mutilate, deface, conceal or remove any document with intent to evade the provisions of this Schedule, or

d otherwise intentionally obstruct any person in the exercise of that person’s powers under this Schedule.

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 This is the text as originally made; later amendments are not shown here.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

“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, intentionally, with intent to, recklessly, knowingly or recklessly; qualified by reasonable excuse (an element; prosecution disproves once raised).

The defence, as drafted

3 It is an offence for a person to— a without reasonable excuse, refuse or fail within the time and in the manner specified (or, if no time has been specified, within a reasonable time) to comply with any request made under this Schedule, b knowingly or recklessly give any information, or produce any document, which is fa

What would breach paragraph 3 of SCHEDULE 6?

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 Eritrea (Sanctions) (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
£5,000
Maximum prison (summary)
3 months

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
7 November 2012
In force from
5 December 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.

This Order gives effect in specified Overseas Territories to sanctions in respect of Eritrea adopted by the United Nations Security Council in resolution 1907 (2009), as well as exemptions to the sanctions adopted in United Nations Security Council resolution 2060 (2012). The Order also gives effect to implementation of the sanctions by the European Union in Council Decision 2010/127 CFSP, as amended. The main provisions of the sanctions in respect of Eritrea as reflected in this Order are: a prohibition in respect of the direct or indirect sale, supply or transfer to Eritrea of arms and related materiel; a prohibition on the supply to Eritrea of technical assistance, training, financial and other specified forms of assistance; a prohibition on obtaining arms and related materiel as well as technical assistance, training, financial and other specified forms of assistance from Eritrea; a freezing of funds and economic resources owned or controlled by persons or entities designated by the United Nations Security Council Committee established pursuant to United Nations Security Council resolutions 751 (1992) and 1907 (2009) concerning Somalia and Eritrea; a prohibition on making funds and economic resources available to such designated persons or entities; and a prohibition in respect of the sale, supply or transfer of arms and related materiel and the supply of technical assistance or training, financial or other assistance to such designated persons or entities.

Read the full note and every offence in this instrument

Other offences in the same 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 0.90.

Basis
the provision says “it is an offence”; the provision says an offence is committed “if” something happens
Confidence
0.90 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